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Recruiting has really picked up recently, as Head Coach Al Golden looks to start a new era at the “U”. Several players who were never recruited under Randy Shannon’s regime are now back in the picture for the canes.

Over the next few weeks HSN will try to give you a better look at some of the new targets Miami has on their wish list, including a number of out of state kids and quarterback prospects.

Here are a number of possible visits set up in January. All of these are not offical, but we will try to get you as much information on these players as possible. Remember to keep in mind that originally Miami was going to sign no more than 15-17 kids now that number has easily jumped into the 20′s.

January 8
OT: Taylor Gadbois
LB: Nick Menocal
WR: Devin Lucien
DB: Cortez Davis
RB: Marlin Lane

January 14
CB: Dallas Crawford
WR: Devin Lucien
DT: John Jenkins
QB: Jacoby Brissett

January 21
CB: Rashad Wadood
CB: Byron Moore
S/WR: Marqise Lee
WR: George Farmer
WR: Kelvin Benjamin
WR: Patrick Onwuasor
DT: Marquis Wright
DT: David Moala
DT: Lonnie Gosha
DE: Anthony Chickillo
DE: Jason Gibson
DE: Greg Townsend Jr.
TE/DE: Bryant Dubose
TE: Andrew Peterson
LB: Denzel Perryman
P: Dalton Botts
OT: Antonio Richardson

January 28
CB: Dominique Terrell
WR: Phillip Dorsett
LB: Antonio Poole
DE: Ricardo Williams
DT: Antwaun Woods

Kyle Blank – Owner

http://hurricanesportsnation.com/

Hurricane Sports Nation

The big 6 foot 6, 215lbs wide receiver  is going to select his home for the next four years this Thursday.

Benjamin has narrowed his choices down to three schools. Florida, Miami, and Florida st. Benjamin had 30 catches for 551 yards accounting for 6 touchdowns.

Benjamin is the No.2 prospect in Palm Beach county behind Nick O’leary.

His former Coach Jessie Hester (who got fired as the head football coach), indicated that his prized receiver would have committed to Florida State.

“That’s what I’m assuming given the coaching changes at the other schools,” Hester said late Monday night.

Benjamin would be a huge signing for the Canes. Golden better keep in good touch with this kid. At 6 foot 6 who knows what this recruit may bring to a program!

Rivals has him listed as the 5th best WR in the country, the 13th best player in the state of Florida, and the 67th best overall prospect in the country. Benjamin has an extremely impressive offer sheet which includes schools like Florida, Florida State, Miami, USC, West Virginia, South Florida, Auburn, and several others.

Kyle Blank – Owner

http://hurricanesportsnation.com/

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Former Miami recruits Teddy Bridgewater and Eli Rodgers take their stars to Louisville.

After seeing Stephen Morris take the field, Bridgewater might be thinking he wouldn’t be seeing the field until his senior year, or possibly his redshirt Junior year. Bridgewater might not have liked how Golden wanted to go to a pro-style offense where a dual quarterback is not needed as much.

Eli Rodgers made a splash earlier when he decommited from Miami. It was expected that Teddy would go along with him.

Many scouts had them going to LSU. Bridgewater and Rodgers made some visits up there and once Rodgers officially de-commited, he expressed a lot of interest in going there.

The Big picture is that Golden needs to step up his recruiting efforts and get a good QB who will fit his system and bring some hardware to the Canes. Golden is getting a solid RB core and a Solid O-line to work with. He should be able to make a splash this year.

Kyle Blank – Owner

http://hurricanesportsnation.com/

General, Hurricane Sports Nation

Deion Sanders Jr. is playing quarterback in Texas for Marcus High. Deion’s son is already catching the attention of many recruiters across the nation with his speed and quickness. Primetime Jr. is a 5’9 170 pound multisport athlete much like his father was. At 16 years old Deion Jr. is already running a 4.5 in the forty.

Before becoming “Primetime” at Florida State University Deion Sanders started off as a quarterback in Fort Myers also. Deion is training with his son in the offseason and providing him with all of the same tips he’s shared in the past with Noel Devine, Devin Hester and many other players. Deion Jr. lives with his mother, but his father attends many practices, and all of his games.

Apparently Deion is putting no pressure on his son to sign with any particular school, and he he’s letting his son make that decision for himself. Could Deion Sanders Jr. be a member of the Miami Hurricanes 2012 signing class?We will just have to wait and see.

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Nick O’Leary caught the attention of a lot of Canes fans this past summer with his showcase of amazing skills at a few 7ON7 camps in Florida. Nick, is known for a few things, him being the nephew of golf legend Jack Nicklaus, and having some of the best hands in the state of Florida. Growing up a Georgia fan Nick quckly grew inot a 6’4 230 LB physical specimen, and an all around a great football player for Dwyer High School. He has all the tools to become an elite college Tight End and a great in-line blocker. What sets his apart from other tight ends is his receiving ability and ability to create mismatches on any level of the offense.

At the next Level he will be able to lineup wide, at tight end, or even in the backfield. He is a solid blocker but what really stands out when watching Nick is his explosiveness in and out of cuts and his incredible leaping ability. His hands rival some of the best Wide Receivers in all of Florida and perhaps the nation. I’ve seen him, on several occasions out-jump several linebackers and defensive backs and pluck the football right out of the air.

