Football Recruiting
Report
Friday, May 2, 2014
By Sammy Batten |
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New "Air Raid" pilot in the wings
Shawnee (OK) QB John Jacobs fits the
dual-threat mold sought by Lincoln Riley
Recruiting Class of 2015 Thumbnail Sketches...
By
Sammy Batten
©2014 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
Arguably, quarterback is the most
important position on any college football team. There can be little
debate that it's been true at East Carolina since Ruffin McNeill arrived
as head coach and Lincoln Riley as offensive coordinator.
The "Air Raid'' offense Riley learned
under Mike Leach at Texas Tech has been the signature ingredient in the
Pirates' success and a drawing card for quarterback prospects, especially
those with dual-threat capabilities. The vital nature of the position has
made signing at least one quarterback in every recruiting class standard
procedure for ECU.
The Pirates were in danger of falling
short of fulfilling that goal last February after two high school
quarterbacks tendered verbal commitments to McNeill and Riley, then backed
out to sign with other schools. ECU, however, was able to salvage the
situation by picking up Mesa Community College quarterback Blake Kemp after
national signing day.
Perhaps in an effort to avoid similar
problems with the recruiting Class of 2015, the Pirates quickly targeted
John Jacobs from Shawnee High in Oklahoma this spring.
"They (ECU coaches) had seen film on him,
and liked him,'' Shawnee coach Billy Brown said. "But the way it's set up
now, they want to see a guy throw in person, or in their camp before they
extend an offer to them.
"He (Riley) came and watched John throw
recently, and offered him on the spot.''
Jacobs accepted the offer late last week
to become the third member of ECU's 2015 class. The 6-foot-1, 210-pound
left-hander picked the Pirates over scholarship offers from
Alabama-Birmingham and Troy, but was receiving interest from dozens of other
schools like Arizona, Indiana, Missouri, Minnesota and Oklahoma State.
Brown, who has racked up more than 150
career victories in 17 seasons, turned to Jacobs as a sophomore in 2012 to
help rejuvenate a Shawnee team that had struggled to finishes of 3-7 and 1-9
the previous two years. Jacobs, the son of a well-known evangelist of the
same name, had moved to Shawnee from Texas near the end of his freshman year
and arrived with a video highlight film.
"We watched it and we knew he'd be good
enough to play for us,'' Brown said. "We liked that he could run and pass.
We could tell he was a player.''
Jacobs helped Shawnee produce a 5-6
record while accumulating 2,500 yards of total offense in an impressive
sophomore campaign. But Jacobs really blossomed last season when, despite
dealing with a sports hernia much of the year, he passed for 3,550 yards and
28 touchdowns, while rushing for 1,250 yards and 14 scores.
Behind Jacobs' performance, the Wolves
advanced to the second round of the state 5-A playoffs and finished with a
9-3 record. Even in the defeat that ended Shawnee's season, Jacobs
impressed. In a 23-21 loss to Guthrie, he accounted for 363 of the Wolves'
365 yards of offense.
"He's a legit dual-threat quarterback,''
Brown said. "He's a threat either way. Teams have to prepare for him to pass
and run the ball.''
Brown pointed out a play Jacobs made
during the second game of the 2013 season as an example of his ability to
make good plays out of bad ones.
"We missed a block — one guy got through
clean on a busted assignment,'' Brown said. "But John made him miss and went
70 yards for a touchdown. The guy was literally unblocked and John beat him
with his feet, then outran everybody else on a play that should have been a
12-yard loss.''
Brown gives a lot of credit for Jacobs'
development to Joe Dickinson, an Oklahoma native, former college coach and
the lead quarterback instructor at DeBartolo Sports University. DeBartolo is
a popular organization that conducts quarterback camps and provides private
training all over the country. Dickinson, who previously worked with current
ECU backup quarterback Cody Keith, has worked with Jacobs for several years.
"It helps us like crazy,'' Brown said.
"Our kids can't train year round here on the field with our coaches, so Joe
does that with him. Joe knows what to do and how to do it as it applies to
John. It's a blessing to have him around here.''
Brown wasn't surprised Jacobs made his
college choice so soon before his senior season. Because the Wolves have a
shot at winning the state title this season, Jacobs wanted to get his
recruitment out of the way.
"We'll probably be (ranked) preseason one
or two in the state,'' Brown said. "We have a lot of kids back from last
year. He just wanted to get it done. He was comfortable with the decision,
so now he can focus on winning a state championship.
"Sometimes when they make a decision this
early it opens doors for other schools, or someone who appreciates him,
maybe, as much as East Carolina does. He may get some more offers. But I
think he'll be pretty loyal to East Carolina. He wanted to make this
decision, get it done and focus on high school football.''
E-mail Sammy Batten
PAGE UPDATED
05/20/14 11:57 AM.
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