ESPN College Football

Some Thursday linkage:

• Alabama misses on one quarterback target, but impresses another.
• Robenson Therezie is making strides in Auburn's secondary.
• A more experienced Florida offensive line wants to drop the "soft" label.
• Billy Liucci of TexAgs.com sits down with first-year Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin.
• Tennessee defensive coordinator Sal Sunseri's lesson plan is catching on this spring.
• Cornerback Dehendret Collins joins Ole Miss' first-team defense.
• Georgia's defensive line provides hope and stability for the Bulldogs.
• Bobby Petrino's motorcycle accident could save lives.
• Mississippi State is getting a boost up front offensively from its junior college transfers.

Radi Nabulsi writes : Juco athlete and UGA prospect Mario Alford believes the military training he has received at Georgia Military College gives him an edge against future Division I competition, and he wants to prove it while wearing UGA’s red and black.

Kipp Adams writes : With more than a dozen offers, No. 15, from the Georgia Bulldogs, is an extra-special one for in-state prospect Josh Outlaw.

Adams : Since the SEC East got wind of his talent, two-way player and DE Antonio Riles has been reeling with the endless stream of offers.

After giving the NFL serious consideration, Georgia nose guard John Jenkins told reporters Friday that he will return to school for his senior season.

Jenkins sent in paperwork for an NFL evaluation earlier this month, but said Friday that he hasn't received a draft grade back and doesn't need one at this point.

“Unless it’s first round, then I’d be a dumb guy not to go out,” Jenkins told reporters. “But I don’t think that’s what I’m going to get. I think everybody knows I need to come back and polish up more with Coach [Rodney] Garner behind me. That’s what I need to do.”

Jenkins entered the season as a highly-touted junior college transfer, but it took him a while to adapt to major college football. Expected to start right away and be a force in the middle of Todd Grantham's 3-4 defense, Jenkins was slow coming out of the gate.

He was a backup to Kwame Geathers before starting six games. He enters the Outback Bowl against Michigan State as the starter at nose guard and has recorded 28 tackles, including six for loss, three sacks and 10 quarterback hurries.

There is no doubt that Jenkins looks physically ready for the NFL. At 6 feet 3 inches and 351 pounds, Jenkins has the size to fill quite the space on a NFL defensive line. He's also tremendously athletic and can be a force in both rushing and passing defense. Stopping the run is probably his best attribute with that kind of size.

The other thing about Jenkins is that he has grown and improved throughout the season. He flirted along the underachieving line during the first part of the season until the light went on. Once he got more comfortable in Grantham's defense, he became a solid player for the Bulldogs. Now, he's become an interior offensive lineman's nightmare.

This is pretty good news for Georgia. The Bulldogs will keep a key component to its defense with Jenkins returning and if he continues his upward swing, he could transform into a top draft prospect at his position.

Good Monday to everybody. A few links to munch on:

• Focusing on highly rated in-state prospects has paid off handsomely for South Carolina.
• Former Ole Miss defensive lineman Jerrell Powe declares himself the best nose guard in the NFL draft.
• Former Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy scores a 48 out of 50 on the Wonderlic test.
• Suspended Georgia running back Washaun Ealey has been reinstated in full to the team.
• Georgia assistant coaches Mike Bobo, Rodney Garner and Tony Ball are all in line to receive retention bonuses.
• Former Tennessee receiver Denarius Moore is hopeful NFL scouts notice the way he finished his college career.
• It's never too early to talk LSU football, writes Scott Hotard of The Baton Rouge Advocate.

Thanks to Ryan McGee, we took a look at the best recruiting head coaches in the SEC on Monday.

But what about the assistants?

They’re the ones who lay the groundwork, and in most cases, establish the relationships with prospects and their families so the head coach can get in the door and close the deal.

