Boy, you think the No. 2-ranked IMG Academy football team is excited to see what its new gray uniforms look like? Almost looked like Christmas morning.
The new uniforms were unveiled Friday night in advance of Saturday’s Kickoff Classic game against two-time Florida 5A champion American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.).
The doors to the locker room opened and each player’s jersey was hanging in his locker with a very cool lighting effect.
IMG players try on their new uniforms (Photo: IMG Academy)
Dylan Singleton, a member of the American Family Insurance ALL-USA Preseason Football Team, gave a verbal commitment to Duke via Twitter after No. 12 Archer (Lawrenceville, Ga.) opened the season with a victory against Paulding (Dallas, Ga.)
Singleton, a defensive back, chose the Blue Devils over Georgia and Ohio State. His brother, Deondre, is a junior starting safety at Duke.
RELATED: Jamyest Williams scored five TDs in Archer victory
Dylan is rated as a four-star recruit by the 247Sports Composite and the No. 1 defensive back in Georgia. Some consider him underrated because he has chosen not to attend camps and showcase events.
Singleton had 142 tackles and four interceptions as a junior.
School officials at Michigan City and South Bend Washington in Indiana are gathering information to forward to the Indiana High School Athletic Association following a first-half brawl Friday night that required police intervention.
The game was called with 2:54 remaining in the first half after school officials, coaches and police met to determine whether to continue. Garland Hudson, the athletic director at Washington, said police made the decision to stop the game, in part to avoid the potential for an incident like the benches-clearing basketball brawl in February between Hammond and Griffith.
According to the Michigan City News Dispatch, the brawl started after a penalty was assessed for a late hit when a Washington player hit Michigan City’s Markice Hurt out of bounds on the Michigan City sideline. Players got into a shoving match and that escalated. The incident lasted about a minute, school officials said, and they indicated that the coaches did well to contain the situation.
“Both communities share the same values, and it’s more important for everyone to go home safely rather than for us to have the possibility of a brawl to take place,” Michigan City police officer Dion Campbell told the News Dispatch.
Officials from the two schools met Saturday.
Hudson told WSBT on Saturday that the administration at each school is “establishing facts in the situation and creating plans to address players and coaches. This plan will support the ideals of the IHSAA sportsmanship outline with disciplinary action being addressed by both schools.”
He said the information would be turned over to the state association by Monday.
“It’s very unfortunate,” Hudson told WNDU on Saturday. “The thing when I came in being Athletic Director is sportsmanship. We have zero tolerance for non-sports related incidents. If you character is being challenged, you need to fall back.”
In a statement, Bobby Cox, the head of the IHSAA, said he was encouraged the schools were working together but declined further comment other than to express disappointment that the brawl overshadowed opening night in the state.
It is unclear what penalties the state might issue or what the eventual result of the game might be.
School officials at Michigan City and South Bend Washington in Indiana are gathering information to forward to the Indiana High School Athletic Association following a first-half brawl Friday night that required police intervention.
The game was called with 2:54 remaining in the first half after school officials, coaches and police met to determine whether to continue.
According to the Michigan City News Dispatch, the brawl started after a penalty was assessed for a late hit when a Washington player hit Michigan City’s Markice Hurt out of bounds on the Michigan City sideline. Players got into a shoving match and that escalated.
Garland Hudson, the athletic director at Washington, told WSBT on Saturday that the administration at each school is “establishing facts in the situation and creating plans to address players and coaches. This plan will support the ideals of the IHSAA sportsmanship outline with disciplinary action being addressed by both schools.”
He said the information would be turned over to the state association by Monday.
In a statement, Bobby Cox, the head of the IHSAA, said he was encouraged the schools were working together but declined further comment other than to express disappointment that the brawl overshadowed opening night in the state.
It was unclear how many players would have been ejected, but Michigan City police officer Dion Campbell told the News-Dispatch that “neither team would have had enough players to play,”given the number of players who left the sideline. Beyond that, though, was general safety.
“Both communities share the same values, and it’s more important for everyone to go home safely rather than for us to have the possibility of a brawl to take place,” Campbell said.
Devontae Shuler (Photo: 247 Sports)
Hours before he was to play in the Under Armour Elite 24 in Brooklyn, four-star shooting guard Devontae Shuler announced on Twitter that he is transferring to Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Va.
