'14 FL WR Isaiah McKenzie ( Georgia ¯\_(ツ)_/¯)

[wizards8507]

And the beat goes on da da dum da dum.

 

[Luckylucci]

Erik Brown is my guess. We've openly told him that there were a couple guys ahead of him on the board and that if when they were to decided elsewhere he'd be next in line. According to Loy and Wiltfong he's always been ok with that.

 

[Emcee77]

anyone want to guess who the committed to another school prospect is?

Erik Brown is a good guess. We know that he has had high ND interest since early in the cycle. I guess I always saw him as more of a replacement for Quick than a replacement for IM though.

 

[dwshade]

Any guesses on this other prospect who would flip?

 

[Grahambo]

anyone want to guess who the committed to another school prospect is?

Oh yay...a game to pass the time...

 

[irishfan]

WOW dynamite update from Loy ...

Alford will swing by today after seeing Holmes and spend a few hours with McKenzie and see where he is and whether he is up for the rigors of ND. Today's visit will determine whether Isaiah takes his ND official and signs with ND or visits VT and signs there, basically. Loy doesn't think Ole Miss or UF are factors.

Apparently we have checked in with other offensive-playmaker prospects to gauge interest, and if Isaiah chooses to visit VT, we will seek to bring someone else in for a visit this weekend. Loy knows of one prospect committed elsewhere who is VERY interested.

Do we know if Loy is just thinking of someone who could be interested (Erik Brown), or is he talking about someone who the staff has already reached out to?

 

[md_bennett]

Loy is hearing that Alford will be down in FL to see IM today, and depending on how that conversation goes we should really know whether or not he will be in the class based on whether or not he visits.

If he does not visit ND, ND will move on, and Loy is reporting ND has already reached out to potential prospects that could take his spot.

He even heard that one prospect committed elsewhere is VERY interested in that spot and could flip immediately if IM falls through and the spot opens for him.

Stay tuned....

Any thoughts on the backup plan here? I have not seen to many people we have had much contact with that fit that fold except for Nelson who just committed to Oregon.

 

[wizards8507]

Erik Brown is my guess. We've openly told him that there were a couple guys ahead of him on the board and that if when they were to decided elsewhere he'd be next in line. According to Loy and Wiltfong he's always been ok with that.

Hm. Sounds like a level-headed RKG. Is IM sufficiently superior where dealing with the headaches is even worth it?

 

[Emcee77]

Hm. Sounds like a level-headed RKG. Is IM sufficiently superior where dealing with the headaches is even worth it?

Yeah, they aren't really the same player. Erik Brown is a good athlete and a good WR prospect in the T.J. Jones mold, but I'd like to see sharper cuts and a little more make-ya-miss.

Basically, he's not the sort of dynamic playmaker with the ball in his hands that IM is.

But now that I think of it, I don't think I ever saw Brown's senior film, so I could be wrong.

 

[PANDFAN]

Erik Brown is my guess. We've openly told him that there were a couple guys ahead of him on the board and that if when they were to decided elsewhere he'd be next in line. According to Loy and Wiltfong he's always been ok with that.

spot on w/ guess.....erik brown even mentioned that he was SHUTTING down his recruitment and wouldn't talk w/ other coaches however he did admit that he still had contact w/ ND.

back from 12/13/2013--this was from intel when he stated he has shut down his recruitment

Brown and Denbrock are still in contact and Brown has no problem waiting to see if a spot will open up. If he gets the green light to commit, Loy expects him to be Irish.

 

[Luckylucci]

Hm. Sounds like a level-headed RKG. Is IM sufficiently superior where dealing with the headaches is even worth it?

IMO, McKenzie is a special talent that Erik may not be. However, so was Aaron Lynch and look what he ended up accomplishing at the collegiate level. He could've been great, maybe better than Clowney but didn't have his head in the right spot. I know that doesn't really answer your question but its more of a personal opinion thing than a hard answer.

 

[Emcee77]

Any thoughts on the backup plan here? I have not seen to many people we have had much contact with that fit that fold except for Nelson who just committed to Oregon.

Hmm, I wonder if Nelson is the guy, and he just committed to Oregon to save a spot? Just speculating.

 

[gkIrish]

IMO if Erik Brown is willing to flip right now then let's move on regardless of what IM wants and avoid any potential long-term issues.

 

[IrishLion]

Any guesses on this other prospect who would flip?

Bo Scarborough

 

[Emcee77]

Btw, Loy just posted that he doesn't know who the mystery recruit is. His source told him that ND has a prospect committed elsewhere very interested in flipping, but he doesn't know the name yet. As soon as he gets it, he'll report it.

 

[bobbyok1]

Hm. Sounds like a level-headed RKG. Is IM sufficiently superior where dealing with the headaches is even worth it?

My thinking has been going down the same track. I have tried to give IM the benefit of the doubt for some time now, but I'm to the point where I'd be ready to move on. Now I know we don't have all the details of IM's recruitment and he is a 18 yr old kid, blah, blah, blah. I get all that, so no need for anyone to bother with those arguments. Just saying, he seems like he can't make up his mind. If there is another guy who is ear his abilities and is ready to switch to ND, I say pull the plug after the Alford visit if he still is "undecided", wish him the best and move on.

