Will Monday signs his NLI at the USA U-19 game in Austin, TX
National Signing Day has arrived, and Duke fans are wondering who will be the impact players in the class of 2011. The Blue Devils received a signing day surprise as Alabama TE David Reeves committed to Duke this morning. Blue Devil Nation's Mark Watson will have coverage today from Head Coach David Cutcliffe's press conference introducing the Duke Football Class of 2011.
Visit our Duke Football section to read recent interviews with the members of Duke's class of 2011.
DUKE FOOTBALL CLASS OF 2011
OL Matt Skura 6'3" 265 pounds Columbus, Ohio
DL Sam Marshall 6'8" 250 pounds - Fredericksburg, Virginia
DL Lucas Fisher 6'3" 245 pounds - Monroe, North Carolina
LB Britton Grier 6'2" 190 pounds - Charlotte, North Carolina
DL Mario Sanders 6'4" 220 pounds - Greer, South Carolina
LB David Helton 6'3" 225 pounds - Chattanooga, Tennessee
OL Lucas Patrick 6'3" 280 pounds - Brentwood, Tennessee
ATHJamison Crowder 5'8" 180 pounds - Monroe, North Carolina
OL Carson Ginn 6'5" 255 pounds - Belmont, North Carolina
K Will Monday 6'4" 176 pounds - Flowery Branch, Georgia
DL Kyler Brown 6'4" 210 pounds - Charlotte, North Carolina
OL Marcus Aprahamian 6'3" 300 pounds - Brookfield, Wisconsin
DBTim Burton 5'8" 155 pounds - Fort Lauderdale, Florida
DB Jared Boyd 5'9" 170 pounds - Stone Mountain, Georgia
OL Cody Robinson 6'2" 305 pounds - McMinnville, Tennessee
WR Nick Hill 6'2" 200 pounds - Nashville, Tennessee
DB Chris Tavarez 5'10" 195 pounds - Atlanta, Georgia
TE David Reeves 6'5" 245 pounds - Greensboro, Alabama
WR Blair Holliday 6'3" 195 pounds - Westlake Village, California
With national signing day approaching, football recruiting will officially transition from the class of 2011 to the class of 2012. Duke kicked off the 2012 recruiting season this past weekend with the first of two Junior Days in Durham. Over 100 prospects made the trip to campus and most came away impressed with the Blue Devil program. BDN kicks off our coverage of the class of 2012 with a series of interviews with this weekend’s visitors.
Jaleel Dukes is a 6’2” 190 pound receiver from Woodbridge, VA. After missing most of his sophomore year with an injury, Jaleel is now considered to be one of the top receivers in the state. Though it’s still early in his recruitment, Duke made a good impression during his recent visit to Durham.
BDN: Can you start off by describing the strengths and weaknesses of your game for someone who hasn’t had a chance to see you play?
My strengths are my size because I’m a bigger type of person, I’ve always been bigger. I used to play basketball so going up for the ball, I can block other people off. My weaknesses sometimes I tend to slack a little bit sometimes when I’m tired, you know, stamina issues. I’m a good route runner. I work on my routes everyday. I’m just a hard worker.
BDN: As you work this spring and summer, what are some of the goals you have for yourself individually and your team next fall?
Become a better leader on offense and defense. I want to get the most catches and the most yards in a season, that’s a really big one for me and my family. They’ve always wanted me to do that. That’s really about it. Just becoming a leader not just for my team, but for younger kids, like JV and freshmen. Becoming a role model for them since they’re new to the school.
BDN: What are the most important things you are looking for in a college?
Atmosphere and family. That’s a really big thing. I really enjoy having a family there because coming in as a freshman, you don’t really know the college style and the college life and that’d be a good place to go. Somewhere like Duke, Duke would be a really good place.
BDN: What schools have you recently heard from? Who was the first school to contact you?
WR Jaleel Dukes was in Durham for Duke's Junior Day
Clemson was the first, and Virginia Tech.
BDN: What are your plans for visits and camps?
I want to visit Duke again. I want to visit there. I want to visit North Carolina, Clemson, and Virginia Tech.
