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http://www.myhitnews.com

This site’s (the site you are currently viewing) actual address is http://the1crusher.wordpress.com

This site will be terminated on March 8th, 2009. Please update your bookmarks to reflect the change. All previous postings will be available at the new site.

Thank You.

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

   As myHitNews.com (formerly Hit News.com) moves closer to celebrating its first anniversary in April, we are also preparing to move our site from WordPress.com back to WordPress.org, which is the non-free self-hosted version of WordPress that will be hosted by Hit Highlights.com.

   This move will allow us to have more control over content and appearance and the ability to generate revenue through advertisement. But don’t worry, we will continue to keep this site free to our visitors, whose numbers have steadily grown despite our not having any advertisement.  Inasmuch, last month (January), myHitnews.com peaked with an average daily number of 327–different–computers (used by human visitors) logging on to the site with a high of 1,120 in a single day. Not bad numbers for a blog site with no advertisement.

   I also would like to thank Thomas Liechti (Action Force) and Bobby Mills (1000ydguy) for their outstanding contributions of materials and articles that they provide to myHitNews.com. And especially thanks to all those who have e-mailed and thanked us for the work that we do here. Hopefully, it’s only going to get better.

Our plan moving forward is to:

• Bring you more pictures, video, interviews and in depth looks into Nebraska high school athletics, and its participants
• Continue to provide a storehouse of information on the top athletes in the state.
• Make the site more interactive for visitors to share their views.

   The last point is because we know, at times, our opinions and picks will make some uncomfortable and others down right mad, but we are going to tell it like we see it. And we will allow you to freely fire back.

   Right now myHitNews.com only covers football, boys basketball and track and field. Yes!  We would definitely like to cover other sports. So if you would like to contribute or know someone who might, send us an e-mail to myhitnews@yahoo.com

Coming Soon:

• Class of 2010 Football Prospects Board revamp and capsules of the players to watch for in 2009.
• Breakdown of the Class A Nebraska high school District Basketball Tournament.
• myHitNews.com’s first  Omaha All-Metro Basketball Team.
• A look into the Nebraska Cornhuskers instate football recruiting.
• Nebraska track and field athletes to watch for in 2009.

We apologize for interuptions you may have while attempting to reach our site or trying to navigate through it during the next week or so as we make our switch.

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

Sean McGary, Guard (6-1, 175), Omaha Central

   Way back when the pint-sized ten-year-old Sean McGary was running around the North Omaha Boys and Girls Club (NOBGC) practice track, he struck me as one of those little kids who you knew would make his mark someday. And the junior transfer from Bryan is beginning to do just that as the starting 2 guard for what is arguably the state’s best basketball program: Omaha Central.

    Much of the foundation for Sean’s current success at Central was built at the NOBGC, where my first recollections of him was watching the youngster run the 200 and 400 meter sprints for the their Jaguars Track Team. Although small for his age, Sean ran with a vengeance and toughness that made it hard for you not to notice him–he was the kind of kid that if you were in the stands you rooted for just because of the determined energy that he put out with every stride.

   Sean’s heart and athletic ability more than made up for any lack of size he gave up to his competition, and he would go on to do quite well on the track and on the football field for the NOBGC. However, it was when the multi-talented McGary was on the basketball court that you could tell what he really loved to do.

   On the basketball court, Sean was a fearless little warrior, always on the move tying to create something for his team or himself or to take the ball or an opportunity away from his opponents. Unfortunately, for me, at about the time Sean turned 14, I lost track of him, as my kids moved on to high school.

   Fast forward to the 2008/2009 basketball season and the little warrior, the kid that was—small for his age- has blossomed into a 6-foot-1, 175 pound starting guard for the Omaha Central Eagles.

Recently, I finally managed to catch up to Sean in an effort to find out what makes him tick and the Central Eagles to soar.

Q.  So Sean, what made you leave Bryan after your sophomore year?

A.   Mainly it was a family move that worked out because they [Bryan] plays a slower more deliberate style of offense and Central’s style is more fast paced and aggressive like I’m used to.

And remembering how he use to play as a preteen, his answer made perfect sense to me.

