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West Mesquite defensive back Kameron Miles verbally committed to Tennessee on Monday, picking the Vols over Stanford, Penn State and Arkansas.

Miles explained to ESPN Recruiting's Damon Sayles that Mark Barron's play at Alabama steered him toward Tennessee. Read about Miles' decision here (Insider).

CEDAR HILL, Texas -- A friendly reminder to those trying to frustrate Fort Worth (Texas) Southwest's Robbie Rhodes with trash talk: Don't.

While you might think your verbal jabs are working, all you are really doing is hyping up one of the fastest and most explosive receivers in Texas. And you'll end up eating your words real soon.

"People talk trash but they are just making it harder on their defense," Rhodes said. "God bless them."

Dallas Skyline sophomore linebacker Cameron Hampton was the latest to figure that out during pool play of the Dallas Under Armour Sevens on Saturday.

Hampton, one of the state's top sophomores, engaged in a little friendly banter with Rhodes throughout the 30-minute game. Rhodes barked back a few times but made his biggest statement with three touchdowns in Southwest's victory.

Read the full story here.

Three area athletes are among those highlighted in the ESPNHS NEXT feature, which spotlights players destined for greatness.

Aledo running back Johnathan Gray, who is headed for Texas, is on the list. So are Seth Jones and Kellyn Acosta of Plano.

Here's what ESPNHS has to say about these future stars:

Kellyn Acosta, soccer
Acosta is part of the next generation for U.S. soccer. The athletic defender from Plano, Texas, is rated as the nation's top player in the Class of 2013, and he has already proved he can produce on the biggest stages. Acosta made the U.S. U-17 men's national team last season and worked his way into the starting lineup for the Under-17 World Cup in Mexico, and it may only be a matter of time before he's starring for the men's national team at the 2018 World Cup. Or maybe even 2014 …

Johnathan Gray, football
Texas Longhorns fans are getting antsy. A 13-12 record over the past two years for a team used to greatness will do that. But there is a silver -- or should we say Gray? -- lining to all this. The down years didn't scare off Gray, the record-setting running back from Aledo (Aledo, Texas). The No. 2 player in the 2012 ESPN 150, Gray became the nation's all-time leader in touchdowns scored with 205. Expect him to be Texas' most dynamic playmaker since Vince Young. Can a trip back to a BCS bowl be far behind?

Seth Jones, ice hockey
Jones is built like a basketball player (6-foot-3) -- his dad, after all, is former NBA stalwart Popeye Jones. But Seth prefers to do work on the ice. A member of Team USA's Under-18 Worlds squad and one of North America's top prospects, Jones decided last week to bypass college and play for the Portland Winterhawks of the Western Hockey League. In 2013, the two-way defenseman could potentially be selected first overall in the NHL draft. The 17-year-old from Plano, Texas, might be raising the Stanley Cup before long.

ESPN.com Big 12 blogger David Ubben says Baylor QB Nick Florence of South Garland, Oklahoma State WR Josh Stewart of Denton Guyer and Texas RB Joe Bergeron of North Mesquite are three players to watch in the Big 12 this year.

IRVING, Texas -- The way Donnie Brake remembers it, the field was "partial grass, dirt and rocks."

It was about 20 yards wide and 38 yards long, give or take. When the offense wanted to work on the passing game, they went the long way. When they wanted to run, they went the wide way.

James Hanna was a 16-year-old sophomore then, playing six-man football at Coram Deo Academy in Highland Village, Texas, with Brake as his coach.

"I remember practicing outside of our building on really not very good fields over there," Hanna said, "and thinking about going to play football for Oklahoma and then I'd go play for the Dallas Cowboys because my stepdad went to Oklahoma and has been a Cowboy fan, so I grew up watching Oklahoma and the Cowboys. As luck would have it, it's worked out that way. Literally, it's a dream come true."

How many kids have those dreams? Hundreds? Thousands?

Hanna, whom the Cowboys selected in the sixth round in last week's NFL draft, is one of the few who get to live it.

Read the full column here.

HornsNation's Max Olson did a Q&A with Plano West DE Bryce Cottrell, who switched his commitment from Oregon after being offered by Texas. He'll be a freshman for the Longhorns in the fall.

