Class of 2014 star, B.J. Stith, of Brunswick High School.

One of them, B.J. Stith already accepted a scholarship
offer to UVa, even though he’s in the 10th grade. The
other, Brandan Stith had not been offered any scholarships yet,
but it’s only a matter of time.

On this day, Janurary 27, 2012, I started the long drive
to Brunswick from Charlottesville, VA at 10:16 A.M. Wherever
I go, the Dan Patrick Show is on the radio, so I turned my
radio to WKAV-1400 A.M. This would be a LONG trip of
close to 300 miles.

#22 B.J. Stith, of Brunswick High School in southeastern Virginia

I soon stopped for gas at Xions Crossroads, east of Charlottesville.
It was windy outside. On the radio, the host was talking
about Peyton Manning. I get tired of hearing about Peyton
Manning, because unless you’ve seen his medical records,
you don’t know what the doctors are saying, and exactly
what was done through his 3rd back surgery.

Eventually, on the 72 mile-trip to Richmond, VA, I lost contact
with 1400, and changed my channel to 1465, and ESPN
all-sports station. The host informed everyone that one
of his advertisers was Progressive insurance.

I got to Brunswick High School at 1:36 P.M. Now that I had
found where the high school was, I had to make the time
pass until the 7:30 P.M. game against Virginia Homeschoolers.

I wasn’t going to tresspass there on school property, so
I had hours for something to do

Back to the Brunswick High team: Bryant Stith, who was
a first-team all-ACC player at Virginia, was UVa’s
all-time scoring leader. He is the head basketball coach
at his former school he had attended, Brunswick High.

The most impressive player in this game, hands-down,
was 6-5 Brandan Stith. Stith is classified as a junior,
but I heard that he’s going to re-do his junior season,
which would make both of Stith’s sons would be
high school juniors next year!

Brandan Smith did it all: he made a 3-pointer,
he blocked shots, he ran with the face-break whenever
he had a chance. Did UVa offer a scholarship to the
wrong Stith?

Well, B.J. Stith will develop in to a fine college
point guard, but he is thin. Brandan Stith is an
ACC-caliber small forward, but has no scholarship
offers yet!

In the game, Brandan Stith scored 18 points and had 11 rebounds. His younger brother,
B.J. Stith had 7 points, but he played a solid game from his point guard position.
Brunswick won, 56-39 over Central Virginia Home School.

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I started off leaving Charlottesville, VA about 10 hours before the game was going to start. At 10:51, I went in to a McDonald’s just to get some diet Coke. On the way, Dan Patrick was doing his sports talk show. He had an interview with Coach K of Duke an later, one of Todd Marinovich of Southern California.

At 11:36 I passed by Nelson County High School. At 11:45, radio 1400 had too much static to listen to.  Then, at 11:45, I turned the 1450, which is ESPN radio on the internet. The host is the controversial Colin Cowherd. He was asking his guest how he would explain Miami fans booing LeBron James. That’s not my problem though!

Cowherd then talked with Steven A. Smith, a well-known sports talk show guest. At 12:24, I stopped for gas and also got directions to the Virginia Episcopal School. At 12:51, I stopped at a restaurant to eat and ask for directions to
Virginia Episcopal School. It’s a nice-looking campus.

Ifeanyi Onyekaba, Class of 2013 at Richmond, VA Virginia Episcopal School was very impressive. His upper body looks like he’s been lifting weights for years. There’s no question that UVa or Virginia Tech could use Ifeanyi Onyekaba! On offense, he posts up, holds his position, waits for the ball, and simply dribbles around his man, power over his man, or just jumps up and dunks it with two hands!

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MaxPreps.com had listed Bash Townes as being 6-5 and 220 pounds. Townes plays very smoothly, and with a lot of poise for any high school basketball player, despite being a freshman on a varsity team. He came in averaging over 17 points and 10 rebounds.

