Scouting Report: D'Andre Swift, RB Recruit

"In Boston they ask, 'how much does he know?' In New York, 'how much is he worth?' In Philadelphia, 'who were his parents?'" ~Mark Twain

Rankings

Offers: Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, Delaware, Florida State, Georgia, Iowa, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, North Carolina, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, Pitt, Rutgers, South Carolina, Syracuse, Temple, Tennessee, Villanova, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and West Virginia.

Scheme fit: Swift is one of those that transcends scheme. Just give him the ball.

Strengths: Excellent speed... Excellent cutting ability... Great burst and vision... Plenty of strength... Great hands... Great balance... Quick feet... North-south runner... Creative and intelligent on the football field... Very effective as a route-runner... A natural at the game of football, both mentally and physically.

Weaknesses: N/A

Speed factor: 9 ^(?)

Elite speed and quickness, especially so for a power back. This kid is amazing to watch, plain and simple.

Swift's top five, at the moment, are Clemson, Florida State, Michigan, Penn State, and LSU. All of these teams will have persuasive cases to make - in Penn State's case, despite much less recent success, they are the hometown team. Even without any curveballs, this recruitment is bound to be a long and difficult one, and there will probably be some curveballs.

The results of the 2016 season will mean a lot, as they often do when battling for top recruits. If LSU continues a slow, downward trend, then Les Miles could easily be out of the running. A 10-win season would (obviously) go a long way for Penn State. Another great Michigan season, and the Wolverines will have a lot of momentum. Coaches will be hired and fired, friendships made, etc.

In the case of Clemson (Wayne Gallman), FSU (Dalvin Cook) and LSU (Leonard Fournette), all three have very successful running backs who will soon be leaving campus, a perfect situation as far as recruiting goes. Of those, Clemson is probably the most in need of a great recruit, although they never seem to focus as much of their offense (or their recruiting) on running backs. But FSU already has Jacques Patrick in line behind Dalvin Cook, and LSU has Derrius Guice to tote the rock when Fournette leaves. For Clemson, the next in line would probably be Adam Choice, a still-promising young back who has suffered an ACL tear and underwhelmed the last couple years.

The Crystal Balls, for what they're worth, read Penn State (58%) and Florida State (42%). Still, there's a long way to go in this recruitment.