New 2008 Commitments - Kyle Prater and Derrick Bryant

LSU picked up two commitments for the 2008 signing class yesterday, but so far only one is confirmed to have been accepted. LSU accepted a commitment from linebacker Kyle Prater of Kerryville Highschool in Tivy, TX. Apparently, Kerryville's mascot is the Antlers, which is just about the strangest mascot I've ever heard of.

But that's neither here nor there. Prater, I think, makes an interesting combination with yesterday's commitment Ryan Baker. Baker plays linebacker like Barry Sanders played running back. He waits for a space to develop between him and the ball, stays low, and hits that space like a missile. Prater is more aggressive in getting to the ball and taking on blocks, but is not as quick to the ball once he spots it. At least, that's the impression I get from his videos.

Prater is listed at 6'2" and 215# with 4.5 speed and a 35" vertical, which is roughly the same as Baker, but their videos are strikingly different. Baker looks like the sexier commit because his videos show him to be so quick and athletic, looking to deliver a big hit. Prater's videos show him to be more of a traditional linebacker, taking on blockers and searching for the ball. He plays bigger than Baker, but not as fast, and looks like he'll put on a good bit of weight and end up a rather big linebacker. He compares favorably to Darry Beckwith at this point, while Baker compares more to Ali Highsmith.

Prater is a good student, so there are no worries about him qualifying academically. He's also a baseball player on traveling teams, though I do not know if he is also considered a baseball prospect. He chose LSU over Oklahoma, Nebraska, Texas Tech, and others.

This is Derrick Bryant, 6'1" 186#, 4.55 second 40 time, 3-star cornerback out of Suwanee High School in Peachtree Ridge, GA. He gave his commitment to LSU at a press conference last night, but as of press time none of the recruiting services were able to confirm that his commitment was accepted. He's been talking about committing for quite some time, however, and I sincerely doubt he would have gone through the trouble of a press conference if he did not know it would be accepted.

Not a lot is known about him by the recruiting press. His videos are short, with little information. I know he has been to camps at LSU and has been high on the coaching staff for a while. He's a good size for a CB, but I hope that 4.55 second 40 time was on a bad field.

But what do we know? From his videos, though scant, we know that he is a corner who is not afraid to hit and provide run support, which I really like in a cornerback. We know he picked us over offers from Bama, Auburn, Ohio State, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia Tech.

One thing this means is that LSU is officially a force in Georgia recruiting now, which bodes well for the future. LSU picked up a couple of linebacker recruits out of Georgia two years ago: Kelvin Sheppard and Perry Riley. This year we've gotten commitments from Bryant and Cordian Hagans out of Georgia.

Bryant is kind of an unknown quantity, at least to us. If his commitment is accepted, I'm looking forward to hearing more about him as the season goes on.

The off-season is coming to a close, as Fall Practice will be starting on Friday. Tomorrow, we will profile the last of the 2007 class, wide receiver Terrance Toliver. After that, we will focus a lot less on recruiting and a lot more on the upcoming season.