Bash Townes wears jersey number 15. Divante Walker, who wears number 3, was recently offered a football scholarship by the University of Virginia! Another player I was there to see was 6-6 225 Class of 2013 quarterback Bucky Hodges, a future high school All-American who also plays high school basketball. However, Bucky Hodges didn’t suit up for tonight’s game, as punishment for missing a class.

It was snowing back in Charlottesville, Virginia in the middle of the state, but there was no snow here in Virginia Beach. However, the air in Virginia Beach was windy and in the thirties. It was COLD!

Bash Townes hit on 7 out of 9 field goal attempts, plus 4-6 free throws, for 18 points. After the first quarter, the score was Salem 11, Cox 10. Salem stretched their lead to 21-15 at the half. Salem won the game 54-49.

Although Divante Walker is a football recruit, he impressed me as a basketball player, because he had blazing speed with the basketball, and is a true point guard.

I next drove from Virginia Beach, VA to Charlotesville, a long, cold trip in the dark!

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I left Charlottesville, Virginia after having 4 bagels at Panera Bread. I listened to AM radio station 1450, an all-sports station, and the host was Colin Cowherd. The program was “The Herd” and Cowherd was discussing the NFL, among other things.  He was talking to callers about a major league pro baseball team, the Texas Rangers.

6-7 Class of 2013 Rodney Bullock

He was talking about the Texas Rangers, and how they gave 51.7 million just for the rights to negotiate for a player.

Colin Cowherd was very critical of Baron Davis, a point guard for the Los Angeles Clippers. (Within days, however, Baron Davis became a New York Knick.) Colin Cowherd said that a playoff in college football won’t happen, because fans can’t even get along with fans from other schools, so it won’t be voted in. Peter King, a sportswriter, came on to “The Herd,” and agreed with Cowherd that Ben Roethlisberger should not have been playing the previous night, and that he should be held out until the playoffs begin.

I switched to radio station 1400, but it was too difficult to hear. So I switched to AM 910, where the host, Dan Patrick was talking.  I then stopped at Zotas, a gas station, and bought some crackers and filled up my car with gas.

Soon, I was in Hampton, Virginia, and I managed to find Kecoughtan High. I noticed that by air, it’s only about 2 miles from there to Phoebus High. I sat through the Kecoughtan-Newport News Heritage girls game, and after that, the boys game started around 7:30.

Rodney Bullock, who wears jersey number 5, was outstanding. His dunks brought the crowd to their feet! By my accounting, he scored 21 points, even though his coach did not play him in the fourth quarter, due to the fact that Kecoughtan was ahead by 30 points!  They won 68-40, extending their record to 7-0. Rodney Bullock scored 20 points, but I was keeping count, and I had him for hitting on 6-13 shots from the floor, and 9-9 from the free throw line.  He must have been 8-8 from the foul line instead. Still, for a big man, his free throw-shooting was terrific.

Rivals.com ranks Rodney Bullock number 105 in the nation for next year, in the Class of 2013. I think he’s better than anyone who plays in the front court for Virginia or Virginia Tech already!

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#74 is Mark Wilson, an athletic lineman.

[In the photo at left, is Class of 2012 senior,#4, Ken Ekanem of Centreville High, which played against Oscar Smith. It's interesting that he hasn't announced what college he will be attending.]

In another photo here is a junior, #74 Mark Wilson,  a tackle at Phoebus. He’s the one with high socks and a blue jersey.  Today was the end of the 2011-2012 high school football season in Virginia. It was played on the campus of the University of Virginia, and by 3:00 P.M. it was cold outside.

There were two games: in Division 5, Phoebus beat South County by a score of 20-10. In Division 6, Centreville lost to Oscar Smith by a score of 47-21. However, I go to see individual players, not teams or games really. And I concentrate on scouting 9th-11th graders. However, if there is a basketball player eighth-grader who is advanced, I’ll go to AAU and report on him.

At 12:07 P.M., the Phoebus-South County started. Phoebus is so good that EVERYONE on their football roster is good enough to be playing football after high school. Even the least-talented player on their roster is at least good enough to play at the Division III level!