Here's an excerpt:

HornsNation: How did you end up a Longhorn?

Bryce Cottrell: Well, I've always wanted to play for the Longhorns since I was a little kid. My mom and my grandma and all them were Texas Longhorns, so it was kind of meant to be. I remember getting a phone call from Mack Brown a week and a half before signing day and they told me they were offering a scholarship. It was one of the happiest days of my life. That's a dream come true.

Read the entire interview here.

Southlake Carroll quarterback Kenny Hill told ESPN Recruiting Nation's Damon Sayles Saturday that he has committed to Texas A&M, after announcing the selection on twitter.

"Offically committed to Texas A&M!!! #AggSwagg," Hill said on his twitter handle, @Kennyhill13.

Hill led Carroll to the 5A Division I state title last December and was a finalist in the Elite 11 competition that took place at Cowboys Stadium last month, which was won by Skyline's Devante Kincade.

Hill turned down offers from nine other schools, including Missouri, Ole Miss, Baylor, TCU and Texas Tech.

Here is Sayles story on Hill's decision (insider only).

Former Richardson Berkner and SMU offensive guard Josh LeRibeus was the first Metroplex-native player picked in the 2012 NFL draft, selected by the Washington Redskins as the eighth pick of the third round (71^st overall).

Berkner coach Jim Ledford said he was very pleased with his former player’s new team, especially after the Redskins selected 2012 Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III.

“What a great opportunity with RGIII,” Ledford said. “What [LeRibeus] does best is pull and they’ll run a lot of boots and things like that with [Mike] Shanahan stuff and that’s what Josh is really good at.”

Ledford watched LeRibeus’ selection with the player and his family Friday night and said he believed the lineman would go 74^th overall to Kansas City. However, Ledford said he had no doubt Washington selected LeRibeus for his ability to pull and protect a mobile quarterback.

LeRibeus was key in Berkner’s 12-0 season in 2006 after moving from guard to tackle to tight end throughout the season.

“Josh was a dominating player from his junior high years all the way through all his high school years,” Ledford said.

LeRibeus spent five years at SMU after graduating from Berkner in 2007, where he averaged six pancake blocks per game in his senior season.

After a redshirt season for the Mustangs in 2007, LeRibeus saw action in his freshman year and took over a starting position in 2009, where he was named honorable mention All-C-USA as a sophomore.

SMU has not seen a player drafted as high as LeRibeus since the death penalty, when Ron Morris (54^th overall) and Jerry Ball were selected in the second and third rounds of the draft.

LeRibeus became the second-highest drafted player in Berkner history, behind defensive back Aqib Talib who was picked 20^th overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first round of the 2008 draft.

Former Arlington Seguin/Oklahoma DB goes to Cardinals

Also getting the call in the third round was cornerback Jamell Fleming as the 80^th pick overall to the Arizona Cardinals.

Fleming took to twitter after the announcement of his selection on the handle @JamellFleming, tweeting a picture of himself in a Cardinal red shirt.

“I got my team color on! Let’s go Cardinals!” Fleming said via twitter.

Fleming started in all of OU’s games his junior and senior seasons, racking up 60 total tackles his senior season with two interceptions and two fumble recoveries.

He was selected as a first team All-Big 12 player in 2011, with a highlight 56-yard scoop-and-score against Texas for his second career touchdown.

ESPNHS profiles Dallas Skyline quarterback Devante Kincade, who has gained attention since he was named MVP of the Dallas Elite 11 regional.

It's a big day in the football recruiting world, with the initial ESPN 150 for the Class of 2013 being released.

Texas is well represented on the list of the nation's top recruits, but the Lone Star state's numbers have slipped from last year. There are 19 Texans on the new list, down from 24 on the final ESPN 150 for 2012.

This year's list has eight players from the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The final 2012 list had 12 DFW recruits, led by Denton Ryan's Mario Edwards Jr. at No. 1 and Aledo's Johnathan Gray at No. 2.

The top-rated area recruit among next year's seniors is speedy Cedar Hill athlete LaQuvionte Gonzalez, who already has committed to Texas A&M. Gonzalez lined up at running back, receiver, defensive back, punt returner and kick returner last season for coach Joey McGuire.