Q.  So what is it like to play for Central—the state champs and all versus playing for Bryan? I mean do you guys ever feel like no one can beat your team?

A:  The biggest difference is the way that people in the community treat you. They seem to be more into the game and more willing to speak to you and tell you you played a good game and things like that. But no one on our team ever feels like we can’t be beat. We never take anyone for granted. We know that if we don’t play our game we can be beat.

   “It wasn’t too long into our conversation that I realized that Sean McGary had grown up to become a sharp, level-headed young man that not only excels on the court but also in the classroom too.

   McGary is a Central High School honors student who carries an outstanding 3.78 GPA.

   Sean McGary, the honor student and basketball star, is a far cry from the—stereotypical–inner city school student that unfortunately is often a reality that we find being represented on the the losing end of some nightmarish statistical data. Perhaps the number one reason why Sean has ended up on the winning side of the numbers is because of his strong-willed supportive parents.

   Sean’s success both on and off the court can be attributed to his mother, Marilyn, a former CEO of the Omaha Urban League, who you can always seem to find at one of Sean’s events, and his father, Phillip, a minister who spent many years as a volunteer basketball coach on some of Sean’s basketball teams. Sean also has two bothers Philip and Brandon who were standout basketball players at Omaha South.”

Q.  So how did you get the starting job at Central?

A.  Coach [ Eric Behrens] saw my game over the summer and he liked what I was doing at practice before the start of the season. So I got the job.

Q.  What kind of style do you play? I mean if you had to pick a college or pro player that best resembled your style of play who would it be?

A.  I’m more like a Dwayne Wade type, I can shoot from outside, but I like to attack the basket and create for my teammates.

Q. So what is your job on the court—what is your responsibility?

A.  My job is to cover the other team’s best player, usually the point guard and to make sure I help to control things up top on offense.

Q.  OK. You see some negative comments about Central players on the message boards like “they don’t play team ball and they just like to showboat and play selfish.” What do you say about that?

A.  You know, everyone on our team can get 15 – 20 points at anytime. There is just a lot of talent. It may not always look like we play together but we do. I think one of the keys to Central’s success is that Coach Behrens lets us play our game within the game.

Q. So you mean he is not the type of coach that says it has to be exactly like this and nothing else?

A.  Yea. He really understands the little things about how the game should be played. That is one the biggest misconceptions that people have about Central. They think we win just because of athletes. No. We win games because Coach Behrens is a very good coach who knows the game and how to get the best out of his players.

He is not the kind of coach who yells a lot at you but when he does—he has your full attention.

 

Sean McGary’s Stats	Sean’s Favorite Stuff
Height: 6-1, Weight: 175 Vertical Leap: 31 in Points Per Game: 12 Assists Per Game: 4 Rebounds Per Game: 3 Field Goal Pct.: 50% Free Throw Pct.: 68% Three Point Pct: 30%	School Subject–History Movie–Love and Basketball Musical Performer—Young Jeezy College Basketball Team–Kansas Jayhawks Pro Basketball Team–LA Lakers Pro Basketball Player—Kobe Bryant

Q.  Have you drawn any D-1 interest yet?

A.   I had Southern Illinois express some interest but nothing real solid from anybody yet.

Q.  Is there a part of your game you need to work on?

A.   Oh yea, I need to work on everything, but I think more than anything it would be getting more consistent with my outside shot.

Q.   So when you go to college what do you want to major in?

A.   I want to be a sports agent or something similar as long as it involves sports. I have been in sports all my life and I love it. I want to stay in the sports field.

Q.  Alright Sean, what are your team’s chances on winning another title this year?

A.  We would all like to win that fourth title, but this year it’s wide open! Anybody can win it. We are just going to have to stay focused and play our best ball in order to win this year.

Thanks Sean and good luck.

By Will Cummings
myHitNews.com

  
   Alright’ y then! Only–three–Omaha teams in Action Force’s Top Ten! Wow! Talk about a wide open Class A title chase—here it is in living color, people.