I’m always looking for players who might be college prospects, in this case, players who are rising stars this year or will be next year in the 2012-2013 season. South County High has a ninth-grade team and a middle school team, yet on this year’s squad they have a whopping 97 players! So they have a lot to choose from for every position on the field.

I was impressed by Warner Hunter, a member of South County High’s team, and a member of the Class of 2013, who goes 5-8 195. He’s a running back. I was also impressed by many of the underclass prospects on Phoebus.  Walt Brantley, a member of the Class Of 2014 for Phoebus, is an offensive/defensive lineman. He’s 6-3 315.

Another player for Phoebus High who is a member of the Class Of 2013 is number 74, Mark Wilson, a 6-4 235-lbs . offensive/defensive lineman. Phoebus has another young lineman, this one of the Class of 2015 lineman Harry Lewis, 6-4 245. Phoebus won this game over South County by a score of 20-10.  Phoebus is now the Division 5 state champion for the 2011-2012 season!

The second game of the day started at 4:07 P.M. Oscar Smith High was playing Centreville High. Centreville High had two players who seemed to be big-time prospects for 2013: wearing jersey number 5 is Manny Smith, a 5-9 200 halfback, and #4,  defensive end-tight end Ken Ekanem, who is 6-4 245. But Oscar Smith reloads with college prospects every year. Wide receiver/defensive back Melvin Vaughn (Class of 2013) was listed at 6-1 210 and is a player to watch.  Tight end-defensive end Darren Flowers is a player who was listed at 6-1 210 and in the member of the Class of 2013.

Finally, a mere freshman (Class of 2015) for Oscar Smith, Deshawn McClease, is listed at 5-10 190 and scored on a 54-yard run in this game!

And Oscar Smith also has number 51, who is Shedrick Oliver, a member of the Class of 2013 who is listed at 6-3 210. He plays defensive end and offensive or defensive tackle. But there are countless college prospects on Oscar Smith High, which is why they have such great won-loss records each year. In today’s game, Zack Jones caught 3 passes for 85 yards.

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MaxPreps.com rates Troy Williams as the nation’s ninth-best player in the Class of 2013. ESPNU rates Troy Williams as the number 8 Class of 2013 player in the nation! Rivals.com rates Troy Williams as the nation’s 14th-best player.

The Phoebus Phantoms basketball team won Tuesday’s game against the Heritage Hurricanes by a score of 62-43. Troy Williams only weighs about 175, but he can do anything on the court. In this game, he connected on 8 out of 17 shots from two-point range. From three-point range he shot 0-2.  Troy Williams was 4-4 from the foul line, so he scored 20 points total.

#5 is Class of 2013 forward Troy Williams

He played a great all-around game: he had 8 rebounds and 3 assists also. Phoebus led 10-8 over Heritage at the end of one period of play. Then, they narrowly led Heritage 28-25 at the half. But they played much better in the second half, partly because they fed the ball over and over to transfer center, Jalen Ford, who is an unstoppable force inside at the high school level. Ford is a senior, and Phoebus broke the game open by continuously feeding him the ball inside. Howard, Tennessee St., VMI, and Austin Peay are recruiting him the hardest, he told me . I think he’s better than that level of college basketball, in my opinion.

So, Phoebus led 50-36 after three quarters.

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Heavily-recruited 6-2 Class of 2013 Anthony Barber on November 29, 2011.

[At left is the player I came to scout, Anthony Barber (in red jersey number 12) of the Class of 2013 warms up for the Heritage game.] Anthony Barber is ranked as the 4th best point guard in the Class of 2013 by ESPN.com, which ranks him 5 out of 5 stars. MaxPreps.com rates Anthony Barber as the 12th-best member of the Class of 2013! Plus, they rate him 5 out of 5 stars. Rivals.com rates Anthony Barber as number 24 in the Class of 2013, and has him listed as a 4-star recruit.

One thing is for sure: Anthony Barber won’t be going to the University of North Carolina: the Tar Heels have committments from point guard Marcus Paige from the Class of 2012, and just yesterday got a committment from Class of 2013 Nate Britt.