BDN: It’s still very early in the process, but ideally, when would you like to make your college decision?
I’m going to make the decision when the time is right. I’m not going to really worry about it, I’m just going to let things fall into place. I’m not going to rush anything. I don’t want to stress about it. I just want to play football and get this state title.
BDN: Is there anything else you think is important for ACC football fans to know about you?
I’m a good person. I don’t involve myself with anybody that’s going to mess my future up. I go to church, I’m a church boy, grown up in the church, so that’s a good thing.
BDN: Thanks a lot, Jaleel and best of luck to you.
With national signing day just a few days away, football recruiting will officially transition from the class of 2011 to the class of 2012. Duke kicked off the 2012 recruiting season this past weekend with the first of two Junior Days in Durham. Over 100 prospects made the trip to campus and most came away impressed with the Blue Devil program. BDN kicks off our coverage of the class of 2012 with a series of interviews with this weekend’s visitors.
C.J. Stancil is a 5’11” 185 pound athlete from Chesterfield, VA. As a junior, C.J. was named 2nd-team All District at running back. The speedy prospect visited Durham for Junior Day and came away impressed with what the program has to offer. Highlights of C.J.'s junior season can be viewed here.
BDN: Can you start off by describing the strengths and weaknesses of your game for someone who hasn’t had a chance to see you play?
Well, on defense, on the defensive side of the ball, I’m a ball-hawk. I’m always near the ball, flying to the ball and I go 100% every play. I’m very physical and I have good feet. On offense, I just like contact, also I play running back, so I like to get the ball and get in the end zone.
BDN: As you work this spring and summer, what are some of the goals you have for yourself individually and your team next fall?
My #1 goal is to make the playoffs this year. That would be a great achievement for our school because we’ve only been open for 5 or 6 years and our football team has never made the playoffs, so that would be my main goal. Individual-wise, I would like to make the All-Dominion District Team and possibly All-State. I want to win Districts too, of course, for our team. That would be good.
BDN: What are the most important things you are looking for in a college?
I’m just looking for an environment that fits me well. I’m looking for the coaches to be – to seem like they actually care about you and want the best for you, and to really know what they’re doing. I just really want the coaches – I’m not really sure exactly what I’m trying to say, but I just want an environment that fits me and feels at home to me. I could actually see that at Duke the other day. I really liked the vibe I was getting from the whole campus and the coaches and everything.
BDN: What schools have you recently heard from? Who was the first school to contact you?
Duke has contacted me, UVA and Rutgers were some of the first one. U of R [Richmond] came by the school, Virginia Tech also came by the school, and Liberty, a 1-AA school. That’s about it. Those are pretty much the schools I’m considering. I’ve also heard from Wake Forest through the mail, and Tulsa and Missouri, but those were only through the mail.
BDN: What are your plans for visits and camps?
No doubt. I’m trying to get out to a lot of the junior days. I’m going to UVA’s junior day, I’m going to U of R’s junior day. Those are coming up pretty soon. I’m looking to go to Wake Forest too, maybe.
BDN: It’s still very early in the process, but ideally, when would you like to make your college decision?
I would definitely like to take my time in my decision. Probably towards the end of the season. I don’t want to be too quick in my decision.
BDN: Is there anything else you think is important for ACC football fans to know about you?
My grades are very good in school. I take pride in my grades and try to keep those up because I know that’s important. I haven’t decided what I want to study yet, I just want to keep my options open.
Game 21 [3 AP / 3 Coaches] Duke (19-1, 6-1 ACC) vs. St. John's (11-8, 4-5 Big East) Sunday, Jan. 30, 2011 * 1:00 p.m.
Opening Tip
* Duke (19-1, 6-1 ACC) faces St. John's (11-8, 4-5 Big East) on Sunday, Jan. 30 at Madison Square Garden. Tipoff is set for 1:00 p.m.
* The game is being televised by CBS with Verne Lundquist (play-by-play) and Clark Kellogg (analyst) calling the action.