   This week Action Force is definitely in tune with what it will take for one of these Class A teams to win the state title: Good play from the team’s big man. In a wide open fairly even race for the title like this, the one thing that traditionally separates the conquerors from the conquered is the play they get inside, down the stretch in district and state tournament time, from the big men.

   Class C Chadron basketball: What do you know, we talked about them last week as making the Contender list and this week here they are still undefeated and ranked at No. 9. What a wild year indeed! And after holding a Contender spot for the past several weeks, Norfolk has finally found its way to the Ten at No. 10.

    Hold on to your seats everybody, with only about a week left in the season, Class A is—totally– up for grabs.

Action Force’s Top 10 Nebraska High School Basketball Teams (week ending February 15, 2009) Rank, Team, (Record), Last Week’s Rank

1. Lincoln Southwest (18-2) 1

Heading into district play, the Silverhawks continue to flex their muscle atop the standings. Junior Jordan Tyrance a is one of the top athletes in the state and he is just one of the reasons why the Silverhawks are such an athletic team, but for Southwest to take home the state Class A crown they will need big man Jake Marvin to consistently play up to his full potential down the stretch run.

2. Omaha Creighton Prep (15-4) 3

The Jays are starting to get back to old form for Coach Luedtke. We all know about the great play the Jays get out of their guard position from Steffensmeir and Hook and the sharpshooting of Taylor Stormberg--those guys will have to continue to play good. However, come district and state play, senior post man Brett Potter will have to step up BIG TIME for the Jays to win the state championship.

3. Lincoln East (13-5) 4

They’ve hung around the bottom half of the Top Ten all year but coming off the big win over Omaha Central the Spartans are thriving under the senior leadership of Drew Sankey

4. Lincoln High (11-6) 5

A preseason favorite is just starting to scratch the surface of there potential—at just the right time. In order for Coach Uhing to get to the state tournament or bring home the trophy he’ll need his son, Pete, and Mike Partee to play lights out and get solid play off the bench.

5. Omaha Central (13-3) 3

Do yourself a favor: don’t let Central’s No.5 ranking fool you. Do not count out Coach Behrens‘ Eagles! This team is the most athletic team in the state, as all-state candidate Deverell Biggs, a junior, continues to lead the team while getting solid guard play out of Sean McGary and Ted Lampkin. The Eagles only inside presence, Paul Simms, will need to play his best basketball down the stretch to get the Eagles the 4-Peat

6. Lincoln Southeast (14-5) 7

With their win over Omaha Burke, Coach Jeff Smith proves again why he is one of the top coaches in the state. The Knights repeatedly played clock management and did a great job of milking the clock moving the ball and always getting an open look: This team can shoot too!!

7. Lincoln Northeast (12-5) 10

Still many are skeptical about the Rockets because of there inability to beat a top tier team–but they’ve been close. Rocket fans are hoping that breakout game comes in district play. And as long as they have Dol Kutey, don’t count them out!

8. Omaha Bryan (15-6) 8

The Bears thrive off their youth with Gullie, Jiech, Augustine, but they’ll need seniors Tiit Kuek and Zach Martin to play great to get them back into the state tournament.

9. Chadron (19-0) NR

sure they’re class C but they are undefeated and have beaten every team on their schedule to this point, and don’t forget about Elliot Eliason the Center who has gathered division offers already.

10. Norfolk (13-5) NR

Norfolk a relatively young team has been sitting just outside the top 10 all year. Now they finally enter at the 10 spot a week before district play.

Contenders Bellevue East, Omaha Burke, Omaha Benson and Bellevue West

 

By Will Cummings
my Hit News.com

   my Hit News.com releases its final Nebraska High School Football Class of 2009 Prospect Rankings, which are based on the following criteria:

• Player’s overall ratings and rankings by various recruiting services.
• Player’s demonstrated ability on the field.
• College Division level at which player will be participating.

   Based on the above reasoning several new players made our Final Class of 2009 Top 25.  But before I go on, let me state this:

“Regardless of where the player is ranked on this list, to be on this list a player is an outstanding cream-of-the-crop Nebraska high school football prospect. And fortunately for all that are on this list, they will continue to play the game at the next level.”