I drove from Charlottesville, Virginia to Newport News, Virginia during the afternoon, so that I wouldn’t have to look for Heritage High School in the dark! I had actually been to the Heritage High School gym once already, when I saw them upset Hampton in basketball over 10 years-ago.

I had left the house at 9:42, and listened to WKAV-1400, Charlottesville’s all-sports station. It was raining hard and the temperature was going down. I had brought with me some Diet Caffeine-Free Dr. Pepper, and some Lays potato chips.

I stopped at Citgo to buy more diet Coke to drink. On 1400, they were now talking about the fact that Urban Meyer, the former University of Florida head football coach, might be hired to coach at Ohio State.

In the Hampton-Heritage game, Hampton led the Heritage Hurricanes 18-8 at the end of one quarter. Hampton then extended their lead to 32-18 at the half. I kept track of Anthony Barber’s statistics for this game. Anthony Barber needs to work on his 3-point shooting and also free throws.

Hampton won this game 73-40. Hampton was very impressive, and looks like a candidate to win the state Group AAA championship this year, in my opinion.

Anthony Barber shot 5-10 from the floor (jump shooting and leading the fast break). He was 0-5 on three-pointers. From the foul line, he was just 3-7. He finished with 13 points. However, he was very unselfish, and only shot when he had a wide-open shot! He is a pure point guard, one who makes his teammates better!

As I was driving back to Charlottesville, Virginia after the game, I was thinking of who Anthony Barber reminds me of. He may be 6-3 instead of 6-2, and he’s gained some pounds. He had previously been listed at 165. Anthony Barber is not the next Allen Iverson (no one is) but he’s more of a pure point guard.

If Anthony Barber were to pick the University of Virginia or Virginia Tech, neither school has had a pure point guard like Anthony Barber! For whatever reason, he does not dunk the ball during games: he just lays the ball in to the basket without using the backboard for his layups. I’d say that he has the style of Washington Wizard point guard John Wall!

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Bucky Hodges throws during pre-game warmups.

[Number one at left is 6-6 230 Class of 2013 quarterback Bucky Hodges of Salem High School in Virginia Beach, VA.] On Friday, November 25, 2011, I started off the day by buying 8 packs of peanut butter crackers. (I love peanut butter crackers.)  As I was leaving Charlottesville, there was a man standing on the sidewalk on 29 North near the Barracks Road Shopping Center with a sign that read, “I need a ticket.” Although the Virginia-Virginia Tech game wasn’t going to be played until the next day, that was an indication of how big a game that was going to be!

I put my radio to WKAV-1400, a 24 hour-a-day sports station in Charlottesville. There was a substitute host named Damon Bruce, who was filing in for Jim Rome. Damon Bruce was saying that all of  teammates were to blame for his behavior: Ndamukong Suh has been fined 11 times for losing his temper! He explained that if Suh’s teammates had gotten angry about Suh”s previous episodes of losing his temper, then Su would have tried to control his anger so as not to be penalized during the games.

The game I was going to see was an Eastern Region playoff game, involving two Division 6 schools. I was going to the Salem-Oscar Smith game to see 4 underclass prospects. One wore jersey number 1 for Salem High: 6-6 220 blue-chip Class of 2013 quarterback Bucky Hodges. Another was his teammate, who wore jersey number 10, 6-1 175 Class of 2013 defensive back Kwamane Bowens. I also was there to see two Oscar Smith players: One was Zack Jones, who wears jersey number 3, and who is listed as a 6-0 185 wide receiver. He’s in the Class of 2013. The other was a member of the Class of 2014, #11, Jaylen Bradshaw, a 6-1 170 safety for Oscar Smith.

This was one of the best high school football games I’ve ever seen! Oscar Smith went ahead 35-7 at the half, and it looked like this was going to be one of those “keep the clock running” games. (The Virginia High School League has a terrible rule that requires any team that is leading by 35 points to keep the clock running at all times, even through complete passes or time-outs!)