Having conferred with several in and around the league, not to mention talking with players who've gone through the the process, here are the 25 best recruiters in the SEC among assistant coaches. They’re listed alphabetically:

• Charlie Baggett, Tennessee's assistant head coach/wide receivers coach
• Shane Beamer, South Carolina’s special teams coordinator/recruiting coordinator
• Mike Bobo, Georgia’s offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach
• Burton Burns, Alabama’s associate head coach/running backs coach
• Steve Caldwell, Arkansas’ defensive ends coach
• Rodney Garner, Georgia’s assistant head coach/recruiting coordinator/defensive line coach
• Billy Gonzales, LSU’s passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach
• Aubrey Hill, Florida’s wide receivers coach
• Tim Horton, Arkansas' recruiting coordinator/running backs coach
• Tony Hughes, Mississippi State’s recruiting coordinator/safeties coach
• Ellis Johnson, South Carolina’s assistant head coach for the defense
• John Lilly, Georgia's tight ends coach
• Gus Malzahn, Auburn's offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach
• Tee Martin, Kentucky’s passing game coordinator/wide receivers coach
• Garrick McGee, Arkansas’s offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach
• Wesley McGriff, Vanderbilt’s defensive recruiting coordinator/defensive backs coach
• Curtis Luper, Auburn’s recruiting coordinator/running backs coach
• Chris Rumph, Alabama's defensive line coach
• Kirby Smart, Alabama’s defensive coordinator
• Trooper Taylor, Auburn’s assistant head coach/wide receivers coach
• Lance Thompson, Tennessee’s linebackers coach
• Sal Sunseri, Alabama’s assistant head coach/linebackers coach
• Chris Vaughn, Ole Miss’ recruiting coordinator/cornerbacks coach
• Brian White, Florida's tight ends coach
• Frank Wilson, LSU’s recruiting coordinator/running backs coach

Making the rounds in the SEC:

• Florida Gators senior linebacker Brandon Hicks is ready to take on a leadership role for the Gators.

• Rodney Garner, the only holdover from the defensive staff last season at Georgia, is getting used to his new colleagues.

• Brandon Marcello of The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette has sophomore tight end Chris Gragg as one of his "Three 2 Watch" for the Hogs this spring.

• Mark Ingram Sr., the father of Alabama Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram, has been sentenced to two more years in federal prison for jumping bail in an attempt to see his son play in the 2009 Sugar Bowl.

• South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier said the Gamecocks will have two quarterbacks ready to play this season, and he's liked what he's seen so far from freshman Connor Shaw.

• Auburn kicks off spring practice on Wednesday and will do mostly morning practices this year.

Recruiting is starting earlier and earlier in college football, which means Junior days at all the different schools are growing increasingly more popular. LSU already has nine verbal commitments for the 2011 class.

Some coaches, though, would like to see the whole recruiting process slow down.

ESPN.com's Mark Schlabach takes a look at the impact of Junior days.

Many of the Georgia fans are lamenting the players Georgia lost late in the recruiting game, but the Bulldogs are still headed for a nationally ranked class.

According to the school's official site, the Bulldogs signed 18 players on Wednesday. Fans can go to that site to see bios on the newest Bulldogs and watch video of them.

Also, here's video of coach Mark Richt and recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner talking about this class.

Veteran Georgia assistant Rodney Garner will remain on the Bulldogs' defensive staff under new coordinator Todd Grantham and will coach nose tackles and defensive ends.

Garner has been with the Bulldogs for 12 seasons. But with Georgia coach Mark Richt wiping out the rest of his defensive staff and bringing in Grantham to head up the defense, there was some question as to whether Garner would be retained.

Ultimately, it was a no-brainer for Grantham. Not only is Garner one of the top handful of recruiters in the SEC (and he's proven it over time), but he's done a fabulous job of developing defensive linemen at Georgia.

He's coached four first-round draft picks at Georgia -- Richard Seymour, Marcus Stroud, Johnathan Sullivan and Charles Grant.

Grantham has yet to coach in his first big ballgame at Georgia. But he's already 1-0 when it comes to making the right calls about his staff.