   Heading the list of the new entrants into our Top 25  Prospects is Omaha Central’s 6-foot-4, 190 pound Daryle Hawkins.  Hawkins smashes in all the way to the No. 6 spot, after his last minute D-1A offer from the PAC-10 Oregon Ducks .

   Prior to his early season injury, Hawkins was one of Hit New’s top prospects. However, after missing several games–OK, I’ll admit it, Daryle, I forgot all about you–he vanished from our listings. But it’s good to see you get that huge offer. Not many Nebraska football players have ever received offers from the PAC-10 Conference.   Do yourself and us a favor by making a big splash on the West Coast.

   Next to make his debut at the No. 9 position is big 6-foot-4, 260 pound Josh Kage from Papillion. We have always kept an eye out on this talented athlete who will be attending South Dakota State University. We’ll soon see if Kage will be taking a Class A super-heavyweight wrestling title and shot put title along with him to SDSU.

   Entering the list at No. 16 is Garret Bruhn, a 6-foot-2, 215 pound LB/FB from Beatrice, after committing to an offer from North Dakota State.

   Following Bruhn at No.17 is University of South Dakota bound Steve Nelson, a huge 6-foot-5, 300 pound O-lineman out of Platteview High.

   At No. 18 is St Cecelia’s 6-foot-6, 275 pound O-lineman, Matt Sterup who will be attending Northwest Missouri State.

   Finally, last but certainly not least closing things out at No. 25 is Omaha Central’s 6-foot-1, 200 pound LB Marcus Hall-Oliver, who will be attending the University of Nebraska at Omaha. Hall will bring a lot of speed and athleticism with him to UNO– put some size on this kid and look out!

   Now except for the potential of a late offer here or there, the Nebraska high school football Class of 2009 prospects can be put to bed.

   Good luck to all!

   Our attention now shifts to The Class of 2010.

Related Link: Class of 2009 Offers and Commitments

Take Poll: Will a Lincoln or Omaha team take home Boys Class A tiltle this year?

By Will Cummings
my Hit News.com

   Sorry folks for the delay and the abbreviated version of this week’s Action Force’s Top Ten, but the young man had computer problems. Nevertheless, he did manage to create a little controversy–at least with me–on his new No. 1 pick.  I know Lincoln Southwest is good, but we are talkin’ about the three-time defending state champs, baby!  Gotta still give Central love at the top in my book–or at least until someone beats them come playoff time.   Unfortunately, the “B-Ball Wizard of  Burke” calls the shots on this one.

   Oh, and props to undefeated (18-0) Class C Chadron Cardinals, coached by Craig Nobiling, for getting some attention as being a contender in this week’s rankings.  I hear those boys can ball!

 Action Force’s Notes for Week Ending 2/8/09

Impressive wins over the weekend catapult the Silverhawks of Lincoln Southwest over previous No.1 Omaha Central–now No. 2– who had a lone win over Omaha Northwest this week.  No. 3 Creighton Prep continues to gain ground and inserts themselves back into the best team in the state conversation—a place where they started the season. If Hook, Martin, Potter, and Steffensmeir all play to their capabilities they are going to be a nearly impossible to stop come March.  No. 4 Lincoln East led by Drew Sankey sits at 12-5 and is climbing the ranks.  At No. 5 Coach Russ Uhing’s Links of Lincoln High led by his son Pete Uhing and Mike Partee continue to climb the totem pole by knocking off top teams. Ralston–a dangerous athletic team–rises back up to settle  in at the 6 spot. Lincoln Southeast, a team that I believe is the most versatile team in the state, takes a hit and drops to the 7 spot.  After a double digit loss to Omaha North, the Bryan Bears fall to No. 8.  Bell East comes homes at No.9, and the Rockets of Lincoln Northeast, led by senior standout Dol Kutey, fall twice this past week and slide all the way to the 10 spot.

Note: Action Force’s Top Ten for the Week ending 2/8/’09 will be released on Monday night.