But in the second half, Salem was a completely different team. Their defense stopped Oscar Smith cold on series after series. And on offense, Bucky Hodges and his teammates went up and down the field. Finally, Salem scored to make the score 35-34 (Oscar Smith leading). Instead of letting the game be decided in an overtime, Salem made the decision to go for two points. I think it was a good idea. However, it didn’t work. Salem’s running back tried to run around the left end for the two points, but was tripped up and tackled. So, that was the final score, 35-34, with Oscar Smith winning.

Bucky Hogdes ran for three touchdowns in this game. He gained 57 yards rushing on 11 carries.  He completed 15 out of 22 passes for 155 yards, and an interception.

I then headed back home to Charlottesville, where Virginia Tech and Virginia were to battle the next afternoon. I attended Virginia Tech for over a year, and eventually graduated from the University of Virginia in 1985. Go Hoos! Go Hokies!

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Finding high schools in the dark is not easy now that it’s no longer daylight so early. But I’m proud to say that I did not get lost driving  to Lloyd C. Bird, or on the trip back to Charlottesville, Virginia. I also did not have to dial 911 for directions.

Lloyd Bird High School’s Skyhawks upset the favored Varina High School Blue Devils in this game, 21-16.

#62 is Kris Wilson, a 6-4 285 lineman for Varina High. He's in the Class of 2013.

Varina High School featured University of Virginia-bound Maurice Canaday, who will likely play defensive back or wide receiver at UVa. But I was at this game to scout underclassmen.

I left Charlottesville and headed to this game. On the way to the game, I listened to AM radio station WKAV (a 24 hour-a-day sport station). On WKAV was the show called “The Loose Cannons.” The Loose Cannons were talking about poker, something I never have cared for when it appears on TV. I then changed stations to Charlottesville’s 97.5, also known as 3WV. They were playing a song by Judas Priest as I was on my way from Charlottesville to Chesterfield.

I got to the game at 6:21. Kickoff wasn’t until 7:30, but I’d much rather be early than late to a game, so I can watch the best players warming-up. It’s easier to take photos of them warming up than playing.

You can just look at Tim Harris and Kris Wilson and see that they have FBS potential. However, Kris Wilson is clearly not 6-4. I would say he’s about 6-2 or maybe a little taller. This upcoming Friday night I’ll go see another game to scout another prospect, probably in the eastern region of the state.

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#5 is Class of 2013 receiver Deon Newsome

(At left is the player I came to scout, #42 Marshawn Williams). I wanted to scout a high school sophomore who I had heard good things about. His name is Marshawn Williams, and he plays for Hampton, Virginia High School.

I left the house on Friday, November 4, 2011 for the 7:30 game. Hampton High was going to play Green Run High of  Virginia Beach, VA in a regional playoff game. Green Run High only had a 5-5 record coming in to the game.

Although I only report on players 8th-11 grades, I couldn’t help but notice Green Run High’s
Mark Hall, who is a senior who is committed to the University of Virginia. Mark Hall is listed at 6-3 215 and plays linebacker, among other positions. He wore number 9.

I also wanted to see another underclassman for Hampton High: 5-11 180 Class of 2013 Deon Newsome. But Newsome didn’t have one of his better games. He wore jersey number 5.

Marshawn Williams had few carries, so he didn’t really stand out either. Hampton went ahead 16-0 in the first half and then had to sweat out a 16-12 victory. Green Run finished the game on a 4th and 7 situation, with the ball near Hampton’s goal line!

Don’t forget that the University of Virginia is after 6-3 200 Daquin Moore of Hampton High, a member of the Class of 2013. Virginia has already gotten a committment from Class of 2012 wide receiver/defensive back Jamall Brown, who wears jersey number 2 for Hampton High. He’s listed as bewing 6-6 179, but he does not appear that tall. Most places list him as 6-0!  I see a lot of potential with Jamall Brown. When he committed to Virginia, some people wondered why UVa took such an unknown player, but he has a lot of potential.

For the game,

The weather at this game was cold, almost too cold to watch the game. I can only hope that future playoff games this year will be warmer!

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