M
Mars" One of the things that jumps out about the 2010 class is there are no junior college transfers in the bunch. With Scott Johnson graduating, Craig Bills leaving on a mission and Shiloah Te'o being kicked off the team last fall, the coaching staff had been indicating they were looking for some JC help to fill that need at safety. As it turned out, though, a couple of freshmen -- Jordan Johnson (who has been regarded as a cornerback) and Kori Gaines -- in this class could play safety next fall.
"After looking at Jordan Johnson more, even though our assessment at first was as a corner, he's similar to Brian Logan in that he's short, but he's not little," said Mendenhall. "He's physical, he's quick and he's smart. He could be a player who could play safety for us rather than corner.
We also signed Kori Gaines out of Georgia, who played at the highest level of football there and was a three-year starter. He won't impress you by his stature, but his knowledge of the game, maybe his headiness and football knowledge, we started to believe he may be better prepared than maybe even a junior college player would be in terms of level of play he's had and the quality of coaching he's received. We ended up being confident with both of those choices rather than considering a junior college player." "http://www.deseretnews.com/blog/19/10008238/BYU-Cougars-blog-More-BYU-recruiting-tidbits.html?linkTrack=rss-blog
I'm loving the potential the coaches see in these two kids. BYU usually doesn't recruit anyone from Georgia or Massachusetts, but these kids stood out enough that friends of the program picked up the phone and made calls to BYU to come out and see for themselves.
Basically, our coaches are saying that both of these kids are potentially good enough to start at Corner Back OR Safety here during their 4 years. There were JC kids at both CB and S that BYU looked at but didn't end up offering, because they already found these two guys. Plus with their speed, quickness, and shiftiness, I wouldn't be shocked to see either break into the punt/kick return business sooner or later.
"After looking at Jordan Johnson more, even though our assessment at first was as a corner, he's similar to Brian Logan in that he's short, but he's not little," said Mendenhall. "He's physical, he's quick and he's smart. He could be a player who could play safety for us rather than corner.
We also signed Kori Gaines out of Georgia, who played at the highest level of football there and was a three-year starter. He won't impress you by his stature, but his knowledge of the game, maybe his headiness and football knowledge, we started to believe he may be better prepared than maybe even a junior college player would be in terms of level of play he's had and the quality of coaching he's received. We ended up being confident with both of those choices rather than considering a junior college player." "
I'm loving the potential the coaches see in these two kids. BYU usually doesn't recruit anyone from Georgia or Massachusetts, but these kids stood out enough that friends of the program picked up the phone and made calls to BYU to come out and see for themselves.
Basically, our coaches are saying that both of these kids are potentially good enough to start at Corner Back OR Safety here during their 4 years. There were JC kids at both CB and S that BYU looked at but didn't end up offering, because they already found these two guys. Plus with their speed, quickness, and shiftiness, I wouldn't be shocked to see either break into the punt/kick return business sooner or later.