By Bobby Mills
(1000ydguy)
Contributing Writer
my Hit News.com

   Consider this: Fremont Bergan recently had a 39 game winning streak ended at Council Bluffs St. Albert and they have not won a game since. Yep! They’ve lost 3 in a row and were eliminated in the first round of the Centennial Conference Tournament and they have NO home games left on their schedule for the remainder of this season.

Fremont Archbishop Bergan celebrates '07/'08 Boys Class D-1 Championship at Nebraska University Devaney Center. (Photo by William Lauer/Lincoln Journal Star.)

   Pretty bleak outlook for the defending state champions, right? After all, they lost one of the best players in the recent history of Nebraska high school basketball in Wes Eikmeier, plus an incredibly tight-knit group of seniors that had basically started together for the past THREE seasons. Moreover, when one adds up the points that the Knights are missing from last season’s seniors, you come up with 62 big ones per game. And add to that a late start because Bergan was in the C-2 state football final, and add to THAT they only had eight preseason practices before the start of the ’08/’09 basketball season –“Shall I second the motion for a bleak outlook? “

But not so fast, my friends! Hold the Tears

   Don’t hand the crying towel to Coach Chris Paulsen and this Fremont Bergan team just yet. This is a program that has won a hard-to-believe 70% of their games in the last NINE years competing as the smallest school in the rugged Centennial Conference. Putting this in perspective, Bergan went 27-0 and won a Class D-1 title playing teams like Boys Town, St. Cecilia, Wahoo Neumann, CB St. Alberts, and Ainsworth during the regular season.

   The Knights were in the same class with teams like Red Cloud, McCool Junction, Creek Valley, and Omaha Nation,  playing tough Class C-1 competition and WINNING 7 out of EVERY 10 GAMES!  Starting to realize what kind of program they have at 545 4th Avenue in Fremont? 

   Bergan  reeled off 12 straight W’s before falling in OT to a VERY good C.B St. Alberts squad. Following losses to C-1 rated Columbus Scotus and an athletic Boys Town team, the Knights have time to regroup and fix some things before entering the home stretch and a run at another state championship, this time in the C-2 ranks.

 The Players That Make Bergan Go

   The current Bergan team is led by 6-2 Senior Jim Wilmes,who is ranked in almost every category imaginable in C-2. Wilmes is averaging 16/ppg and is joined in the starting line-up by junior Pat Rasmussen and sophomore Johnny Spellerburg at the guards, and 6-3 senior John Melies and 6-5  junior Dereck White at the posts.  With this year’s team, Paulsen has had to mold Bergan into more of a full-court team than in the Eikmeier era. Funny thing is, this more “spread-out” offense has moved to the football field for Fremont Bergan and spurned great success. Funny how a BB program can spark a traditionally rich football program, but that’s what has transpired.

   The Knights still love to run on offense and pressure the opposition, whether it be full or half court. Anybody who has watched Knight’s basketball the past few years knows that their trademark is pressure defense and it takes very well-conditioned players to make it work—something Bergan has plenty of this season.

   Perhaps this current break in Bergan’s scheduling could prove to be the spark that the Green and Gold Crew needs to close out strong against remaining foes, Boys Town, Wahoo Neumann, Ravenna, and Oakland-Craig.

Valentines Day Shootout

   To say the game against Ravenna at the Events Center on Valentines Day is shaping up to be a dandy is a huge understatement. But the night before this highly anticpated contest, Fremont Bergan will play Bishop Neumann and then jets (they wish) to Grand Island for the 2:45 tip-off the next afternoon against Paul Beranek’sRavenna Bluejays.

   The Knights are currently sitting at No.1 in Class C-2 and the ‘Jays at No.5.…some kinda match-up it’s going to be on Valentines Day!

Good Coaching Goes a Long Ways

   No my friends, there best not be any tears shed for this current version of Fremont Archbishop Bergan basketball. One of the main reasons for thier past AND current success is the deeply entrenched excellent coaching skills of Chris Paulsen and his staff. It never seems to change with this bunch….always top notch hoops at Bergan–you can count on that one.  Those outstanding coaching skills are going to come in handy at district time with No. 2 ranked Elmwood-Murdock being in the same sub bracket as the Knights.