Shuler from Irmo in Columbia, S.C., is ranked as the No. 10 shooting guard in the Class of 2017 and the No. 2 player in the class in the state of South Carolina, according to the 247 Sports Composite rankings.
Shuler is another substantial addition for coach Steve Smith and Oak Hill, which previously added Harry Giles, the No. 1 player in the Class of 2017, and Mario Kegler, a four-star wing.
Kegler also will playing in the Elite 24 game Saturday night. Giles is playing in the Nike event in The Bahamas.
Oddly enough, Shuler will get to play in his hometown this season when Oak Hill travels to Columbia for the Chik-fil-A Classic in December. He also could be back in the state for college as South Carolina is among his most ardent pursuers.
Shuler finished third in the Elite 24 dunk contest on Friday night.
As to be expected, the Nike EYBL Select team didn’t have a struggle against the host Bahamas Select team in an exhibition that featured many of the top high school players in the U.S.
The final score was 125-65 as the EYBL team, coached by Gary Payton, dominated.
Duke commit Jayson Tatum was the leading scorer with a game-high 18 points. Gary Trent Jr. had 17. Harry Giles and Florida State commit Jon Issac, who each had 10 in the first half, finished with 16.
The EYBL team was ahead 30-16 at the end of the first quarter and 60-34 at halftime, led By Giles and Isaac.
Malik Monk, Trent and Tatum had strong performances in the third quarter and the EYBL Select ran out to 106-41 lead after three quarters.
The game capped several days of workouts in the Bahamas for the EYBL Select team and attracted a number of NBA scouts.
Edrice “Bam” Adebayo scored 21 points and had eight rebounds to help Team Doo Be Doo to a 111-110 victory against Team EZ Pass in the 10th annual Under Armour Elite 24 in Brooklyn on Saturday night.
Edebayo, ranked No. 14 overall in the 247 Sports Composite rankings in the Class of 2016, was 10-for-12 for the field, including several massive dunks.
Josh Jackson, the No. 3 player in the nation, finished with 12 points and seven rebounds for the Team Doo Be Doo.
RELATED: Josh Jackson wins Elite 24 slam dunk contest
For Team EZ Pass, Frank Jackson had 20 points and Billy Preston had 16 points and 10 rebounds to share team MVP honors.
The game was largely a lot of one-on-one matchups in the second half until the final minutes when the score tightened to a one-point game.
EZ Pass led by 17 late in the first half and took an 11-point edge at halftime. Doo Bee Doo had a seven-point lead midway through the second half.
MORE: Jayson Tatum, Gary Trent Jr. led route for Nike EYBL Select in Bahamas
Colquitt County (Moultrie, Ga.) opened its season in dominant fashion by beating North Gwinnett (Suwannee) 45-14 in the Corky Kell Classic at the Georgia Dome.
The defending state champion Packers, ranked No. 16 in the Super 25, scored three first-half touchdowns to take a 24-7 lead and then took advantage of a pair of turnovers in the third quarter after North Gwinnett had cut the margin to 10.
Running back Kiel Pollard scored twice out of the wildcat formation, which is dubbed the “Wild Hawg, according to the Moultrie Observer. He also scored on a touchdown reception.
Quarterback Chase Parrish finished with 191 yards passing and a touchdown in three quarters. Colquitt’s running game produced against 117 from the running back position.
The Packers return to Moultrie on Friday night to host Tampa Plant High, led by four-star receiver Juwan Burgess and Syracuse commit quarterback Rex Culpepper.
Austin Mack, an Ohio State commit from Bishop Luers in Fort Wayne, Ind., wasted no time in putting up a play of the year candidate.
Mack went 99 yards, on the second-half kickoff in Luers’ 28-15 victory against Bishop Dwenger.
How good was Mack? Fighting cramps in both calves all game, he touched the ball seven times on offense. The totals: 152 yards of total offense plus two touchdowns. One of those TDs came out of the Wildcat formation. He also had a key interception on defense.
A four-star prospect, Mack committed to the Buckeyes in June and signed his financial aid agreement with Ohio State hours before his high school team’s opener.
He is ranked as the No. 2 player in the state of Indiana by the 247 Sports Composite rankings and among the top 20 receivers in the nation by the composite. The 247 Sports rankings have him as the No. 9 receiver in the class.
The sneaker wars are back …
As we’ve said before, two events — one by Under Armour and one by Nike — happened almost simultaneously Saturday for the nation’s elite basketball players. The Nike EYBL Select Team played in the Bahamas with a tipoff a bit after 5 p.m. ET. The Under Armour Elite 24 tipped off a bit after 7 in Brooklyn, N.Y.
