S Wayne Lyons

[PaulCrewe]

If he really likes what he hears, would he be willing to commit to Bo during the in-home?

He said he is going to announce his decision at the Army All-American game in January.

 

Has Nebraska ever even gotten a commitment during a high school All-American game?

None that I remember. We have had plenty of kids play in the game.

Nyan Boatang(god we should of got this kid for his cool name alone) is the only kid I can even remember that announced during the game that even had a NU hat on the table. That was the year of Callahan's uber-class.

[UM-HUSKER]

Hopefully some of our other commits will be talking to him at the AA game.

[huskertj]

any word on the in-home with Bo last night?

[ADS]

TOS is reporting a final five:

 

Florida

Michigan

Nebraska

Stanford

UCLA

[EZ-E]

This young man has went about this process the way every prospective student athlete should. He has not committed and decommitted and he has taken a lot of visits all to different parts of the country. I hope that we get him in the end. I think that we have a good chance.

[NUance]

He'd be a great get. Hope he decides to be N.

[C N Red]

Can we seriously not find his parents jobs anywhere?? Come on T.O., get on it!!

[EZ-E]

Can we seriously not find his parents jobs anywhere?? Come on T.O., get on it!!

 

Maybe we can import a Nigerian community too. Come on Prince, get on it!

[ADS]

Can we seriously not find his parents jobs anywhere?? Come on T.O., get on it!!

 

Maybe we can import a Nigerian community too. Come on Prince, get on it!

Wayne also needs a customized jeresey and locker.

[UM-HUSKER]

I bet his mom will really like the 200 grand that will be donated to her church fund.

[chamrocck]

TOS is reporting a final five:

 

Florida

Michigan

Nebraska

Stanford

UCLA

I like our chances. Michigan and UCLA both have coaching problems/issues. Florida is also in flux. You want to play big time defense you come to Nebraska (I don't see any Tevin Mitchell type issues here). Hope he commits to us.

 

[kchusker_chris]

TOS is reporting a final five:

 

Florida

Michigan

Nebraska

Stanford

UCLA

I like our chances. Michigan and UCLA both have coaching problems/issues. Florida is also in flux. You want to play big time defense you come to Nebraska (I don't see any Tevin Mitchell type issues here). Hope he commits to us.

 

If he's going to California, IMO it would be Stanford which has academics/culture etc vs. UCLA which (as you mentioned) has coaching issues and zero recent success. But Stanford is about as far as he can get from home without going to Hawaii. That has to have some impact on his decision. Nebraska looks like a bike ride away in comparison.

 

I'm not even sure why Michigan would still be a player in this one. You have to wonder if Harbaugh won't end up there after this season or next though. Does he want to play for Stanford/Michigan or does he want to play for Harbaugh? I just don't see Harbaugh staying at Stanford much longer. Either Michigan or NFL shortly. Lyons has to assume that at Stanford he'll go through a coaching change.

 

If it was purely a football decision...with that list I wouldn't be worried. We clearly stand out w/ the recent success of our defenseive backfield, a steadily rising program, fairly stable (in comparison to the rest of this list) coaching staff, smaller town which makes adjusting to college life dramatically easier than going to LA or San Francisco area. There's a lot of things in our favor. Florida still has location though...which is why I "DO" see a little Tevin Mitchell type of an issue here.

[girlknowsfootball]

I was looking through the commitment lists last night and noticed UCLA only has 8 commits! I know they're only able to have a small class size this year due to 23, 27, and 23 in the previous 3 classes, but 8 is really small! I thought this was interesting to note...

 

But here's the real point of this thread...

Looking at Wayne Lyons top 5 schools (UCLA, Stanford, Florida, Michigan, Nebraska) if you look at where their pass defenses, BCS Rankings, and Academics are ranked it plays out like this.

 

Pass Efficiency Rankings This Year:

1. Nebraska (5)

2. Stanford (21)

3. Florida (23)

4. UCLA (85)

5. Michigan (96)

 

 

BCS Ranking This Year:

1. Stanford (4)

2. Nebraska (18)

Michigan, UCLA, & Florida are unranked.

 

Top 100 Undergraduate Engineering Colleges in the Country:

1. Stanford (2) rating of 4.7

2. Michigan (7) rating of 4.3

3. UCLA (20) rating of 3.7

4. Florida (34) rating of 3.4

5. Nebraska (90) rating of 2.6

Link

 

To me, looking at these lists... his final 5, is really a final 3. Nebraska, Florida, and Stanford.

 

Why do I say this? Well...UCLA is near the bottom of the defensive categories, it isnt at the top of Engineering schools to make up for the lack of defense either, and is across the country. Plus, Wayne didn't say much about his visit there. I think this one doesn't make his final 3 cut. It just doesn't have what some of the others do.

 

Michigan has one of the worst defenses and BCS rankings over the last 5 years. They have had several coaching changes and their current coach is on the chopping block over the next couple of seasons. They do have a great engineering program, which is my guess why they made Wayne's top 5, but in the end I think their lack of defense and coaching stability leads Wayne to go elsewhere.

 

Stanford is the same distance as UCLA, still has good weather, but it offers a top 10 BCS program with a top 25 defense and a top 2 engineering program. It's a program on the rise, plus when Wayne took his visit, he got to meet Condoleezza Rice and some other African American icons and was very impressed with his visit there. If Wayne chooses Stanford it is because of an all around GREAT opportunity both academically and athletically.

 

Nebraska has the best defense of these schools year in and year out under Pelini. They use a lot of DB's and run a defense that is fun to play, contains pro difficulity, and encourages DB's to hit hard and take risks for interceptions. We also have the Blackshirts and their own fan base, not to mention several DB's who have done extremely well in the NFL. Even though our Engineering school isn't ranked as high as some of the others, it's on the rise with our joining the big 10. And Wayne and his mother said they had a blast on their visit and were extremely impressed with both the football and the engineering programs. Bo and his staff are extremely honest with Wayne. This is the kind of kid that fits Bo's system well. Smart, Leader, Team Guy, Mature, Character. If Wayne chooses Nebraska, it is because of the defense, defense, defense, honest coaches, and the growing academics.

 

Florida has a middle of the road defense this year and an unranked BCS ranking. Their engineering school is in the top 34 in the country. It's familiar and close to home for Wayne. His sister is there, he has camped there. He has said he loves Muschamp and has still kept them in his top 5 despite the recent coaching changes. People have said he has pictures on his facebook of him in the locker room doing the gator chomp... it's his home team. Ultimately, Florida is in his top 3 because it's the safe choice. It's middle of the road football wise and academically... but on the rise defensively with Muschamp as the new head coach. If Wayne chooses Florida, it is because it's safe and comfortable.

 

 

When it's all said and done... I feel Wayne has 3 options...

Play for the best Defense in the country under the best defensive coaches.

Go to one of the best Academic institutions in the Country and play good football there.

Or Stay close to home where family and friends are to play some football and go to school.

 

Best Defense? Best Academics? Close to Home? Which will win?

[zoogs]

UCLA engineering is really alright, honestly, and it's in a great location. I don't think Nebraska is seen as a bike ride away in comparison. I think both are seen as flung across the country, multi-hour flights (which they are). Add maybe an hour or two to the UCLA flight.

[ADS]

Where ever Wayne goes will have to have a family atmosphere, academic support, and Mom has to approve.