   It’s going to be a steep hill to scale for Fremont Bergan the rest of the way, but if you are Coach Paulsen and his squad and you can put together the kind of season they have thus far….I have a sneaking suspicion the Knights will be there when the curtain raises for the Class C-2 State Tournament Thursday, March 12th.

By Will Cummings
my Hit News.com 

    All right guys (and gals) you can get the Omaha World-Herald signing day notes by clicking on this link.  I will update the my Hit News ’09 Offers and Commitments board by Friday and put the class to bed.  Now it is all about the Class of 2010 Prospects.

   The high school class of 2009 had nine players that received D-1A offers but only seven signed on the dotted line. The two that bowed out were Vondrae Tostenson–reportedly headed to Iowa Western (JUCO)) and Eric Koehlmoos, who is headed to D-1AA South Dakota State.

   Only two Nebraskans in this class found their way to Lincoln on a scholarship: Cole Pensick and CJ Zimmerer. If that’s not disappointing enough–the Nebraska ’09 walk-on class is pretty small too.  What does this all say about: (1) the state of Nebraska high school football and (2) its relationship with the current Husker staff and (3) the future ramifications of it all?

   Those are the questions I will be tackling in the next couple of weeks on my Hit News.com.  However, I will leave you with these thoughts: if the Huskers try to sell Nebraska high school kids on being “loyal” to their state program and forgoing scholarships to walk-on at NU “where is this staff’s loyalty to Nebraska kids when they only give two scholarships and let at least five of our best leave this state with D-1A offers from other programs–without an offer from the Huskers.”

   It cuts both ways!

   If Nebraska high school football players are so inferior, why ask them to walk-on?  If Nebraska high school football players are so inadequate, why have so many of them been star players for the Huskers?  And why have so many Nebraska walk-ons beat out highly touted–blue chip–scholarship athletes and become starters for the Huskers?

   Why?

“!”

Something Special

Related Links: Remembering the Giants that played Nebraska High School Football

Get Latest on  ’09 Offers and Commitments Here 
Omaha Central’s Daryle Hawkins is a last minute offer and commit to University of Oregon.

By Will Cummings
my Hit News.com

  
   Central holds on to the No.1 spot this week despite their double-overtime loss to Lincoln High, who as a result breaks into the Top Ten at No.8.

   Good luck Omaha Metro teams in trying to hold on to the Class A crown –it looks like the Lincoln Metro is going to give ya a lot to worry about.  Five Lincoln teams are ranked in this week’s  Top Ten—and all of them are talented enough and well-coached enough to make strong runs in the playoffs.

   In fact: “Could we be looking at an all-Lincoln Class A finals this year?”

   Me thinks it just smells good for the City of Lincoln this year in Class A basketball for both the boys and the girls. After all, who is going to beat the amazing Purdue bound KK Houser’s 17-0 Lincoln Southeast team?

   Seems like Houser is hitting on all cylinders on the b-ball court, I wonder if it will carry over into track season, so that she is able to exact revenge on Omaha Central’s freshman phenomenon Laque Moen-Davis for taking her 100 meter hurdle All-Class Gold title at last year’s state meet.

 Track Season Just Around the Corner

   I digress, but I just can’t wait for track season to start—there is going to be some serious competition in many events this year for both the boys and girls. And KK Houser is among the cream of the crop on the track and one of the best female athletes to come out of the state of Nebraska.

   Check out our Hitblog YouTube video archive of track meets–including the Metro and State meets–to see some of the great talent that will be back on the Nebraska high school track and field in 2009 such as: KK Houser, Laque Moen-Davis, Anne Martin, Emily Wilkinson, Kohlman Adema-Schulte, Daryle Hawkins, Michael Burrus, Jake Marousek, Stephon Washington, Cole Pensick, Josh Kage, Porter Groves, and many more.

Action Force’s Top 10Nebraska High School Basketball Teams (week ending February 1, 2009) Rank, Team, (Record), Last Week’s Rank

1. Omaha Central (12-2) 1

The Eagles slipped up in a unbelievable double-overtime thriller to the fast rising Links of Lincoln High. Eagles fans don’t get discouraged about the loss– Deverell Biggs, Paul Simms and company still are the leaders of the pack to win to the state title.