 

[woolybug25]

IMO if Erik Brown is willing to flip right now then let's move on regardless of what IM wants and avoid any potential long-term issues.

As you guys know, i'm not in the same boat with thoughts on McKenzie. I like him, see no issues with how he is handling the process, etc.... that being said... If Erik Bown wants to hop on the bus, give him McKenzie's ticket.

 

[gkIrish]

BTW it seems like Loy has been on top of his shit lately. Quantity + Quality. Gotta give him props.

 

[Emcee77]

Do we know if Loy is just thinking of someone who could be interested (Erik Brown), or is he talking about someone who the staff has already reached out to?

It's someone the staff has already reached out to.

 

[Huntr]

IMO if Erik Brown is willing to flip right now then let's move on regardless of what IM wants and avoid any potential long-term issues.

meh, it's BK's headache, not mine. If they think sticking on IM for another day or 2 is worth it, that's their business. I'm just here to watch.

 

[IrishLion]

I know it's a matter of opinion, and Erik Brown is a fantastic prospect. But why do you guys think the coaching staff is so invested in IM if "the risk isn't worth it."

Just a matter of playing style?

 

[Luckylucci]

meh, it's BK's headache, not mine. If they think sticking on IM for another day or 2 is worth it, that's their business. I'm just here to watch.

The questioned posed makes sense because its not just the next day or two. Its does he actually stick it out for 4 years. Would we have rather had Aaron Lynch for 1 or another DE that could be starting next year for 4. Would we rather have Erik Brown for 4-5 years or maybe IM for 1-2. Its all hypothetical but with what we've seen its a good convo to have. In fact, thats exactly what the ND staff is trying to do right now. Gut check time, are you in or out? This is what it takes to attend ND and do you want to be a part of that?

 

[palinurus]

'cause I know you are wondering:

http://www.irishenvy.com/forums/2014-recruiting-profiles/132929-14-ca-wr-erik-brown-cal-verbal.html

 

[JughedJones]

IMO if Erik Brown is willing to flip right now then let's move on regardless of what IM wants and avoid any potential long-term issues.

word up

 

[Grahambo]

As was pointed out, could also be a smoke screen.

 

[woolybug25]

Loy is hearing that Alford will be down in FL to see IM today, and depending on how that conversation goes we should really know whether or not he will be in the class based on whether or not he visits.

If he does not visit ND, ND will move on, and Loy is reporting ND has already reached out to potential prospects that could take his spot.

He even heard that one prospect committed elsewhere is VERY interested in that spot and could flip immediately if IM falls through and the spot opens for him.

Stay tuned....

I know we are thinking Brown, but the more I think about it, could this be Nelson?

I know he committed to Oregon, but his offer was always seemingly dependant on IM. Did he commit to Oregon because the staff told him that IM was a take? If he now wasn't, would we be his choice over Oregon?

Don't know. Honestly, between the two... I would take Brown over Nelson all day.

 

[Huntr]

The questioned posed makes sense because its not just the next day or two. Its does he actually stick it out for 4 years. Would we have rather had Aaron Lynch for 1 or another DE that could be starting next year for 4. Would we rather have Erik Brown for 4-5 years or maybe IM for 1-2. Its all hypothetical but with what we've seen its a good convo to have. In fact, thats exactly what the ND staff is trying to do right now. Gut check time, are you in or out? This is what it takes to attend ND and do you want to be a part of that?

Well, yeah, sort of. But, look at what I replied to. "Basically, "pull his offer right now, let's move on." Alford is visiting him. That visit is going to determine a lot and will probably boil down to just what you said.

Gut check time, are you in or out? This is what it takes to attend ND and do you want to be a part of that?

I'm simply willing to let them make that visit.

 

[Emcee77]

I know we are thinking Brown, but the more I think about it, could this be Nelson?

I know he committed to Oregon, but his offer was always seemingly dependant on IM. Did he commit to Oregon because the staff told him that IM was a take? If he now wasn't, would we be his choice over Oregon?

Don't know. Honestly, between the two... I would take Brown over Nelson all day.

I think this is totally plausible. And it makes more sense in the sense that Nelson fits more closely the role McKenzie was intended to play. We'll just see, I guess. Or not, depending on what IM does.

 

[woolybug25]

I think you read it right. My question is that there are plenty of people saying "I'll take Brown over IM at this moment," whereas the staff still wants IM more than the other recruit (we don't even know if it is Brown, though he makes the most sense). Is it because the staff simply wants a player with IM's specialties over another TJ Jones clone?

If I could have either, then yeah... I would take McKenzie. But that's not what we are saying. What we are saying is that Brown is ready to commit, then we would take that over the "hope" that IM will commit and stay. It's just a simple risk analysis.

Btw... if either player turned into TJ Jones, we would be all stoked. TJ is a great player, so I would be ecstatic if we could "clone" him.

 

[Big23Head]

I know we are thinking Brown, but the more I think about it, could this be Nelson?

I know he committed to Oregon, but his offer was always seemingly dependant on IM. Did he commit to Oregon because the staff told him that IM was a take? If he now wasn't, would we be his choice over Oregon?

Don't know. Honestly, between the two... I would take Brown over Nelson all day.

Nelson's reactions and interviews toward ND never gave me the impression he would "possibly flip immediately" but Brown's did. Maybe Nelson's tune changed after visits though and he fits the mold better.