Look for Nick to decide where he wants attend College close to the end of the year, his top two at the moment are the Miami Hurricanes and Florida State. It is well known that Nick is enamored with FSU, but why I think it goes down to the wire and he ultimately attends Miami is because Mark Whipple s use of the Tight End and UM’s tradition for putting star Tight Ends into the NFL. Nick has also stated that academics are a big factor in his College decision and Miami is no slouch when it comes to that having some academic All-Americans in the past few years will help. This Would be a nice pick up for the Miami Hurricanes.

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Lebron James won’t be the only star player from Cleveland coming to Miami this year. Latwan Anderson the 5 star athlete out of Glenville, Ohio will be starting camp with the rest of the incoming freshmen next month at Miami. Latwan signed on late with the Hurricanes and was a huge boost to the 2010 recruiting class. Many critics say that Latwan has some character issues, but after spending some time with the talented star we learned these comments couldn’t be any further from the truth. It won’t surprise anyone if Latwan comes in and gets a chance to play immediately at the ” U.”

HSN caught up with Latwan to ask him a couple of questions.

HSN: Once you see the field for football your track scholarship will turn into a football scholarship. Are you still going to run track in the Spring?

Latwan Anderson: As of right now the plan is still to run track because running track helped me turn my life around.

HSN: How does Track help you with football?

Latwan Anderson: It helps me stay limber. It is also a good way to stay injury free, and in better shape. It helps me a lot outside of football because track teaches me life lessons. It’s just me out there running the relays. It pushes me to stand up on my own two feet and do something for myself.

HSN: When you committed to West Virgina many fans thought you were as good as gone. What changed your mind? Who changed your mind?

Latwan Anderson: Really what changed my mind was that a lot of schools came back into the picture once I committed to West Virginia. I guess they felt like since I didn’t commit to my hometown team (Ohio St.) they could still sway me. I sat down and talked to some people who were close to me and we just felt that I needed to weigh my options. Everyone had an equal say but I think my parent swayed my decision the most. They explained to me what my future would be like at the University of Miami. They just made me think about what was best for me.

HSN: What position will you be playing for the University of Miami?

Latwan Anderson: I don’t know yet. I could play corner, safety, wide receiver, or running back. I know for sure that I will get a chance to return kicks and punts.

HSN: What made you interested in football? Who got you into it?

Latwan Anderson: I was about 10 years old playing street football in a gym one time and my uncle asked me if I wanted to play organized football. I told him yeah sure, the next day he took me to an optimist football league and got me signed up.

HSN: Will you be fully qualified to gain academic acceptance? Are all your test scores where they need to be? Why weren’t you in summer school with a lot of the other incoming recruits?

Latwan Anderson: Yes. Everything is fine. I am on a track scholarship therefore I can’t come down until August 4th. That is the reason I couldn’t come onto campus with the majority of my football recruiting class. All my grades and test scores are good. I just have to wait till the 4th of August.

HSN: You’re a 5 star Recruit. Will that add pressure for you to perform based on your ranking?

Latwan Anderson: No not really, I have been doing this since I was 11 years old. I really won’t change. I have been the same person doing the same things. The only issue now is that I have to work harder.

HSN: When I hear the name Latwan Anderson, I think speed. What do you want people to think about when they hear your name? What do you want to be remembered for?

Latwan Anderson: I don’t want people to think about football when they hear my name. I really just want people to think about positive things. I grew up doing things that I shouldn’t have been doing, but now all that is gone and I have grown up and matured. I just want people to say he changed his life a lot.

HSN: What is your favorite quote?

Latwan Anderson: In the beginning of last summer before I transferred to Glenville, I met some players that played in the 80’s for The U. One of those players stood out to me. His name was Lamar Thomas . I was at a 7 on 7 in Orlando. I don’t talk to people that I don’t know so I wasn’t very talkative. Lamar Thomas looked at me an said “have fun I guarantee you will play much better.” I took his advice and made sure I had fun laughing and smiling. I ended up winning Defensive MVP. Lamar’s advice really stuck to me.

HSN: Do you like to use Facebook or Twitter better? For your status updates?

Latwan Anderson: Twitter

HSN: According to Map quest you will be 1254.59 miles from Glenville. Will that affect you at all? Will you get home sick?

Latwan Anderson: I’ll probably be home sick when I leave for the first couple of months. Everyone is homesick when they leave for college no matter how far they go. After a while it won’t even bother me because I’m the type of person who likes being out of the house. I have always wanted to travel anyway.

HSN: Do you have anything special planned before stepping foot on campus on august 4th?

Latwan Anderson: Not really, I’m just ready to get to school and get classes and practice started. I’m just ready for the Season to begin.

HSN: If there was a young football player reading this what advice would you have for them?

Latwan Anderson: I always get the questions “How did I get where I am today” I tell kids that confidence is the key. You must have determination and have faith in the abilities that god gave you. You can accomplish everything I’ve accomplished if you just have confidence. Anything is possible!

HSN: If I were to go to East Cleveland, Ohio where are the best places to eat and hang out?

Latwan Anderson: Best place to eat I would have to say is Bone Yard. They sell pizza chicken wings all sorts of stuff. They even have an arcade on the lower level. I have a lot of fun at the bowling alleys. There has been a lot of parties there which have been a lot of fun. I would go to Beach Wood Mall for shopping. They have any store you can possibly imagine.

HSN: Latwan, Thanks for sitting down with us. HSN hope you have a great career at the University of Miami.

Latwan Anderson: Thanks Kyle

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