DB Shenault commits to Gophers
At the end of May, Lake Park defensive back Antonio Shenault received a scholarship offer from Minnesota. Last week, he gave the Golden Gophers a verbal commitment.
‘‘ From what I have heard, Minnesota has a beautiful campus,’’ Shenault said. ‘‘ And I like the fact that they play some of the best teams in the country in the Big Ten. That’s definitely appealing.’’
When Shenault received the offer from the Gophers, he already had built a strong relationship with defensive line coach Jeff Phelps, his area recruiter. He continued to do so during the last few months.
‘‘ I’ve been talking to Minnesota for a few months now,’’ Shenault said. ‘‘ I felt like I’ve built a good relationship with coach Phelps.’’
Milan taking his time
Uncommitted Raby defensive lineman Jamal Milan is getting a lot of interest and scheduling official visits. His first official stop was Iowa State.
‘‘ Recruiting is crazy,’’ Milan said. ‘‘ Just two days ago, I had five recruiters calling me. It has been crazy because it surprised me. It surprised me when my grandma called me and said that a coach called her. She was my emergency number. That wowed me.’’
Milan can take five official visits. He already has planned trips to North Carolina and Maryland, and two more are to be determined. He also has visited Illinois and Syracuse unofficially.
Powe adds offers
Warren defensive back Jerry Powe has picked up scholarship offers from four more schools: Lehigh, Colgate, Valparaiso and Lafayette.
‘‘ Recruiting actually started off pretty slow, but now that my senior tape is going around, everything is starting to fall in place,’’ he said. Powe said he likes his options. ‘‘ I know they are really good schools academically, and that’s very important,’’ Powe said. ‘‘ When I get the chance to visit those schools, I’ll get a feel for what their football program is all about.’’
First offers out
The first scholarship offer is always a memorable one, and two area prospects recently experienced that feeling.
Loyola long snapper John Shannon picked up his first offer from Army.
‘‘ I found out about my first offer when I was driving home from practice,’’ he said. ‘‘ I was pulling into a gas station when [ Army assistant] coach [ Tucker] Waugh called me,’’ Shannon said. ‘‘ We talked for a little about my season and my academics and my interests, then he officially offered me [ a scholarship].’’
T. F. South defensive back Torian Lewis received his first offer from South Dakota State.
‘‘ It was very exciting,’’ he said. ‘‘ I didn’t really get it at first; it took awhile to settle in. I got off the phone and then started telling my family that I got an offer, and I was excited. They were excited. . . . It was kind of a relief.’’