The Scout Team: Home Away From Home

The Scout national recruiting analysts highlight which out-of-region programs are reaching into their region this spring much more aggressively than before...

The Scout.com national recruiting analysts will answer questions about the 2013 recruiting class season in a feature called "The Scout Team". Each day this week, we'll  look at the topics on hand. The national analysts include Scott Kennedy (Director of Scouting), Chad Simmons (South), Allen Trieu (Midwest), Greg Powers (Midlands), Bob Lichtenfels (East), Greg Biggins (West) and Brandon Huffman (West).

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1. Which out-of-region schools have been most aggressive in your region?

Chad Simmons

Chad Simmons (South): UCLA is the one. Others like Pittsburgh, Penn State, and Missouri are much more active in the south than they have been in the past as well, but UCLA is the one that stands out the most. They have offered numerous prospects in this region and they have commitments six commitments total, and two of them come from the south in quarterback Eddie Printz and running back Keyante Green.

Bob Lichtenfels

Bob Lichtenfels (East): Colorado, UCLA and Arizona State have all been very active recently in the East Region. The Sun Devils led by former Pittsburgh coaches have sent recruiting guru Mike Norvell out to Pennsylvania and his name has been mentioned a number off times in receent weeks by a number of recruits. Colorado is always very active in the Maryland/D.C. area. UCLA seems to be making a concerted effort to up their East Coast recruiting. The Bruins have offered a number of players in the area.

Greg Powers

Greg Powers (Midlands): Urban Meyer was known to go all over the country in search of talent while he was at Florida and it appears that he is taking the same approach at Ohio State. The Buckeyes have already dipped in to the Midlands for two top prospects in National Top 100 running back Ezekiel Elliot from St. Louis (Mo.) John Burroughs High and National Top 150 quarterback J.T. Barrett from Wichita Falls (Texas) Rider High. They are also being strongly considered by Scout.com four-star middle linebacker Mike Mitchell from Plano (Texas) Prestonwood Christian Academy. 

Allen Trieu

Allen Trieu (Midwest): USC has always had some success in the Midwest and they are going after a lot of kids in the region again. They're getting a visit from the top player in the Midwest and the nation's top running back, Ty Isaac, and they were in the school to see him. I've also heard of them making visits to see four-star prospects Ethan Pocic, Laquon Treadwell and Elijah Daniel recently, as well as Michigan commit Logan Tuley-Tillman. They have also gotten off to a fast start in the class of 2014, swinging by Detroit Loyola and offering defensive end Malik McDowell, who may just be the top sophomore in the region as well. Honorable mention to Ole Miss, who has offered a few in Wisconsin and Illinois and recently landed Indianapolis area safety Antonio Allen.

Greg Biggins

Greg Biggins (West): Oklahoma has always recruited the West and specifically California but never like this. Former Arizona head coach Mike Stoops is definitely playing a big role as he obviously has a lot of strong ties out West. Defensive back is one position the Sooners are definitely targeting with offers going out for Arizona standout Cole Luke, former Notre Dame bounce back Tee Shepard and his former Fresno (Calif.) Central teammates Hatari Byrd and L.J Moore.

Brandon Huffman

Brandon Huffman (West): Houston and Texas A&M have both, surprisingly, hit the West Coast hard.  The Cougars pulled off the biggest Signing Day coup, in stealing five-star receiver Deontay Greenberry out of Fresno (Calif.) Washington Union, and receivers coach Jamie Christian was a big reason for that, after years at Arizona State.  Christian and Houston have been just as active in the Golden State this year, especially in Fresno, where Greenberry has had kind of a pied-piper ability with several of the younger players in that region.  Texas A&M has been aggressive too, offering a number of the top prospects themselves, and much of that is attributed to new secondary coach Marcel Yates, a California native who recruited Southern California while at Boise State.  Players like Tahaan Goodman and Sebastian LaRue have expressed legitimate interest in the Aggies, who make the move to the SEC this fall, and LaRue has them on his short list after visiting for their spring game.