Sabre Edge Features 
Notes: Two Commits Down, One More to Come?
Recruiting Analyst
Feb 03, 2009
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Morgan Moses |
Moses will decide tomorrow, Monarchs head coach Bill Bowles confirmed to TheSabre last night, and the finalists are North Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia. Should he choose the in-state school, he would immediately become the most highly rated prospect in UVa's 2009 class. Stay tuned for more tomorrow, as we plan to be on hand for Moses' announcement.
Moses' recruitment has been a roller coaster ride, so nothing would surprise me tomorrow. I do, however, expect the choice will come down to Virginia and UNC. If I had to guess I'd go with the home-state school, but nothing would surprise me.
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Smith is UVa's 24th commitment...
Virginia is hoping to land commitment number 25 tomorrow. Commitment number 24 pledged this past weekend and he is 6-5, 195-pound Bobby Smith, Varina's go-to-receiver in the 2008 season. Smith committed to Virginia over offers from Bowling Green and Delaware. He had committed to the Blue Hens before receiving and accepting the Cavaliers offer this past Saturday.
"I wanted to play for the best possible football program I could," Smith said. "Both programs are good academically, but UVa has the better program. I wanted to play at a high level. I know I'm a Division 1A athlete."
Smith hauled in 52 receptions for 1,004 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2008, helping the Blue Devils to an undefeated season and a region championship. It was a stellar season for Smith, who says he worked very hard on his game this past off-season.
"My strength is definitely my size. I think that gives me a big advantage," Smith said. "I also move fast for a guy my size. I'm faster than most big guys, but I do want to improve my speed. I'll get faster on the next level."
Smith also has worked very hard in the classroom, improving to the point where he can enroll at UVa with the rest of the 2009 class. Before the latest round of grades came out, the Cavaliers had pursued the talented wide receiver with the idea that he would attend prep school if an offer came.
"I talked to Coach Groh for an hour about that," Smith said. "He said my progress has been excellent and that no prep school is needed. I just need to maintain the track I'm on now."
Smith is looking forward to the opportunity of playing under new offensive coordinator Gregg Brandon.
"I'm real excited about the new offense. It has a lot of 5-wide receiver sets, so it is a good opportunity for me to prove myself," Smith said. "I also like Coach Scott. He is a real person. He cares about you as a person. I like him a lot."
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Jarrett decides on Virginia...
6-0, 180-pound place-kicker Drew Jarrett has accepted Virginia's recruited walk-on offer, choosing the Cavaliers over James Madison and Virginia Tech. The decision was a tough one for Jarrett, who grew up a big-time Tech fan.
"It was a tough decision, but I think I arrived at a good decision," Jarrett said.
"When I was a little kid, I grew up a Tech fan. This is kind of strange. I'm going to have to burn Virginia Tech out of my brain. But I learned more and more about the situations and I figured out UVa was where I needed to be. It is in the best interest of my career and post football.
Jarrett had been leaning towards Virginia for several days, saying, "I had a couple of doubts because I had strong feelings for the Tech football program. That really was the one issue holding me back from going ahead and committing. The money at JMU gave me second thoughts as well, but I figured UVa would pay off in the end."
Virginia head coach Al Groh received the call yesterday.
"He was the first person I called," Jarrett said. "I figured the head coach should know first. He is really a business man. He runs things kind of tight, or at least that is how it seems. He has his stuff together. He seemed glad to get me to help propel his whole plan into motion."
Jarrett owns the South Hampton Roads high school football record for most field goals in a career with 29. He booted 12 field goals as a senior, earning first-team all-district, first-team all-Tidewater and first-team all-state honors for his senior season performance. He also earned first-team all-district honors as a punter, but Virginia is recruiting him as a place-kicker.
Should he win the starting job, Jarrett would be on scholarship next January. He isn't wasting any time in preparing for the upcoming season.
"The off-season is where I really push myself," Jarrett said. "A big issue for me is to put on more weight so I can get more power. It is not that I don't have the distance, but if I can get better I should. I'm in a weight gain lifting program and I gained five pounds this last month. Hopefully, I'll be able to gain more power as a result."
Early last fall, Jarrett had his father, mother and sister write where they thought he would end up going to college. The envelopes were sealed until a decision came.
"The only person who got it right was my younger sister," Jarrett said with a laugh.
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