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2005 MAC Football Recruiting - Akron Zips

Overview

Akron signed 24 recruits from six different states with a heavy emphasis on western Pennsylvania and Ohio, where 17 recruits hailed from while Florida provided four in this class. Fifteen of the 24 players earned all-state honors. From a position standpoint, 14 are offensive players emphasizing RB, OL & TE with 10 on defense, mainly linemen. The impact areas are the TE prospects; Jose Cruz, who originally gave a verbal to North Carolina before UNC backed off last month, Merce Poindexter and Scott Uziel. All are in the 6-4 240 pound range. RB Alex Allen is a special talent who was rated the 29th best player in Ohio. QB Carlton Jackson received late interest from Michigan State but held firm to his commitment to Akron. WR J. Sharps from Westerville (OH) and DE Terricko Marshall from Maple Heights (OH) could play as true freshmen.

Top Player - Zack Anderson, OL

• Two-time All-State performer from Lester Interboro, PA
• Had reported offers from Pitt, WVU, Georgia Tech, Purdue & Virginia, among others
• Older brother Bryan played at Pitt, currently with the Chicago Bears

Highlights

• DT Antwon Hight is a major coup for Akron. Going into the 2004 high school season he was rated as one of the top defensive line prospects in the country and the #2 prospect in Ohio. When scholastic issues arose, the offers from Ohio State, Oklahoma, FSU and others where withdrawn. In the end, he chose Akron over WVU. He is the only known player in this class that may end up a 'prop-48.'
• Along with Zach Anderson, Elliott Bates is another stud line prospect. An all-state player on both sides of the ball, he ran the fastest 40-yard dash at the Ohio State camp last summer and also excels in track & field.
• Two other players to note with mild fanfare but tremendous upside are QB Chris Jacquemain from Mentor (OH) & DE Clarence McPherson from Miami (FL). Jacquemain is an excellent athlete with 4.5/40 speed who excelled as a QB, WR and DB in high school. McPherson is a late bloomer who moved from TE to DE and received a late offer from Arkansas.

Final Thoughts

This has to be considered the best class in Akron’s football history. The Zips consistently beat MAC powers Bowling Green & Toledo for players and had a lot of success going against Big East members West Virginia and Pitt. Coach Brookhart did a splendid job at recruiting western Pennsylvania, Ohio and various parts of Florida. Certainly their major upgrades in football facilities assisted the coaching staff. Within published reports, Dwayne Long, editor of Ohio High Magazine stated “if there is a better recruiting class in the MAC, I’d like to see it.” He further compared this class to be on par with several Big Ten classes. Certainly this is a high impact group of prospects that rate as OUTSTANDING compared to other MAC schools this year. If Akron continues to recruit at this level, they will become a major player not only in the MAC but as a top non-BCS program nationally.

Name, Pos.	      Ht.	Wt.	Hometown/Previous School
Alex Allen, RB	      6-0	195	Youngstown, Ohio/Ursuline
Michael Alphonse, LB  6-0     	223     Miramar, Fla./Miami Norland HS
Brandon Anderson, DB  5-11    	175     Dublin, Va./Pulaski HS/Hargraves Military Academy
Zack Anderson, OL     6-6     	275     Lester, Pa./Interboro HS
Al-Teric Balaam, LB   6-1     	220     New Brunswick, N.J./New Brunswick
Elliott Bates, OL     6-4     	290     Houston, Pa./Chartiers-Houston HS
Jose Crúz, TE         6-5     	240     Johnstown, Pa./Bishop McCort HS
DeAndre DeScott, DB   6-0     	185     Cleveland, Ohio/South HS
Rodney Etienne, DB    6-2     	183     Pompano Beach, Fla./Blanche Ely HS
Kevin Garner, DL      6-2     	220     West Mifflin, Pa./West Mifflin HS
Antwon Hight, DL      6-3     	285     Canton, Ohio/McKinley HS
Keith Huebner, OL     6-7     	265     Pittsburgh, Pa./Baldwin HS
Carlton Jackson, QB   6-3     	200     Pompano Beach, Fla./Blanche Ely HS
Chris Jacquemain, QB  6-2     	200     Painesville, Ohio/Mentor HS
Chris Kemme, OL       6-6     	260     Upper Arlington, Ohio/Upper Arlington HS
Joshua Kiner, DL      6-3     	255     Dauphin, Pa./Central Dauphin East
Jermaine Lindsay, WR  6-1     	165     Bowie, Md./Forestville HS
Terricko Marshall, DE 6-3     	235     Ashtabula, Ohio/Maple Heights HS
Bryant McMillon, RB   5-10    	193     Cincinnati, Ohio/Hughes Center HS
Clarence McPherson, DL 6-3     	240     Miami, Fla./Miami Edison HS
Merce Poindexter, TE  6-4     	235     Ellwood City, Pa./Lincoln HS
J. Sharps, WR         6-5     	205     Westerville, Ohio/Westerville South
Joe Tuzze, FB         5-11    	240     Mayfield, Pa./Lakeland HS
Scott Uziel, TE       6-4     	250     Export, Pa./Franklin Regional HS

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