It’s obvious that Rodney Garner isn’t going to be Georgia’s next defensive coordinator.

If he was the guy, Mark Richt would have already promoted him.

But Garner, who’s long been considered one of the SEC’s best recruiters, proved in the AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl victory over Texas A&M that he also knows a thing or two about putting together a defensive game plan.

With Richt firing defensive coordinator Willie Martinez and two other defensive assistants prior to the bowl game, the Bulldogs were down to just Garner and a couple of graduate assistants -- Todd Hartley and Mitch Doolittle -- on the defensive side.

Texas A&M rolled up 471 yards of total offense, but most of those came between the 20s. The Aggies only scored 14 meaningful points. Their final touchdown came with 1:13 to play and Georgia leading 44-14.

The Bulldogs were able to get pressure on Texas A&M quarterback Jerrod Johnson when it counted. They sacked him twice and forced him into several bad throws in the second half.

Garner, who just completed his 12^th season at Georgia, told reporters after the game he would certainly consider staying at Georgia if the next defensive coordinator wanted him and if it was a good fit. Garner reiterated those same thoughts to me Tuesday.

No coach wants to be pigeonholed as just a recruiter, and that’s probably the tag that has been unfairly placed upon Garner.

Go back and look at the number and caliber of defensive linemen he’s put in the NFL, and the Bulldogs have three senior tackles on this team who all have chances to be drafted.

The chief reason Garner considered joining Lane Kiffin’s staff at Tennessee last season was the chance to work under Monte Kiffin. If Garner is going to continue to grow in this profession, it might be time for him to move on.

But whether he’s at Georgia next season or somewhere else, he’s shown that he’s much more than just a recruiter.

Everybody knows that the only people who gossip more than reporters are assistant football coaches.

That said, it’s that time of year again when assistants’ names are being bandied about in connection with different job openings at the same rate that credit cards are being swiped at shopping malls.

Come to think of it, I haven’t seen mine in a while. Could be bad news when the next statement arrives.

Anyway, in keeping with the spirit, here are some things to watch for in the SEC, guys who may be on the move this year and guys who will be on the move at some point because of the quality of their work:

• Georgia coach Mark Richt faces a critical hire at defensive coordinator. It appears that he’s not going to do anything until after the bowl game. The Bulldogs will make a big play for Alabama defensive coordinator Kirby Smart, who won the Broyles Award as college football’s top assistant this season and is a Georgia graduate. But getting Smart away from Alabama may prove difficult. He's already making $360,000 and has a pretty sweet thing going right now at the Capstone.
• Speaking of Alabama, assistant head coach and linebackers coach Sal Sunseri is one of the leading candidates to join Jimbo Fisher’s staff at Florida State as defensive coordinator.
• It looks like Urban Meyer’s top choice to replace Charlie Strong as defensive coordinator is Ole Miss defensive coordinator Tyrone Nix, who’s already met with Meyer about the job. Nix has done an excellent job with the Rebels’ defense the past two seasons and could also be in the mix at Georgia.
• Strong has said he doesn’t plan to take anybody with him to Louisville from the Florida staff at this point, but that could change. And if it does, look for cornerbacks coach Vance Bedford to be at the head of the list.
• Tennessee has already lost two assistants. Eddie Gran went to Florida State and Frank Wilson to LSU. Linebackers coach Lance Thompson is also a guy to keep an eye on, especially if he can get a coordinator job. There’s a chance offensive coordinator Jim Chaney may end up back in the NFL.
• Georgia assistant head coach and defensive tackles coach Rodney Garner interviewed for a position on Lane Kiffin’s staff a year ago at Tennessee. Garner is one of the best recruiters in the SEC, and if he’s not going to be a candidate for the defensive coordinator’s job after spending nine years on Richt’s staff, he may look to go elsewhere after the bowl game.
• Vanderbilt defensive coordinator and secondary coach Jamie Bryant will be on a lot of short lists. He had other offers last year, but chose to stay at Vanderbilt. The Commodores’ secondary has been outstanding each of the past two seasons. They were ninth nationally in passing defense this season.
• Another SEC assistant who’s going to start receiving increasing interest is South Carolina recruiting coordinator/special teams and safeties coach Shane Beamer. He’s had recent talks with Murray State about the Racers’ head coaching job. One of the top recruiters in the league, Beamer has experience coaching running backs, cornerbacks, safeties and special teams.
• With Dan Mullen, Larry Porter, Dave Clawson and Strong all landing head coaching jobs the past two years, who will be the next SEC assistant to get a head gig? Ellis Johnson, South Carolina’s assistant head coach for the defense, may get a look. When you look at what he’s done with the Gamecocks’ defense, he deserves a shot. Watch out for Auburn offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, too. The improvement the Tigers made offensively this season speaks for itself. Does somebody give Tennessee’s Ed Orgeron another chance? Arkansas offensive coordinator Paul Petrino was in the running for the Western Kentucky head job earlier this season. Alabama offensive coordinator Jim McElwain and Kentucky defensive coordinator Steve Brown are also names to keep in mind. But the guy at the top of the list is Smart. He’s the SEC’s hottest commodity right now when it comes to assistant coaches and has that Nick Saban pedigree that will be very attractive to athletic directors.