In the past the Under Armour event, which was celebrating its 10th installment, ran unopposed in late August and had the pick of top players. With the late addition to the calendar by Nike, players such as Harry Giles III, Jayson Tatum and Gary Trent Jr. among others went to the Bahamas. The Elite 24 event was anchored by Josh Jackson, Billy Preston, Thon Maker and Bam Adebayo.
That’s the back story, but where things got interesting was a tweet from the Under Armour Association Twitter feed Saturday. The UA Association describes itself as the “grassroots basketball league comprised of elite travel teams sponsored by Under Armour.”
RELATED: Adebayo, Jackson lead team to victory at Elite 24
RELATED: Big games for Tatum, Trent in the Bahamas
Throughout the last few days, the Nike EYBL Twitter feed as been using the hashtag #TheTrip to describe the workouts in the Bahamas and the game against the Bahamas U19 Select team.
And then this from the UA Association.
Here we go …
Brownsburg QB Hunter Johnson is seen during practice at the school last week. (Photo: Rob Goebel/The Indianapolis Star)
Hunter Johnson, the top-rated pro style quarterback in the Class of 2017, has committed to Tennessee, according to 27Sports.com.
Johnson, from Brownsburg, Ind., alerted coach Butch Jones and his staff Sunday and chose the Vols over Notre Dame and North Carolina State. Johnson was initially offered in 2014 and told 247Sports.com that a campus visit last month sealed the deal.
“I’ve been in contact with Tennessee for so long now and I know so much about Tennessee, I didn’t see a reason why I wouldn’t commit,” Johnson said. “That’s what I told my parents, why wouldn’t I go here? I’ve always felt really, really comfortable with Tennessee. …
“I’m really excited about it. I’ve always known they really want me there and it’s always been a school I’ve been really interested in.”
The 6-3, 195-pound quarterback passed for 1,434 yards and 10 touchdowns last season as a sophomore at Brownsburg.
Johnson recently told Gannett partner The Indianapolis Star that he wanted to minimize distractions to help his high school team improve on last season’s 3-7 record. Brownsburg will play rival Avon on Sept. 11 on ESPNU.
Johnson, who already has committed to the U.S. Army All-American game in January 2017, said he plans to enroll early. He is the Vols’ first commitment for 2017.
His choice follows the choice of Bishop Gorman’s Tate Martell, the No. 1 dual-threat quarterback in the class. Martell chose Texas A&M on Thursday.
Tennessee already has a commitment from a quarterback in the Class of 2016 in Elite 11 finalist Jarrett Guaratano, a dual-threat QB from Bergen Catholic in New Jersey. Guarantano is ranked as the No. 2 dual-threat QB by the 247Sports composite.
There were plenty of “Showtime” moves at Saturday’s Under Armour Elite 24, but none might have been bigger than Bam Adebayo’s follow dunk in which he nearly pulled the entire basket down on top of himself.
You can watch Adebayo smile as he heads back up the court.
RELATED: Billy Preston finds a home in Texas
RELATED: Adebayo and Josh Jackson among stars at Elite 24
Chandler’s Chase Lucas tries to break a tackle from Pinnacle’s Josh Stedman (Photo: Patrick Breen, azcentral sports)
Coming off an impressive season-opening victory, Chandler (Ariz.) has moved up to No. 3 in the Super 25 computer rankings.
Chandler, which was No. 5, beat Pinnacle 56-10 on Thursday night and travels to defending Super 25 champion Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) on Saturday night. Gorman, remained at No. 4 in the computer rankings.
VOTE: What should be the Super 25 Week 2 Game of the Week?
RELATED: Full Super 25 Computer rankings nationally and sortable by state
RELATED: Super 25 Expert Rankings
DeLaSalle (Concord, Calif.) remained No. 1 in the computer rankings and is also No. 1 in the Super 25 Expert rankings. St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) is No. 2. St. Edwards (Lakewood, Ohio) moved from No. 3 to No. 5.
The rest of the top 10: No. 6 Bingham (South Jordan, Utah), No. 7 Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.), No. 8 St. Peter’s Prep (Jersey City, N.J.), No. 9 Webb City (Mo.) and No. 10 Allen (Texas).