* Duke is ranked No. 3 in the AP Poll and ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, while St. John's is unranked in both polls.
* The Blue Devils' 19-1 record matches the best start in program history. Duke has now opened the season 19-1 nine times.
* Duke has won 37 of the last 39 games entering Sunday's game with St. John's. * The Blue Devils have won 10 of their last 14 games against Big East opponents. Duke-St. John's Series History
* Duke has won the last seven meetings and leads the all-time series 14-5.
* The Blue Devils have won five of the last seven games by 10 or more points.
* Duke has won six of eight games, including three straight, at Madison Square Garden.
* Duke has won 14 of the 16 meetings under Mike Krzyzewski. Duke at Madison Square Garden
* Duke is 25-14 all-time, including a 20-6 mark under Mike Krzyzewski, at Madison Square Garden.
* The Blue Devils have won five straight and 12 of their last 13 games at MSG. Numbers Game
* Duke has scored 80 or more points in 15 games this season. The Blue Devils have won 30 consecutive games when scoring 80+ points. Duke is 497-46 under Coach K when scoring 80 or more points in a game.
* The Blue Devils have had at least one player score 20 or more points in 15 straight games.
* Duke has had seven different players score 20 or more points in a game; marking the fourth time in school history a Blue Devil team has had seven 20-point scorers.
* The Blue Devils are averaging 40.1 rebounds in eight January games. Duke has outrebounded the opposition in seven of the eight games this month and 14 times overall.
* Nolan Smith is attempting to become the first player in ACC history to lead the league in scoring and assists. Smith is currently averaging 20.5 points and 5.7 assists per game. He is one of four players in the NCAA averaging over 20.0 points and 5.0 assists per game.
* Mason Plumlee has raised his rebound average an ACC-best 5.7 rebounds per game from a year ago. He ranks fourth in the ACC in rebounding at 8.8 rpg. and has grabbed 10 or more rebounds 10 times this season, including each of the last five games.
* Ryan Kelly is averaging 13.3 points and 5.3 rebounds, while shooting 76.9 percent (20-of-26) from the field and 80.0 percent (8-of-10) from three-point range over the last four games. He made 18 consecutive field goal attempts during that stretch, the second-longest streak in Duke history.
* Kyle Singler is 21 points shy of moving into the top 20 on the ACC scoring list. He enters Sunday's game with 2,124 career points.
As signing day approaches, Head Coach David Cutcliffe and the Duke coaching staff are looking to hold onto each of their 20 current verbal commitments and hoping to add another impact player or two to the class of 2011. This past weekend, the Blue Devils hosted four of their current verbal commitments in Lucas Patrick, Blair Holliday, David Helton, and Jamison Crowder. BDN checked in with the visitors to get their thoughts on the visit to Durham and the Duke program.
In recent years, Duke has had a lot of success in recruiting and developing talented wide receivers in Durham, most notably All-ACC performers Eron Riley, Donovan Varner, and Conner Vernon. Current wide receivers coach Matt Lubick hopes to continue that trend, and secured a commitment back in August from Blair Holliday, a 6’3” wide receiver from Westlake Village, California. We last spoke with Blair just before his California sectional championship game in early December, and since that time, several PAC-10 programs have come calling, including UCLA.
BDN: I think since we last talked you played in a pretty exciting football game. Can you tell us a little about the game and the wild finish?
I guess it just lived up to all the hype. With them [Westlake] being so close, with them beating us the first game, the bragging rights that they thought that they had, and we got that redemption to play them again a second time for the championship. We were fired up and I’ll probably say that was the most exciting game of my life, biggest play I’ve ever made, biggest thing I’ve ever really done in my life was making that play. It was actually supposed to be a pass, but our guy was covered up so I just decided to take off and run it, and I got in. I guess the rest is history.
BDN: Can you talk a little bit about how your official visit went to Duke and let us hear your thoughts on your trip to Durham?
