Friday Night Highlights: FSU commit will visit for LSU game

We discussed the possibility of it happening earlier in the summer and now it has come to fruition. Three-star running back Charles Strong has announced that he will officially visit Ole Miss the weekend of October 21st for the LSU game. Florida recruiting analyst Corey Bender tweeted yesterday that Strong now has his five official visits picked out and that he knows for sure that he will head north for the Magnolia Bowl.

Earlier this summer, Strong came to Oxford for the Rebels’ Elite Camp and ended up staying the entire weekend. He participated in drills with running backs coach Derrick Nix and seemed to enjoy his time in Oxford during that July weekend. But, it’s going to be tough to pull the No. 28 running back away from Jimbo Fisher and the Noles, especially with the NCAA decision looming.

The 6’1, 230-pound running back who can move like a 185-pounder has been somewhat of a unicorn for Ole Miss in recruiting as of late. Ole Miss has certainly been able to recruit guys that are impressive on paper, but nothing has matriculated on the field to reflect that. Through four games, Strong has run for 776 yards, nine touchdowns and is averaging 9.6 yards per carry. If the COI gives a favorable punishment and Ole Miss makes the “right hire”, Strong could potentially flip with the chance of being a feature back and bell cow of the 2018 class.

Kevin Doyle is no longer on the QB board. So who is?

Despite the 247Sports Crystal Ball favoring the Rebs for months, three-star pro-style quarterback Kevin Doyle from Washington, D.C. committed to Michigan over the weekend. Rebel Grove’s Russell Johnson tweeted the news out Sunday afternoon that Doyle was now a Wolverine commit and one would assume it’s time for Ole Miss to move on and start taking this QB search a little more serious.

I spoke with Johnson and he fully expects the Rebs to focus on two particular targets moving forward. He released his quarterback target hot board and those two are at the top of the list.

“Gatewood is obviously No. 1,” Johnson said. “Ole Miss’ hope is to flip him from Auburn since they are pursuing other quarterbacks. Bohanon has the athleticism and is the type of athlete Ole Miss could use in the future, but he has considerably slowed his recruitment down.”

Four-star Gerry Bohanon is a known commodity around these parts. The Earle, Ark. native has visited Oxford and is seemingly down to Arkansas, Baylor, Louisville and Ole Miss. The 6’3, 211-pound Elite 11 finalist is an outstanding athlete and would be a dangerous weapon in any spread offense, regardless of the coordinator.

Bohanon has been battling some injuries earlier in the year but didn’t skip a beat this past week, completing 14-of-19 passes for 320 yards and five touchdowns. That’s some daggum efficiency right there. Bartram Trail’s Gatewood has done more of the same this season, he has completed 33 of 47 passes in three games for 506 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions. He’s also toted it for 275 yards rushing and three touchdowns while averaging a decent 7.1 yards per carry.

Four-star Joey Gatewood has been committed to Auburn since December of 2015 and could be still looking around at this time. The No. 3 athlete in the country is essentially a Cam Newton clone (6’4, 232-pounds) and has a similar game to boot. The Elite 11 finalist and Under Armour All-American would be a phenomenal get for Ole Miss who is desperately trying to salvage this 2018 class AND find someone to replace former five-star Shea Patterson.

Another name to keep an eye on moving forward is Gatewood’s teammate, Riley Smith. He is the backup but is a three-star quarterback himself who is hearing from Florida State, Ole Miss and Stanford, according to Johnson.

“He camped at Ole Miss this summer and loved it,” Johnson said. “He could possibly commit within 24 hours if Ole Miss were to offer.”

The 6’5, 210-pound quarterback doesn’t get much playing time being behind Gatewood, but he has gotten the attention of the big name programs mentioned above as well as other offers from Brown, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, FAU, Harvard, Liberty, Princeton, South Alabama, UAB, and Yale among others.

Andy Kennedy hosted a four-star guard over the weekend.

After getting his second commit in as many weeks, A.K. hosted four-star point guard Alex Lomax in Oxford during football’s bye week. The East High School product out of Memphis has long been rumored to either stay home and play home for Tubby Smith or head to the midwest and play for Wichita State, but now things are a bit interesting with his trek to the Velvet Ditch.

The nation’s No. 26 point guard is a 5’11, 189-pound floor general that commands the offense well and is the type of guard every coach covets. He is a one through and through that plays very physical off the dribble. Lomax released a top six in August that included Florida, Memphis, Missouri, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt and Wichita State.

The Memphis guard is a tough kid who is a facilitator first who can also lock you down with some airtight defense. He would certainly be a very good get for Kennedy who will be looking to spell Breein Tyree and Devontae Shuler in order to keep the pace up and ensure his guards are fresh.

Friend of the Cup, Herbert Moore, knows the deal.