Right behind Gonzalez at No. 53 is another speedster, DeSoto's Dontre Wilson. The running back, being recruited as an athlete, has a dozen BCS offers but remains uncommitted.

Here are the area players on the list:

50. LaQuvionte Gonzalez, Cedar Hill, Athlete, Texas A&M
53. Dontre Wilson, DeSoto, Athlete, uncommitted
78. Jake Raulerson, Celina, OT, Texas
85. Justin Manning, Dallas Kimball, DT, uncommitted
87. Kent Perkins, Lake Hollands, OT, Texas
101. Joas Aguilar, Birdville, OG, Texas A&M
133. A'Shawn Robinson, Fort Worth Arlington Heights, DT, Texas
138. Mike Mitchell, Plano Prestonwood Christian, OLB, uncommitted

Find the full list here. Loganville (Ga.) Grayson defensive end Robert Nkemdiche, who is uncommitted, is No. 1.

As unrest surrounds the University of Arkansas football team following the firing of head coach Bobby Petrino, a local recruit has spent the last day trying to unify the 2012 signing class.

Allen running back and four-star recruit Jonathan Williams spent most of Wednesday calling fellow recruits to make sure they were still on board to play in Fayetteville next fall.

“I just really wanted to talk to all the other commits and try to calm them down because the reason we all committed to Arkansas is because how great their school is. Their football program is great, but the academics are great and the campus is great, too. I just tried to talk to those guys and make sure they stayed a part of the Arkansas football team.”

The majority of the signees he spoke with felt the same as he does -- what Arkansas has to offer as a school outweighs the scandal surrounding the football program. Williams said none of the recruits he spoke with said they were reconsidering their college selection.

Williams initially heard of the scandal from friends attending Arkansas and players currently on the football team, but said he didn’t hear of Petrino’s firing until it was in the news.

“I wasn’t thinking much of it, but when it got the media attention that it got -- that’s when I started feeling nervous. I was just shocked,” Williams said of Petrino’s firing.

In the end, Williams said it was the assistant coaches who did most of the recruiting and created more of a connection with the incoming class than Petrino did. While Petrino was a factor in Williams' decision to pick Arkansas, all the school has to offer is really what made Williams decommit from Missouri last season and choose the Razorbacks.

Moving forward, if Williams could pick a new head coach for his future team, he said he would bring back former offensive coordinator and current UAB head coach Garrick McGee, who left Fayetteville before last season to take the helm for the Blazers.

“He was one of the guys who helped recruit me, and he would keep the coaching staff that is up there because that’s the staff he worked with,” Williams said. “That would be a good possibility in my eyes at least.”

ESPNU 150 watch list defensive end Jay Arnold chose Texas A&M for his college career Monday, making him A&M's 14th recruit of the class of 2013, according to ESPN Recruiting Nation Midlands recruiting coordinator Damon Sayles.

The 6-foot 4, 255-pound end from Rockwall-Heath joined the the 2013 edition of the Aggie Swag Movement over offers from Baylor, Northwestern, Tulsa, SMU and Ole Miss.

Here is Sayles' account of Arnold's selection (Insider only).

Sayles also took a look at the talent surrounding standout Southlake Carroll quarterback Kenny Hill as the Dragons look to defend the 5A state title next fall, featuring Tanner Jacobson, Cam Manning, Ray Crockett and A.J. Ezzard.

Here is the Insider-only look at those returning Dragons.

SOUTHLAKE, Texas -- Every now and then, Southlake Carroll quarterback Kenny Hill will take a look at the state championship ring in his room. It's kind of hard not to stare at it and it serves as a constant reminder of the hard work and multiple sacrifices Hill's had to endure -- the kind of work that has made him a definite player to watch as his recruiting process heats up.

There are Super Bowl rings that take a step back from what Hill and the other Carroll players and coaches received. The face features 40 diamonds around and a part of the school's "SC" logo -- which resembles the USC athletics logo. Around the border are eight emeralds, which represent the school's eight championships. Carroll and Celina are the only Texas public high schools with eight titles in their school histories.