The Super 25 Computer rankings are provided by Ken Massey. The ratings are designed to reward teams for their performance, and objectively quantify those performances. Strength of schedule is built into the model. The model also corrects for home field advantage. Teams lose less for a loss on the road and gain more for a win on the road. Margin of victory also is factored in. Because some of the data is based on past performances, the computer will be more accurate as the season progresses. Generally, once a team plays three games, the computer can better slot how it stacks up against teams nationally.
Trevon Duval. (Photo: 247Sports, Adidas)
With some of the top basketball players making their decisions about transferring, at least two more significant decisions remain. Both involve players from the New York City area.
Trevon Duval spent last year at St. Benedict’s Prep n Newark, N.J., and Rawle Alkins played for Christ The King in Middle Village, N.Y.
RELATED: Top five high school hoops transfers
Duval said at the Elite 24 in Brooklyn over the weekend that it remains possible that he stays at St. Benedict’s, although his father indicated that Findlay Prep in Nevada, Montverde Prep in Florida and Brewster Academy in New Hmpshire are among the options.
“Right now we’re just seeking options because his stock has risen a lot so there are a lot of options now,” Trevor told SNY.tv. “We’re looking to see what the best situation is because we feel as a family these two years are very critical as a person for his development as a basketball player. St. Benedict’s is a good school. There’s other good schools so we just don’t want to put all the eggs in one basket.”
Duval, a 6-3 point guard from Delaware, is being heavily recruited by top programs and has a long list of offers such as Arizona, Indiana, Kansas and Louisville as well as St. John’s in the New York area. Duval also has been in contact with Duke and Kentucky.
Former Christ the King (N.Y.) star Rawle Alkins.
Alkins’ transfer is because his eligibility has expired at Christ The King. His teams won three consecutive city championships but he played eight games on the varsity in the eighth grade in Florida. Alkins told SNY.tv that he has visited Brewster, New Hampton in New Hampshire and Vermont Academy.
Alkins recently cut his list of colleges to 10 and is hoping to visit all 10. He said Kentucky Indiana and St. John’s are among his most ardent pursuers.
The Super 25 computer rankings are back on USATODAYHSS.com and here are where teams stand, divided by region.
The regions mirror those used in our Super 25 Expert rankings: Pacific, Midwest, Frontier, Northeast, South.
The number at the end of each line is where the school stands in the national rankings.
PACIFIC
California, Arizona, Nevada, Washington, Hawaii, Oregon, Alaska.
RELATED: Expert regional football rankings – Pacific
MIDWEST
Ohio, Michigan, Iowa, Indiana, Kentucky, Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
RELATED: Expert regional football rankings – Midwest
FRONTIER
Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, New Mexico, Colorado, Utah, Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming.
RELATED: Expert regional football rankings – Frontier
NORTHEAST
Maryland, Pennsylvania, Delaware, District of Columbia, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Vermont, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Maine.
RELATED: Expert regional football rankings – Northeast
SOUTH
Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, Louisiana and Arkansas.
RELATED: Expert regional football rankings – South
Kimberly Aguilar (Photo: GoFundMe)
The La Mirada football team in Southern California was pointing toward its season opener this week against nationally ranked St. John Bosco (Bellflower), but a tragedy has hit the larger La Mirada family.
Kimberly Aquilar, the wife of assistant coach Joaquin Aquilar, suffered two heart attacks Saturday and died, leaving three children.
Devin Aquilar, her 12-year-old daughter, eloquently wrote about her mom in a heartbreaking note on a GoFundMe.org page the family has set up to help with expenses. The fund has raised nearly $7,500 within two days.
My mother was a happy, healthy, generous and caring person. She gave everything she had to make her family happy and comfortable. Her 12 year old daughter was her life, as she spent numerous hours preparing her and taking her to more than 10 dance classes and various competitions, helping her experience something she loved. She cared for her dogs like they were her own children, and despite losing three of her babies a week before [coyotes], prepared herself to embrace a 2 year old female pitbull named Smokey the very same evening. She lived a healthy lifestyle outside tending to her dozens of plants every morning as they reached full bloom each season.
The funeral for Kimberly Aquilar is scheduled for Friday, hours before the season opener.
Four star Lakeside (Nine Mile Falls, Wash.) guard Daejon Davis has committed to the University of Washington via his twitter page.
The Class of 2017’s No. 2 combo guard and player in the state of Washington also had offers from the likes of Washington State, Gonzaga and Cal.