It was great. Like I said, when I first went there I felt like I belonged there and like it was home. That was just from – I wouldn’t say an outsider’s perspective on the school, but that’s the closest thing I can say to it. But going there and taking the official, meeting the guys on the team, going out with them – it just clicked that that was where I needed to be. I found the guy I want to room with when I go out there. It was a really great time, like I said, I talked to the guys, told me how it is being there, how practices go, how school life goes, just how everything goes. I just felt like I fit perfectly in that situation, that place, that environment.
BDN: Who were some of the players that you were able to spend time with?
My host was Brandon Braxton. I don’t know many of the last names. Dezmond Johnson, I hung out with him. Again I don’t know last names, but I remember Isaac [Blakeney], Braxton [Deaver], and a lot of different guys. When I was there, David Helton was on the trip too and we hung out. He’s a fun guy so we talked about rooming and by the end of the trip we felt like we wanted to room together when school started or when we get out there and practice started.
BDN: I know some other schools have been recruiting you and with signing day coming up, can you clarify what your plans are?
I’m 100% on Duke. As soon as the letter is sent, I’ll be signing it.
BDN: That’s great. I really appreciate your call and getting to catch up with you. Best of luck with basketball season and the rest of your senior year.
Yeah, I appreciate it. Thanks a lot.
Blair’s game-winning two-point conversion in the final minute of the championship game was awarded the 2010 Play of the Year by calihighsports.com.
Since Head Coach David Cutcliffe’s arrival in Durham, there are two areas where Duke has performed particularly well. First, the Blue Devils’ prolific passing offenses have featured a group of All-ACC caliber receivers, led by players like Donovan Varner and Conner Vernon. Second, Duke has started to recruit well in Tennessee, signing players such as Conor Irwin and Dez Johnson. The Blue Devils hope these trends continue in 2011, and 6’2” Nick Hill, a 2010 TSWA All-State receiver from Nashville, TN seems to fit the bill. A physical receiver who runs a 4.5 second 40-yard dash, Hill has the speed and skills that should thrive in Cutcliffe’s pass-oriented offense. Hill committed to Duke in July after attending several college camps and receiving interest from multiple FBS programs. With signing day quickly approaching, BDN checked in with the talented receiver to get his thoughts on his senior season and the Duke program.
BDN: Can you give us a brief recap of your senior season?
This year, my senior year, it went pretty good. We made it to the quarterfinals. I think we had a lot shorter, well we probably should have made it to state, but we kind of got robbed. As far as an individual standpoint, I feel I did the best I could for the team. I had maybe 26 catches for about 600 or 650 yards and 7 touchdowns. I helped develop the other receiver, helped him get a lot better this year. I was receiving a lot of double and triple coverage and that helped him get on his road so hopefully he can do his thing next year. And that’s about it for this year.
BDN: What were some of the things you worked on this season to help prepare you for college?
Well, really, going hard in practice, we as receivers, because my junior year, a friend of mine that played on the football team with us passed away. Really now in practice we just go all out because you never know when it’s going to be your last play. We just tried to work hard every day in practice and give it all we had.
BDN: I know you’ve had a chance to visit Duke a couple times now. What are your thoughts on the Duke program and the season they had?
I think the coaching staff – well I really like them, that’s the first thing that stood out to me was the coaching staff. They’re real down to earth and family oriented. When I first met Coach Cutcliffe, I felt like he was a straightforward guy. He wasn’t just trying to feed me what I wanted to hear, but he was telling me the truth about how he felt about things and I really admire him for that.
Duke WR prospect Nick Hill makes a catch
BDN: You mentioned that Coach Roper recently visited you; what have you talked about with the coaching staff and what do you expect your role to be at Duke?
They see me as a big addition. They said that I’ll be able to help them win ball games. That’s the main thing. I want to help Duke win ball games and help out the passing game a little bit. Basically, I want to do whatever I can, whatever they need me to do to help the team win.
BDN: What are your plans between now and when you enroll at Duke next summer?
I’ll probably run track. We’re two-time state champions in that, so I’ll probably run track again this year.
BDN: That sounds great. Thanks a lot for your time, Nick. Enjoy the rest of your senior year and good luck in Durham.
You must be logged in to post a comment.