"When I first got [the ring], I was like, 'Man, we actually did it,'" Hill said. "Now when I look at it, I say, 'A second one would be even better.'"

Read the full story here.

WACO, Texas -- Nick Florence didn't have to come to Baylor. He didn't have to stay.

If football has been his only reason for coming to Waco, it'd be easy to see why he might've gone elsewhere.

But Florence did.

He stepped in as a freshman when future Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III tore his ACL, then stepped off the stage for the next two seasons while Griffin wrote his legacy.

Plenty of quarterbacks would have waved goodbye.

Florence didn't.

Here's why.

--

Florence didn't lose a game as a freshman at South Garland (Texas) High School. A year later, he took over the varsity squad in midseason and carried the team to a third-round loss in the state playoffs to Lufkin, led by Dez Bryant, now a receiver for the Dallas Cowboys.

"The QB that started the year as the starter, every opportunity Nick had, he would encourage him," said Mickey Moss, Florence's high school coach who now heads up a program in Rockwall, Texas. Throughout his career, Moss has put about 50 players into Division I programs like Nebraska, Oklahoma and Missouri.

"When Nick took over, he'd lead the senior linemen and just encourage them and give them confidence and praise. I was like, 'I’ve never seen a kid like this who had such confidence and maturity.'"

Florence earned a reputation on and off the field. Before school began, he and teammates would walk through the school's hallways while praying for classmates who would congregate there during the school year, which began in a few weeks. When school began, he'd join his twin brother, Luke, and others to often pray for classmates before class during the week.

"That’s just who he was and he believed in making a difference in the lives of other people," Moss said. "His leadership? He’s just got it."

His youth pastor at Lake Highlands Church in Dallas eventually took a job at Antioch Community Church in Waco, and Florence wanted to join him.

Florence pestered Moss to make a few calls down to Baylor. Moss did so and asked coaches if they'd seen Florence on film.

Minutes later, he got a call back.

Baylor offered Florence his first major scholarship offer, and Florence made it his only one.

"Nick just felt like this was where God wanted him to be, and that’s Nick," Moss said. "He does so much based on faith."

The problem? The coach who called back with that offer was Guy Morriss, who was fired after the 2007 season. Enter Art Briles and a kid from Copperas Cove whom nobody thought could play quarterback.

Briles, then at Houston, brought Cougars commit Robert Griffin III to Baylor with him, the two having faith of their own that they could win in Waco, which hadn't seen a winning football season since 1995.

Briles had his man, but honored Morriss' offer to Florence, whose playing time looked like it would be sparse.

"If God wanted you to be here and that’s what you believe, he doesn’t change his mind," Moss says he remembers telling Florence. "Knowing Robert Griffin was going to be the quarterback didn’t faze him."

Along the way, Florence kept working. He earned the respect of teammates. In the meantime, he got his business degree, worked closely with his church and married his wife, Rachel, last May. The two plan to enter the ministry whenever Florence's football career is over.

"His pastor told me, in all the locker rooms he’s been in, he’s never let his eyes view another naked woman in his life in print on TV or anywhere else until his wedding day. That says a lot about who he is, but also how others respect him," Moss said. "He doesn’t throw his faith in your face. Not at all. He has a genuine care, concern and love for people, and he’s always looking to make a difference. ... He’s going to compete, but the biggest thing I always believed he was going to do was make an impact in the locker room with his character and integrity."

Florence had been on campus a couple of years but RG3 was proving his mettle as the man at Baylor. Briles met with Moss and gushed about his backup.

"That kid is a winner," Moss recalls Briles saying.

He's done it since he was a freshman in high school, and now that the starting job at Baylor is nearly Florence's officially, he doesn't plan on that changing.

"You watch him play and it’s like, what’s special about him?" Moss said. "He wins. He leads. He makes plays. His throwing motion wasn’t the greatest. His speed wasn’t the greatest. His strength wasn’t the greatest. But the kid won, and then he influenced everyone around him."

When Griffin's knee injury meant Florence had to step in as a wide-eyed freshman, it also meant winning wasn't going to happen. It didn't. Baylor fell to 4-8 and won just one conference game, at Missouri when Florence set the school record for passing yards.