His ability to shoot and run the floor make him a daunting task for any defender.
Davis is the second premier talent at guard the Huskies have recently picked up following the commitment from 2016’s five star guard Markelle Fultz last Friday.
In collaboration with our partners at High School Football America, here is the latest edition of the USA TODAY High School Sports’ Two Minute Drill podcast with Jeff Fisher, the founder and editor in chief of HSFBA.
In this edition, Jeff talks about the continuing issue of Massillon football in Ohio and its live tiger mascot. With the season opener this weekend, will the tiger be on the sideline.
Check out this week’s High School Football America Radio Show on Thursday for a preview of the big showdown between Bishop Gorman and Chandler, Ariz. To listen to past shows, click here
A school district in Ohio unanimously approved a no-fly zone at athletic events, allowing the school to deny access to anyone trying to use a drone.
According to WHIO-TV in Ohio, the Franklin Board of Education adopted a policy that bans drones at any athletic events, including scrimmages and practices, on school property.
RELATED: North Carolina bans drones from all high school athletic events
The Ohio High School Athletic Association has a policy prohibiting drones at state tournament events and has instructed schools to determine its own policies.
Here a look at a New York high school that is using drones to record practice footage.
Here is the schedule for Super 25 football teams for this week:
1. De La Salle, Concord, Calif. (0-0)
Next: Saturday vs. Trinity (Euless, Texas) in Mansfield, Texas, 9
2. Miami Central, Miami Fla. (0-0)
Next: Saturday vs. No. 5 DeMatha Catholic (Hyattsville, Md.) in Landover, Md., noon.
3. Bishop Gorman, Las Vegas (0-0)
Next: Saturday vs. then-No. 20 Chandler, Ariz., 10.
4. St. Thomas Aquinas, Fort Lauderdale (0-0)
Next: Friday vs. Booker T. Washington (Miami), 8.
5. DeMatha Catholic, Hyattsville, Md. (0-0)
Saturday vs. No. 2 Miami Central (Miami, Fla.) in Landover, Md., noon.
6. Centennial, Corona, Calif. (0-0)
Next: Friday vs. East (Salt Lake City), 10.
7. DeSoto, Texas (0-0)
Next: Saturday vs. Martin (Arlington) in Mansfield, 5.
8. Cedar Hill, Texas (0-0)
Next: Friday vs. South Oak Cliff (Dallas), 8:30.
9. Colerain, Cincinnati (0-0)
Next: Saturday vs. Warren Central (Indianapolis), 8.
10. Archer, Lawrenceville, Ga. (1-0)
Next: Saturday vs. Peachtree Ridge (Suwanee), 7.
11. St. John Bosco, Bellflower, Calif. (0-0)
Next: Friday at La Mirada, 10.
12. Allen, Texas (0-0)
Friday vs. Guyer (Denton), 8:30.
13. Cocoa, Fla. (0-0)
Friday at Palm Bay (Melbourne), 7.
14. Paramus Catholic, Paramus, N.J. (0-0)
Next: Sept. 4 vs. Eastern Christian (Elkton, Md.).
15. Colquitt County, Moultrie, Ga. (1-0)
Next: Friday vs. Plant (Tampa).
16. Ocean Lakes, Virginia Beach, Va. (0-0)
Next: Friday vs. Salem (Virginia Beach), 7.
17. Clay-Chalkville, Pinson, Ala. (1-0)
Next: Friday at Minor, 8.
18. American Heritage, Plantation (0-0)
Next: Saturday vs. Stephenson (Stone Mountain, Ga.) in Clarkston, Ga., 8:30.
19. St. Edward, Lakewood, Ohio (0-0)
Next: Saturday vs. Gilman (Baltimore) in Morgantown, W.Va., 6.
20. Chandler, Ariz. (1-0)
Next: Saturday at No. 3 Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas).
21. Webb City, Mo. (1-0)
Next: Friday vs. Rockhurst (Kansas City), 8.
22. IMG Academy, Bradenton, Fla. (0-0)
Next: Saturday vs. Miramar, 2.
23. Manvel, Texas (0-0)
Next: Friday vs. Westfield (Houston), 8.
24. Bishop Amat, La Puente, Calif. (0-0)
Next: Friday vs. Mater Dei (Santa Ana) in Santa Ana, 10.
25. Flanagan, Pembroke Pines, Fla. (0-0)
Friday vs. Douglas (Parkland), 7.
