The Opening all-star showcase will be held this week in Oregon. It will include 166 of the nation's top high school seniors (and a few juniors), who will compete in a variety of events.
The 7-on-7 portion of the event will be broadcast on ESPNU on Thursday and Friday from 5-8 p.m. Pacific Time.
First, here are the rosters by team.
http://www.studentsports.com/football/2015/07/01/opening-finals-2015-team-rosters/
Conveniently, there's really only one 7-on-7 team you need to track to keep tabs on most of the Stanford targets at the event: Team Hypercool.
Hypercool includes the following players: K.J. Costello, Curtis Robinson, Kaden Smith, David Long, Jonathan Jones, Caleb Kelly, Obi Eboh and Jeffrey McCulloch. There are a few Stanford targets sprinkled across other teams on the roster, but the bulk of them are on Hypercool.
Analyzing the roster by position:
Quarterbacks
K.J. Costello is obviously the player to watch here. Other Elite 11 QB's who were on Stanford's radar at one point or another include Shane Buechele, Jacob Eason, Brandon McIlwain and Messiah deWeaver
Running Back
Stanford doesn't really have any current running back targets at the event. Oregon commit Vavae Malepeai is the lone RB with a Cardinal offer. Devin White is listed as an ATH, but he's not really an option for the Cardinal at this stage.
Wide Receiver
Demetris Robertson is listed on the official roster as an athlete, but he figures to see plenty of time at receiver. Interestingly, he's on the same 7-on-7 team as Georgia commit Jacob Eason. And, both Eason and Costello have made recruiting Robertson a top priority for the event. Obviously there are other hurdles with Stanford, but that could present an interesting dynamic.
Javon McKinley also has a Stanford offer, but he excluded the Cardinal from his top list. Devin Duvernay hasn't officially eliminated Stanford, but it looks unlikely.
2017 Donovan Peoples Jones is the other Stanford WR offer recipient in attendance - there haven't been a ton of visible signs of his interest in the program since he received the Cardinal offer.
Tight End
Kaden Smith is one of six tight ends at the event. He'll have a chance to cement his status as perhaps the nation's best at his position. FSU commit Isaac Nauta, the only other 2016 TE with a Stanford offer, will also compete.
Offensive Line
There's actually only one Stanford offer recipient among the 18 offensive linemen at the event - and he isn't even a 2016 recruit. 2017 Texas interior OL Jack Anderson picked up a Stanford offer this spring. He hasn't talked too much about the Cardinal since receiving it, but it's obviously still early in the 2017 recruiting cycle.
Defensive Line
Similarly, there aren't really any active Stanford targets among the 18 defensive linemen at the event. Dexter Lawrence, Rashard Lawrence, Rashan Gary and McTelvin Agim have Stanford offers but none of those guys is really focused on the Cardinal at this point.
Linebacker
Curtis Robinson, who's listed as an athlete on the official roster, highlights the Stanford targets in the linebacker category. The Cardinal commit has thrived in 7-on-7 environments all offseason, and there's no reason to think that won't continue at The Opening.
Though Robinson is the only Cardinal LB commit at the event, he's far from Stanford's only LB target.
2016 Florida ILB Jonathan Jones has Stanford in his top three, although the Cardinal will have to overcome Michigan's lead and get him on campus. 2016 five-star Caleb Kelly visited for the May Junior Day. He's releasing a top-7 at The Opening and Stanford should be a contender. I expect Oregon, Michigan, Oklahoma, Notre Dame and probably UCLA to make the cut, so we'll see if Stanford is one of the other two programs in the mix.
2016 Texas LB Jeffrey McCulloch has Stanford in his top-12 and, from what I've heard, things continue to progress between the two sides. (Or such was the case a few weeks back.) This will be a tough recruitment to win, but if the Cardinal can get him on campus they'll have a shot.
I expect 2016 Oregon LB Lamar Winston to commit to the Ducks this week - he'll announce during the ESPN telecast - but as long as he follows through on plans to visit The Farm later this month (and is willing to do the academic work), Stanford will have a shot.
Alabama LB Ben Davis also has a Stanford offer, but he's no longer considering the Cardinal.
Defensive back
David Long is the first name that pops out here. Stanford is doing quite well in the Loyola HS standout's recruitment, and it would surprise no one if he ended up committing to the Cardinal at some point in the next few months. Long has had a terrific offseason as he has continued the transition from receiver to defensive back, and he'll certainly be tested by some top receivers at The Opening.
Obi Eboh camped with Stanford last month and would give a Stanford offer strong consideration. Given the state of the Cardinal's DB board I'm not sure if he'll end up receiving the offer, but he's someone to keep an eye on.
Stanford made a strong impression on New Jersey DB Jordan Fuller when he visited for the May Junior Day. It might be tough to top some of the more local schools, but the Cardinal should have a shot here.
Eric Cuffee and Damar Hamlin are also among the corners with Stanford offers, but neither appears to be giving Stanford strong consideration at the moment. (Hamlin has officially eliminated the Cardinal - Cuffee might not be far behind.)
Serra HS's Brandon Burton and Texas S Deontay Anderson are the two safeties with a Stanford offers. However, Burton did not include the Cardinal in his recently released top 7 and Anderson hasn't considered the Cardinal for a while.
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Feel free to post any tweets/relevant articles/observations you find on Stanford targets at The Opening below. Or, feel free to start a new thread for anything that you feel is particularly newsworthy.