"He’s a different guy, just like I am since 2009 and like everybody. As you grow you mature, you learn to get better in everything you see act or do," Briles said. "He’s a guy that was thrown into a fire as a true freshman. Now, he’s had a chance to sit back and learn the system, understand what his strengths are, how to use them and what he needs to do to help this team grow."

Said Florence: "I'm not that 180-pound freshman anymore."

Baylor got a preview of its 205-pound senior in November when a concussion sidelined Griffin at Cowboys Stadium, near Florence's hometown.

Florence hopped off the bench just before halftime and completed 9 of 12 passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns to help Baylor keep its winning streak alive with a 66-42 victory over Texas Tech. That streak reached six games by season's end, the longest current string among AQ schools in college football.

Florence logged a memorable moment, but he also logged enough playing time to burn his redshirt and leave him with just one year of eligibility remaining entering 2012.

"He’s a guy who’ll do whatever and whatever happens in life, he’ll deal with it. If that means he has one year left to play, that means that’s what God’s will is. He’s obedient," Moss said. "If the team needed him to come in there and help win that game and burn his redshirt and then not play again the rest of the year, that’s OK with him."

Baylor needed Florence to come in and win that game. He did it. Now it's time to take over the full-time job of being the man who follows the man who did the unthinkable: winning a Heisman Trophy at Baylor.

"We don’t talk in terms of replacing. It’s just, what do we need to do now to do what we need to do at the end of July?" Briles said. "That’s the most important thing. We may not be able to do some of the same things we were able to do prior, so we’ve got to figure out different ways to do things and still have success."

Florence is no hurdler. He can't run 40 yards in 4.4 seconds and doesn't have an arm that will have NFL scouts drooling. For the time being, though, he does have the keys to Baylor's offense.

"It’s a great opportunity not everybody gets. I want to make the most of it and take advantage," Florence said.

That offense is going to look a little different now. Briles says time will show just how different it'll be.

"That’s the exciting part about it," Briles said. "We’ve got to expand and become better in all other areas scheme-wise, coaching-wise, player/individual technique-wise, and so that to me is the very exciting part, because we have to become a better football team."

Florence wants his chance to show he's the man to make Baylor a better team. Florence has proved his intangibles since high school, and as he's gotten older, they've only become more ingrained. Now is his chance to show them off to everyone outside of Baylor's practice field.

"When guys come in the huddle they have great confidence and respect in him. They know who he is. They know there’s not a selfish bone in his body, but at the same time, they know he’s a heck of a competitor," Moss said. "I’ve never been around a kid like Nick Florence, and I imagine I never will again."

The Mansfield Timberview football team may have picked up a new head coach after the team’s best playoff run in school history, but don’t expect much to change.

The Mansfield ISD athletic department named former North Forney head coach James Brown as the new football coach and athletic director at Timberview on Wednesday, replacing Mark Walker, who took a position as the school district’s assistant AD earlier this month.

Brown said he acknowledged that Timberview was a program that is still on the rise, which attracted him to apply for the job. Now that he has it, he said he doesn’t foresee changing much to a football machine that already runs beautifully.

“There are going to be some things that are different,” Brown said. “You’re going to put your stamp on the program yourself, but the reality is the program is in good shape. It’s not like coming into a program that’s struggled for years and years. It’s a program that’s on the rise and a program that holds itself to high character.”

Walker was directly involved with Brown’s selection and said what stood out to him about Brown was his experience at the 5A level as a head coach and an athletic director, which included trips into the state playoffs.

Brown had stops as an assistant coach in El Paso, Houston and Sugarland before taking the head coach job at North Forney before last season.

“You’re not just a football coach because you’re in charge of the men’s side of things, and that’s important in this district, that we have quality people doing those things,” Walker said.

Brown said he will begin his full-time duties April 9, in plenty of time to begin spring football practice.

The returning Timberview football players met Brown on Wednesday for one of a few meetings Brown will hold before April 9, and Brown instituted a mantra to not change a thing.

“Maintain the level of structure and integrity we’ve got.” Brown told his new team. “Continue to think about raising expectations every year. We’re not going to be the underdogs, we’re going to be the one’s with the target on our back.”