ESPN’s College Gameday is Coming Back to Rupp Arena and John Calipari is a “Recruit Whisperer”
By Wayne
Jul 18, 2013; Washington, DC, Team USA West player Stanley Johnson (12) dunks the ball against Team Canada during the Nike Global Challenge at Trinity University. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports
When all the dust settled and the 2013 recruiting class was announced, it was hailed as the greatest class in NCAA history; and yes that includes the vaunted “Fab 5” that the Michigan Wolverines trotted out in the early 90’s. People thought Calipari had outdone himself and that never will another class of that caliber be assembled again. Fast forward to 2014 and there’s a real possibility Cal can repeat. Coach Cal has become the “Recruit Whisperer.” Jerry Meyer of 24/7 sports posted his 2014 Top Recruits and 9 of 10 hold an offer from the Kentucky Wildcats. If the 2013 class is #1, then the 2014 class could be 1A. Ben Roberts breaks it down here and it’s sick. The 2014 squad could be just sick.
"Texas point guard Emmanuel Mudiay jumped to No. 1 in the country when the new list was released Wednesday. He’s one of several UK targets at the top of the rankings. California small forward Stanley Johnson moved to the No. 2 overall spot. Johnson and Mudiay have both confirmed that they’ll be in Lexington for official visits on the weekend of Big Blue Madness, which is Oct. 18. National analyst Jerry Meyer, the man responsible for the 247Sports rankings, has predicted that both Mudiay and Johnson will eventually commit to the Wildcats. UK recruits now occupy nine of the top 10 spots on the 247Sports list. Cliff Alexander is No. 3, followed by Kelly Oubre, who moved from 11th to fourth overall. The previous rankings had point guard Tyus Jones and center Jahlil Okafor in the top two positions, but they fell to fifth and sixth, respectively, in the latest update. Rivals.com, Scout.com and ESPN all rank Okafor as the No. 1 prospect in the class. None of those services have updated their rankings since the end of the July live recruiting period. Myles Turner, Kevin Looney, Rashad Vaughn and Karl Towns Jr. round out the top 10 for 247Sports. Looney is not a UK target. Towns is UK’s only commitment so far for 2014. Other UK targets include Justise Winslow (13th), Trey Lyles (17th), James Blackmon Jr. (31st), Devin Booker (32nd), Josh Perkins (37th), Angel Delgado (46th) and Tyler Ulis (52nd)."
Top 5 2014 recruit, Trey Lyles, has finalized his plans to take a visit on 10/18/2013, otherwise known as Big Blue Madness. He will be joining a whole host of others that any coach in the country would be happy to land one of. Having watched Big Blue Madness, I can’t imagine there is a more electric atmosphere on the planet, short of a power station, and I’m always shocked when they don’t commit right on the spot.
"Trey Lyles, considered one of the top five players in the Class of 2014, will visit UK for the Oct. 18 event, his father told the Herald-Leader on Wednesday. Lyles has narrowed his list to UK, Louisville, Florida and Butler. Tom Lyles said his son will take an official visit to U of L on August 31 and the family is “still working” on scheduling trips to Florida and Butler. UK uses Madness as its biggest recruiting draw, and John Calipari already has several star prospects lined up for this year’s event. Lyles joins Stanley Johnson, Emmanuel Mudiay and Devin Booker as the players from the Class of 2014 who have confirmed visits for that date. Kelly Oubre, Rashad Vaughn and James Blackmon Jr. are among the others who have discussed visiting for Madness. All of those players have scholarship offers from Kentucky. Lyles — a 6-foot-9 power forward from Indianapolis — is ranked as the No. 4 overall prospect in the class by Scout.com and ESPN. Rivals.com has him at No. 5."