Tom Savage's Cardinal O'Hara team is struggling, behind a rash of injuries.
As far as Gerald Hodges goes, Mike Farrell is staying noncommittal.
Rutgers commitment Gerald Hodges, a linebacker, took a visit to Penn State last weekend. Some say Hodges is sticking with Rutgers, while others insist he's going to switch to Penn State.
What's the latest on class of 2010 RB Corey Brown?
"I’ve only played in three games so far this year," Brown said. "I tore my MCL in the third game so I’ve been out.
"I’m doing rehab right now for it and I should be back for the first round of the playoffs. I’ve just been in the pool running, riding the bike and doing different exercises."
Cardinal O’Hara was 3-0 before Brown went down with his injury. They won their next four in spite of his absence but just lost their last game and they are looking to bounce back. In the three games Brown played in he racked up 545 yards and an eye-popping 13 touchdowns. Despite his injury schools didn’t back off.
"Lately I’ve been talking to schools like Florida, UCLA, Colorado, Notre Dame and Tennessee," he explained. "I haven’t been to any games recently but I’ve been thinking about going some places. I was planning on going to the Rutgers-Louisville game at the end of the year and I’d like to get out to Penn State for a game sometime."
The Star-Ledger spoke with Malcolm Bush on Friday.
"Basically, I felt that I committed prematurely," Bush told The Star-Ledger by phone Friday afternoon. "Instead of waiting it out and feeling that way and changing my mind a few months before signing day -- with the respect that I have for the coaches, I decided to de-commit now."
...
The Hackensack senior said though that Rutgers' disappointing start to the season had nothing to do with his decision to de-commit."Actually, I was thinking about it before the season started," Bush said. "I know Rutgers is going to bounce back. All good programs go through their ups and downs, but they're going to be a good program in the end. It doesn't have anything to do with the start of the season."
...
Bush said that he expected to speak with Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano tonight regarding his recent decision."Coach Schiano was a big part of the reason why I committed early," Bush said. "I had a meeting with him and Coach Schiano, he's a hard guy to turn down. He made it seem -- not that it wasn't -- but he made it seem like it was the perfect place for me and I went with my feelings at the moment.
"Now that I've re-evaluated, I think I should just wait it out a little bit and if I still feel that way at the end of the day, then Rutgers is definitely the place for me."
Up this week for ESPN Rise is Andre Civil.
RU commit Mark Harrison is having a big season.
Signs still point towards Delaware receiver Justin Brown ending up at Penn State.
Joe Paterno is hoping to add wide receiver Justin Brown (Wilmington, Del./Concord) to his 2009 recruiting class. The 6-foot-3, 210-pound Brown is one of the top wide receiver prospects on the East Coast. Brown has well over a dozen scholarship offers, but look for him to choose between Penn State, Rutgers, Maryland, Boston College, Oregon, Kentucky, Iowa and Missouri.
Brown has visited Penn State nearly a half dozen times, including last weekend's game against Michigan. He has not yet scheduled any official visits, but one of his trips will be to State College.
"I'll definitely make an official visit to Penn State," Brown said. "There is an opportunity to play early there. I could fight for a starting position quickly. Their program is having a lot of success. The environment is nice."
Is Rutgers going after a JUCO lineman? Probably not, unless he's really good.
South Carolina is looking hard at OL Jeff Vinson (6-8 324) of Lackawanna JC, PA and might be in a mood to offer him soon according to his coach. "He will be highly recruited," coach Mark Duda said of the Scranton, PA native who has an offer from Oklahoma. "South Carolina is trying to arrange a visit. They like him. He likes South Carolina. Everybody that sees him likes him. I think he's going to be offered by a lot of people." Vinson also is drawing serious interest from West Virginia and Rutgers according to his coach. Vinson plays left tackle, and he's still developing as a lineman. "He looks like a power forward on a basketball team, only thicker," Duda said. "He has long arms and is just coming into his own as a pass protector and blocker. He's extremely fast. It's mind boggling to see a kid run like that. That's his biggest attribute. He's just learning to be an offensive lineman. That will come. And he's got a good nasty streak to him. He's an intense big guy." Vinson will graduate in May and have three years to play two.
Apparently Rutgers has called about Stanford decommit Camden Wentz. I haven't seen anything about an offer though, and Georgia Tech is his likely destination.
Scout.com's recruiting database reports that Rutgers has offered 2010 Delaware RB Jamaal Jackson.