In order to prepare you for the 2009 fantasy college football season properly we have invested more time than usual following the recruiting scene, and no one has stepped up more than Jason Roberts. Jason begins his survey of the top five freshman expected at QB, RB and WR – and that equals the dreaded “Freshman 15″.

Bryce Brown, courtesy of VarsityKansas.com

Bryce Brown, RB, Uncommitted [Miami (FL) or Oregon or Tennessee]

Brown still hasn’t made a final decision as to whether he’ll remain at the University of Miami or, instead, reverse commitments and head out to Eugene, Oregon to play for Mike Bellotti. Reports heading into January (as reported by ESPN) suggest, as Brown himself told reporters, “It is safe to say that Oregon has got the edge by a little bit.” Still, at the one week anniversary of National Signing Day, no announcement had been made out of the youngster’s camp, and his personal website says to expect an announcement on March 12 (yes, subscription required)

The University of Miami (Florida) initially picked up a somewhat surprising commitment from one of the best running back recruits available in the Class of 2009 in Wichita, Kansas’ East High School’s Brown. A stunning combination of power and speed, Brown, who rushed for 6809 yards in his high school career, has the physical build to be a workhorse out of the Hurricanes’ backfield – and this regardless of whether running on the inside or bouncing outside to the corner. Scouts love his low center of gravity, a characteristic which should make it nearly impossible for opposing defenders to bring Brown down with any degree of easy; so too have evaluators had favorable things to say about his ability to catch the ball off a screen pass or as an intermediary target downfield.

He’s a sound student of the game and can pick up a blitz in pass protection with a level of comfort equal to his ability to run with the ball. Some concerns exist with his ability to dodge defenders out in open space, as well as the caliber of competition he faced in Wichita, Kansas, but there are enough tangibles embodied by Brown to make him a highly-sought after prize.

Read about the rest of Jason’s Freshmen 15 Rb like Trent Richardson and Jamaal Berry.

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Matt Barkley

In order to prepare you for the 2009 fantasy college football season properly we have invested more time than usual following the recruiting scene, and no one has stepped up more than Jason Roberts. Jason begins his survey of the top five freshman expected at QB, RB and WR – and that equals the dreaded “Freshman 15″.

Matt Barkley, QB, University of Southern California

Believed to be the undisputed #1 recruit for the class of 2009 , Barkley committed to the University of Southern California while still a junior at Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California. The first freshman to start at quarterback for Mater Dei since Todd Marinovich walked its storied halls (Matt Leinart and Colt Brennan are also Mater Dei QB alumni), Barkley impressed by throwing for 1685 yards and 10 touchdowns in his first year as a starter. By the end of his junior season, Barkley had thrown for 6594 yards and 57 touchdowns, with a majority coming off an outstanding 2007 performance in which he passed for 3576 yards and 35 touchdowns, all the while completing 63% of his passes. As a senior, Barkley struggled passing for nearly as many interceptions as he had touchdowns, and barely kept his Monarchs above the .500 mark. Mater Dei rallied, however, in no small part to Barkley’s leadership, and made it as far as the quarterfinals in the 2008 high school playoffs. In doing so, Barkley ended his high school career as the all-time passing leader in Orange County and accumulated a number of prestigious awards and recognitions for his abilities, including the 2007 Gatorade National Player of the Year, 2007 Glenn Davis Award, and 2007 Joe Montana Award. He also participated in the 2009 Under Armour All-American High School Football Game in Orlando, Florida, where he produced a game-high 237 yards passing and two touchdowns as the contest’s co-MVP. Read the rest of this entry →

The following are links to some articles highlighting the recruiting hordes from the major fantasy college football programs (pasted from my delicious feed).

Rivals.com Football Recruiting – Top five impact freshmen

wait, both Ole Miss and Mississippi State on the Top 25? My eyes are deceiving me, no?

Four teams could claim top recruiting class

LSU, Alabama, Ohio State and USC. The top recruits in LSU’s class include 6-foot-3 Rueben Randle of Bastrop, LA rated as the No. 1 wide receiver and QB Russell Shepard of Houston – Bloomberg.com: North American

Gators have small but impressive recruiting class

I saw DeBose and Jelani Jenkins at the Under Armour HS All-AMerican Game, I was very impressed by both. DeBose could be the freshman fantasy player of the year – St. Petersburg Times

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Fantasy College Blitz post-game interviews from the Under Armour All-American High School football game in Orlando, January 4 2009.

Moses Alipate (left, photo by Jason Roberts) committed early to Minnesota, one of the biggest recruits landed by second-year coach Tim Brewster. Alipate (pronounced All-uh-PAH-tay) also has a lot of respect for other coaches on the squad as you will hear in this interview.

alipate_interview

(Feel free to use as long as you attribute Fantasy College Blitz as the source)

Other Under Armour Game interviews:

Interview with Florida WR Andre Dubose

Interview with USC QB Matt Barkley

Interview with Miami (FL) S Ray Ray Armstrong

Ray Ray Armstrong

Fantasy College Blitz post-game interviews from the Under Armour All-American High School football game in Orlando, January 4 2009.

Ray Ray Armstrong played every position but the line on both sides of the ball for Seminole High (near Orlando FL) but projects at safety at the next level – and that level will start in Coral Gables with the Miami Hurricanes.

Enjoy his interview here. armstrong_interview

(Feel free to use as long as you attribute Fantasy College Blitz as the source, photo courtesy of Jason Roberts)

Other Under Armour Game interviews:

Interview with Florida WR Andre Dubose

Interview with USC QB Matt Barkley

Interview with Minnesota QB Moses Alipate