2. Lincoln Southwest (13-2) 5

The Silver Hawks continue to take care of business, behind the athletic duo of Jordan Tyrance and Drew Edmonds and the inside force of big man Jake Marvin. With every game the Silver Hawks are proving they are among the elite.

3. Omaha Creighton Prep (12-4) 6

The JR. Jays went 2-1 over the week but really got back to the style of play that coach Josh Luedtke loves. In their Saturday night win over previously 3rd ranked Lincoln Southeast, the Jays used great defense to slow the Knights’ potent offense. Over this past week, Taylor Stormberg, Caleb Steffensmeir and Cole Martin really turned in some good performances for the Jays.

4. Omaha Bryan Bears (13-4) 4

The Bears were runner-ups in the Bryan Cage Classic, but don’t count out coach Tim Cannon’s team just yet. Bryan has one of the best defensive teams in the state to go along with guys like Tiit Kuek, Galen Gullie, DK Augustineand Ben Imig–who can also light up the scoreboard.

5. Lincoln Southeast (11-4) 3

A tough loss to Creighton Prep set the Knights back a bit, but the Knights are a team I still like because of thieir ability to beat iteams in a variety of ways. They can go inside with solid inside play from Hagerbaumer and Hill, or outside with great play from sophomore sensation Derrius Vick.

6. Lincoln Northeast (12-3) 7

The Rockets keep on keepin’ on, don’t look past them! Dol Kutey is one of the best players in the state, and guard Tommy Johnson is coming on of late.

7. Bellevue East (11-7) 10

Coach Ryan’s squad rebounded from back to back losses to Central and Burke to go on to win the Bryan Cage Classic, but than slipped up against Norfolk.

8. Lincoln High (8-6) NR

Don’t look now but Coach Uhing’s Links are surfacing–and they look to be in state tournament form–after their thrilling win over Omaha Central. The key to that game was the play of senior guard Mike Partee. Partee is a guy many b-ball insiders have heard about but most fans and casual observers haven’t. Well, now you better start paying attention because Partee is the real deal.

9. Lincoln East (10-5) NR

Welcome back to the Top Ten rankings Drew Sankey and company, after riding the upset of Lincoln Southeast.

10. Ralston (14-3) 2

OK. So the Rams go 0-2 in the Cage Classic. You still can’t tell me this team is not talented and that they would not be able to compete in class A. I say that if the Rams played Class A talent game in and game out they would have been more prepared for the Classic. And if they were in Class A– this year–they would be among the top teams and in contention for a state title.

Contenders

Omaha Burke, Norfolk and Omaha Benson

   Going into the last weekend of the high school football class of 2009 recruiting cycle, my Hit News.com presents the latest on the known offers and commitments made to and by Nebraska high school student/athletes. 

   my Hit News.com’s listing only represents the member schools of the following sports governing bodies and/or particular divisions within them: NCAA Divisions I-A; I-AA and II; NAIA and Junior Colleges (JUCO).

   Thanks to all of the people that provide information to my Hit News.com.  And to all of you current and potential prospects know this:

“There are plenty of college recruiters that monitor this site, as well as fans and participants of the various college message boards of schools from across this region–I know–you should see our site stats and read my e-mail.”

Important Note: Future updates to this board will be posted on the “Nebraska HS Class of 2009 Football Prospects’ Offers and Commitments“  link that is found at the top of this page.  In other words: updates to the listing will not be reflected if you link back to this post in the future.

 

Nebraska HS Class of 2009 Football Prospects’ Offers and Verbal Commitments “*”and bold represent verbal commitment

Division I-A

Jon Lechner, OL (6-5, 315), Creighton Prep *Ohio University, Buffalo, Iowa State, Louisiana Tech.