Posted by ESPN.com's Chris Low

JC Shurburtt of Scouts Inc. has picked the country's 25 best recruiters among assistant coaches, and the SEC leads the way with nine.

LSU and Tennessee each had two guys on the list. Ed Orgeron and Eddie Gran made the cut for the Vols, while Larry Porter and D.J. McCarthy both did for the Tigers.

Rounding out the SEC representatives on the list were South Carolina's Shane Beamer, Georgia's Rodney Garner, Alabama's Kirby Smart, Florida's Charlie Strong and Auburn's Trooper Taylor.

If I were extending that list further, some of the other SEC assistants that would have been in the running include Vanderbilt's Robbie Caldwell, Kentucky's Joker Phillips, Tennessee's Frank Wilson, Alabama's Burton Burns, Mississippi State's Tony Hughes, Ole Miss' Chris Vaughn, Auburn's Curtis Luper, Arkansas' Tim Horton and Georgia's Mike Bobo.

Posted by ESPN.com's Chris Low

Picking the best recruiting closers in the SEC is like picking the best of Michael Jordan’s highlights.

How do you pick just five?

Here goes my best college try:

1. Nick Saban, Alabama head coach: Nobody has recruiting down to a science the way Saban does. He leaves no stone unturned and knows every detail about every single prospect the Crimson Tide are recruiting. Look at his last two recruiting classes at Alabama. His handprints are all over them. When Saban gets into the living room with a recruit and his family, rarely does he come in second.

2. Rodney Garner, Georgia assistant head coach, recruiting coordinator and defensive line coach: Garner’s been a force when it comes to recruiting in the SEC at three different schools -- Auburn, Tennessee and now Georgia. Just look at the running backs he’s signed. He recruited Stephen Davis to Auburn, Jamal Lewis to Tennessee and Knowshon Moreno to Georgia.

3. Urban Meyer, Florida head coach: While it’s true that Meyer has the most fertile recruiting base in all of college football, he has the Florida recruiting machine rolling to the point where the Gators are picking who they want in that state. But he’s also been able to go outside the state and get great players. See Percy Harvin, Brandon Spikes, Joe Haden, Carlos Dunlap and Aaron Hernandez.

4. Ed Orgeron, Tennessee assistant head coach, recruiting coordinator and defensive line coach: He’s Mr. Relentless and never gives up on a prospect. Players love his passion and the way he relates to them during the whole process, which can obviously be crazy at times. He’s been a wiz at bringing in great defensive linemen wherever he’s been, and has also been known to turn kids at the last minute. The Vols got three nationally rated prospects after signing day this past February.