I'll post a reminder later in the week as the televised portion of the event approaches.
The 7-on-7 portion of the event will be broadcast on ESPNU on Thursday and Friday from 5-8 p.m. Pacific Time.
First, here are the rosters by team.
http://www.studentsports.com/football/2015/07/01/opening-finals-2015-team-rosters/
Conveniently, there's really only one 7-on-7 team you need to track to keep tabs on most of the Stanford targets at the event: Team Hypercool.
Hypercool includes the following players: K.J. Costello, Curtis Robinson, Kaden Smith, David Long, Jonathan Jones, Caleb Kelly, Obi Eboh and Jeffrey McCulloch. There are a few Stanford targets sprinkled across other teams on the roster, but the bulk of them are on Hypercool.
Analyzing the roster by position:
Quarterbacks
K.J. Costello is obviously the player to watch here. Other Elite 11 QB's who were on Stanford's radar at one point or another include Shane Buechele, Jacob Eason, Brandon McIlwain and Messiah deWeaver
Running Back
Stanford doesn't really have any current running back targets at the event. Oregon commit Vavae Malepeai is the lone RB with a Cardinal offer. Devin White is listed as an ATH, but he's not really an option for the Cardinal at this stage.
Wide Receiver
Demetris Robertson is listed on the official roster as an athlete, but he figures to see plenty of time at receiver. Interestingly, he's on the same 7-on-7 team as Georgia commit Jacob Eason. And, both Eason and Costello have made recruiting Robertson a top priority for the event. Obviously there are other hurdles with Stanford, but that could present an interesting dynamic.
Javon McKinley also has a Stanford offer, but he excluded the Cardinal from his top list. Devin Duvernay hasn't officially eliminated Stanford, but it looks unlikely.
2017 Donovan Peoples Jones is the other Stanford WR offer recipient in attendance - there haven't been a ton of visible signs of his interest in the program since he received the Cardinal offer.
Tight End
Kaden Smith is one of six tight ends at the event. He'll have a chance to cement his status as perhaps the nation's best at his position. FSU commit Isaac Nauta, the only other 2016 TE with a Stanford offer, will also compete.
Offensive Line
There's actually only one Stanford offer recipient among the 18 offensive linemen at the event - and he isn't even a 2016 recruit. 2017 Texas interior OL Jack Anderson picked up a Stanford offer this spring. He hasn't talked too much about the Cardinal since receiving it, but it's obviously still early in the 2017 recruiting cycle.
Defensive Line
Similarly, there aren't really any active Stanford targets among the 18 defensive linemen at the event. Dexter Lawrence, Rashard Lawrence, Rashan Gary and McTelvin Agim have Stanford offers but none of those guys is really focused on the Cardinal at this point.
Linebacker
Curtis Robinson, who's listed as an athlete on the official roster, highlights the Stanford targets in the linebacker category. The Cardinal commit has thrived in 7-on-7 environments all offseason, and there's no reason to think that won't continue at The Opening.
Though Robinson is the only Cardinal LB commit at the event, he's far from Stanford's only LB target.
2016 Florida ILB Jonathan Jones has Stanford in his top three, although the Cardinal will have to overcome Michigan's lead and get him on campus. 2016 five-star Caleb Kelly visited for the May Junior Day. He's releasing a top-7 at The Opening and Stanford should be a contender. I expect Oregon, Michigan, Oklahoma, Notre Dame and probably UCLA to make the cut, so we'll see if Stanford is one of the other two programs in the mix.
2016 Texas LB Jeffrey McCulloch has Stanford in his top-12 and, from what I've heard, things continue to progress between the two sides. (Or such was the case a few weeks back.) This will be a tough recruitment to win, but if the Cardinal can get him on campus they'll have a shot.
I expect 2016 Oregon LB Lamar Winston to commit to the Ducks this week - he'll announce during the ESPN telecast - but as long as he follows through on plans to visit The Farm later this month (and is willing to do the academic work), Stanford will have a shot.
Alabama LB Ben Davis also has a Stanford offer, but he's no longer considering the Cardinal.
Defensive back
David Long is the first name that pops out here. Stanford is doing quite well in the Loyola HS standout's recruitment, and it would surprise no one if he ended up committing to the Cardinal at some point in the next few months. Long has had a terrific offseason as he has continued the transition from receiver to defensive back, and he'll certainly be tested by some top receivers at The Opening.
Obi Eboh camped with Stanford last month and would give a Stanford offer strong consideration. Given the state of the Cardinal's DB board I'm not sure if he'll end up receiving the offer, but he's someone to keep an eye on.
Stanford made a strong impression on New Jersey DB Jordan Fuller when he visited for the May Junior Day. It might be tough to top some of the more local schools, but the Cardinal should have a shot here.
Eric Cuffee and Damar Hamlin are also among the corners with Stanford offers, but neither appears to be giving Stanford strong consideration at the moment. (Hamlin has officially eliminated the Cardinal - Cuffee might not be far behind.)
Serra HS's Brandon Burton and Texas S Deontay Anderson are the two safeties with a Stanford offers. However, Burton did not include the Cardinal in his recently released top 7 and Anderson hasn't considered the Cardinal for a while.
##########
Feel free to post any tweets/relevant articles/observations you find on Stanford targets at The Opening below. Or, feel free to start a new thread for anything that you feel is particularly newsworthy.
I'll post a reminder later in the week as the televised portion of the event approaches.
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