Tyrone Sellers, DE, (6-4, 215), McCook *Kansas University, Wyoming, Iowa, Kansas State

C. J. Zimmerer, FB (6-0, 213), Omaha Gross Catholic *Nebraska

Vondrae Tostenson, WR (6-5, 225), Millard South Iowa (unknown if offer is still on the table)

Cole Pensick DT, (6-2, 250), Lincoln Northeast *Nebraska

James Davis, OL(6-3, 315), Omaha North *Ohio University

Eric Koehlmoos, DB (6-1, 190), Pierce Wyoming (unknown if offer is still on the table), South Dakota State

Scott Criss, OL (6-5, 250),Creighton Prep *Wyoming, South Dakota State

Division I-AA

Ty Kildow, ATH (5-8, 165), Millard South *Nebraska University—Walk-on; University of North Dakota

Eric Cummings, DT (6-2, 270), Omaha Burke *University of South Dakota

Michael Burrus, RB (5-8, 165), Papillion-La Vista South *University of South Dakota, University of North Dakota

Jake Marousek, ATH (6-2, 190), Omaha Burke *University of South Dakota

Josh Kage, OL (6-4, 255), Papillion-La Vista *South Dakota State University

Garrett Bruhn, FB/LB (6-2, 215), Beatrice *North Dakota State

Greg Hardin, WR (5-11, 165), Bellevue West *University of North Dakota

Division II

Tyler Seals, QB (6-1, 185), Bellevue West *Northwest Missouri State

Jordan Hale, DB (6-0, 190), Millard South *University of Nebraska at Omaha

Kohlman Adema-Schulte, RB (5-9, 180), Millard West *Northwest Missouri State

Nick Bell, K (5-9, 185), Beatrice *Wayne State

Kyle Stuchlik, LB (6-190), Pierce *Chadron State

Jade Clevland, LB (6-2, 215), Ogallala *Chadron State

Joe Knott, LB/RB (5-11, 185), Ogallala Chadron State, *Doane College (NAIA)

Nate Anderson, DB (6-1, 185), Omaha Burke Wayne State

Matt Berry, ATH (5-10, 160), McCook *University of Nebraska at Kearney

Dillon Goltl, WR (6-1, 165), McCook  *University of Nebraska at Kearney

Joe Vetrovsky, OL (6-3, 280), McCook *University of Nebraska at Kearney

Aaron Ruppert, TE (6-4, 215), McCook  *University of Nebraska at Kearney

Garrett Schlichtemeier, WR (5-10, 160), Ogallala *Chadron State

Kyle Bertelsen, LB (6-2, 220), Douglas County West Wayne State

Dillon Breinig, LB (6-2, 220), Arapahoe *University of Nebraska at Kearney

NAIA

Joe Knott, LB/RB (5-11, 185), Ogallala *Doane College

JUCO

Kelvin Johnson, RB (6-2, 225), Omaha Burke Iowa Western Community College

Bo Adams, OL (6-2, 287), Omaha Burke Iowa Western Community College

In The Wind

Justin Coleman, Beatrice’s  6 foot 175lb WR/DB, has taken official visits to several D-IAA and D-II schools but there is no word of any offers or commitment.

Corey Serrano, RB/DB (6-1, 190), North Platte; Matt Berry, ATH (5-10, 160), McCook; Drew Wagner, RB (6-1, 205 ), Madison (1 0f  only 22 Nebraskans in history to rush for over 5,000 yards in a career) and Sandi Stanback, OL (6-2, 300), Boys Town have all committed to University of  Nebraska at Kearney?

Others that are rumored to attend the University of Nebraska at Kearney are: Jason Wilcox, Norfolk Catholic; Dillon Breinig, Arapahoe; Riley Larson, Adams Central; Stephan Rush, Anselmo Merna and Garrett Rockey, Norfolk Catholic and Matt Bicskei, DE/TE (6-2, 250), Omaha Burke.

Nebraska’s No. 1 class of 2009 prospect, as touted by Rivals, 6-foot-4, 225 lb WR Vondrae Tostenson –who has had an offer on the table from Iowa University since the beginning of his junior year–may be taking the JUCO route.  Stories are flying that he has visited Iowa Western?

Ron Kellogg ., QB (6-2, 210), Omaha Westside, committed to walk-on at Nebraska University.