5. Larry Porter, LSU assistant head coach and running backs coach: Every good recruiting staff has a go-to guy. Porter is the Tigers’ go-to guy and a big reason they’ve continued to pull in highly ranked classes every year. He’s gotten kids out of Texas, out of Louisiana and all points in between. The players he’s recruited all say the same thing about Porter: He builds a sense of trust with them that’s hard to say no to.

Posted by ESPN.com's Chris Low

Want to see what burning up the recruiting trail looks like?

Take a look at what Georgia has done the past seven weeks. The Bulldogs are making a strong bid to have the best recruiting class in the SEC, and that's saying something when you look at whom Alabama, Florida and LSU have committed.

Defensive end T.J. Stripling of Decatur, Ga., is the latest. He picked Georgia over Florida last week.

The Bulldogs now have 12 ESPNU 150 Watch List prospects (the most in the SEC) among the 18 players they have committed.

Running back/cornerback Nickell Robey of Frostproof, Fla., also committed last week along with defensive end Garrison Smith of Atlanta. All three are ESPNU 150 Watch List performers.

All but one of the Bulldogs' commitments are from either Florida or Georgia.

There's no sure way to evaluate a team's recruiting until two or three years down the road, but the best indicator at this point is who you're beating for players.

And the Bulldogs are beating the best of the best.

Stripling had offers from everybody. The same goes for Smith, who was being wooed by the likes of Southern California, Ohio State and Oklahoma.

The Bulldogs' mad dash the past several weeks is also a reminder that recruiting momentum can come and go pretty quickly. After all, it wasn't too long ago that Georgia fans were fretting about how few commitments the Bulldogs had for the 2010 class.

But then receiver Da'Rick Rogers of Calhoun, Ga., chose Georgia over Alabama, Florida and LSU on June 9, igniting the Bulldogs' hot streak. At the time, he was only their fifth commitment.

The other thing we're reminded of is how good Georgia recruiting coordinator Rodney Garner is. He's one of the best in the business ... and has been for a long time.

"I was on the Bulldog Club tour, and they were all saying, 'Oh my gosh, we're not doing very well,'" Richt recounted. "I told them, 'It's OK. We're evaluating. We're offering the right people, and it's going to be fine.'

"What happened is that all kind of things starting falling for us. I'm lying out on the lounger out at the lake and get a call, 'Hey, I'm committing.' I'm working out and get a call, 'Hey, I'm committing.' We're all on vacation, and here it all comes. I'm like, 'Hey, that's not a bad way to go.'

"But it did happen fast and did happen furious and really happened faster than we could communicate."

Posted by ESPN.com's Chris Low

Spring practice in the SEC is upon us.

South Carolina has already started, while Tennessee and Vanderbilt start next Tuesday, LSU on Thursday and Alabama on Friday.

Those of us jonesing for some football don't have to wait any longer. I'll do my best to answer some of your questions from the mailbag:

Stuart in Atlanta writes: How would the Alabama football players achieve an unfair advantage through this textbook issue? If they don't return the books, they would be charged for the amount, so I don't see how they could gain anything financially?

Chris Low: My understanding of what happened is that some Alabama athletes, including football players, worked the system and were able to get free books for their friends and anybody else who wanted them. Keep in mind that Alabama was the one that got wind of this after it had been going on for a while and reported it to the NCAA. So obviously the Crimson Tide took the proper steps in reporting it. What Alabama has been accused of and has admitted to was that it didn't do a good enough job of monitoring how the textbooks were distributed. This isn't a case of anybody cheating to entice recruits, which is why I don't think anything serious will come of it -- perhaps the loss of a few scholarships. But being subject to the NCAA's "repeat offender" clause is always scary. The one thing Alabama did try to hide was the depth of the NCAA's involvement, as several media outlets made open records requests concerning the case in 2007 and didn't receive the requested documents until Thursday. Then again, you know Alabama didn't want any of this to come out before national signing day.

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