UNC signs 25 in highly-rated class

CHAPEL HILL - North Carolina coach Butch Davis stood in front of the podium this afternoon with a look of satisfaction on his face.

"Today was a very good day," Davis said at his news conference to announce the Tar Heels' 2011 class on national signing day.

Rivals.com has ranked North Carolina's class No. 3 in the ACC. The Tar Heels signed 10 players on offense, 14 on defense and kicker/punter Miller Snyder of Charlotte.

The Tar Heels got a big signing day commitment from McKeesport (Pa.) defensive tackle Delvon Simmons, who's rated the No. 80 player in the class by rivals.com.

They accomplished the strong class despite an NCAA investigation into the program that caused 14 players to miss at least one game and seven to miss the entire season in 2010. North Carolina officials have said they don't know how or when the NCAA will rule on possible sanctions for the program.

But Davis said athletic director Dick Baddour researched similar cases in the past and what the sanctions might be and shared his findings with parents of prospects who were concerned.

"First and foremost, we were always honest with the kids we recruited," Davis said. ". . .We never tried to paint a picture of things that weren't realistic."

Ken Tysiac

UNC misses on LB Grant

North Carolina, which earlier in the day picked up rivals.com's No. 80 prospect nationally in defensive tackle Delvon Simmons, missed out on another top linebacker target this afternoon.

Curtis Grant of Richmond, Va., who had been considering the Tar Heels, committed to Ohio State, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

Despite losing Grant, the addition of Simmons earlier in the day should ensure that North Carolina signs a top-20 class.

Ken Tysiac

Q&A on UNC commit Delvon Simmons

McKeesport (Pa.) defensive tackle Delvon Simmons, who's rated the No. 80 player overall in the nation by rivals.com, gave North Carolina's recruiting class a huge boost with his commitment Wednesday on national signing day.

Here's what McKeesport coach Jim Ward said about Simmons in a telephone interview:

Q: Why did he choose UNC?

A: He thought the capus was absolutely beautiful. It was far enough away from home but not too far away from home. Butch Davis’ ability to develop defensive linemen was very important. The graduation rate of their players, and being able to play in a pure 4-3.

Q: How important was playing in the 4-3?

A: It was really important. There’s a lot of schools that are starting to get into the 3-4. But it’s such a contrast to the 4-3. And to me, Delvon’s God-given ability is his athleticism and his ability to get off the ball and be disruptive. And that doesn’t lend itself to playing in that kind of scheme.

We really were limited in the end to just a couple schools that ran a real 4-3, and that was USC and North Carolina. And that’s something that was important to Delvon, to have that opportunity to be a three-technique defensive tackle and do what he feels most comfortable doing.

Q: What’s he like as a kid?

A: He’s a great kid. He’s very engaging. He’s got an incredible personality, a laugh and a smile that kind of lights up a room. He’s a very, very fierce competitor, and he’s a kid that’s very easy to like. I think he’ll be well liked by his teammates. I think he’ll be popular among his teammates. And just overall has an outstanding personality. I think North Carolina is going to be really excited to get him.

Q: Physically, what are his assets? You mentioned his athleticism.

A: He’s a little over 6-feet-5. He’s about 275 pounds. He’s got a frame in which he’s probably going to grow to about 300 pounds, or maybe a couple pounds more. Very long arms. Very explosive. And just is a kid that when you see him and you see him at 275, you think he’s probably 250 until you put him on the scale. That’s the kind of size that he has.

Ken Tysiac

Anson County's Anthony picks Clemson

Stephone Anthony, who entered the day as the top uncommitted prospect in North Carolina, added to an outstanding Clemson recruiting class late this morning when he signed with the Tigers.

Anthony, a 6-foot-2, 220-pound linebacker from Anson County High in Wadesboro, N.C., also was considering North Carolina, Florida and Virginia Tech. He is rated the No. 2 player in North Carolina by The Charlotte Observer.

Clemson and coach Dabo Swinney entered the day with a top-25 class, and added five-star linebackers in Anthony and Tony Steward of Jacksonville, Fla., who had also been considering Florida State.

Anthony's signing, announced at a news conference at his school, means that the top six prospects in North Carolina all are leaving the state.

Ken Tysiac

DL commitment huge for UNC

Scout.com recruiting analyst Miller Safrit said the signing of McKeesport (Pa.) High defensive lineman Delvon Simmons, announced minutes ago, is an impressive accomplishment for North Carolina's coaching staff.

Scout.com is among the outlets reporting Simmons' commitment.

"It definitely puts a big stamp of approval, a big cherry on top of the class for this North Carolina class that a lot of people were wondering about," Safrit said.

Safrit was impressed because Simmons never took an official visit to North Carolina and made only an unofficial visit in June. He also said the Tar Heels' 4-3 scheme might have played a role.

Ken Tysiac

Raines High has news for UNC, Pack

According to the Florida Times-Union's live signing day blog, Raines High in Jacksonville, Fla., has news for North Carolina and N.C. State fans.

Sam Smiley, a 6-foot, 170-pound cornerback at Raines, has committed to North Carolina. He's rated a two-star prospect by scout.com. North Carolina's official web site reported that his letter of intent arrived at 11:01 a.m.

Chris Jones, a defensive tackle who committed to N.C. State last week, will not sign with the Wolfpack, according to the Times-Union. He will sign with Illinois.

Jones is a three-star prospect.

Ken Tysiac

Early look at UNC, Pack signees

A flurry of early-morning letters of intent have hit the fax machines at North Carolina and N.C. State, and so far the only surprises are a pair of two-star linebackers.

North Carolina added Keeon Virgile of North Miami Beach, and N.C. State signed Michael Peek of Loganville, Ga.

There’s still more drama to come on signing day, but here’s an early look at the letters of intent received by North Carolina and N.C. State, as reported by the schools’ official websites:

NORTH CAROLINA SIGNEES
Travis Riley, RB, Kannapolis, N.C.
T.J. Thorpe, WR, Durham
Landon Turner, OL, Harrisonburg, Va.
Marquise Williams, QB, Charlotte
Sylvester Williams, DL, Jefferson City, Mo.
Miller Snyder, PK, Charlotte
Tyler Alberts, ATH, Clemmons, N.C.
Alex Dixon, DB, Clearwater, Fla.
Norkeithus Otis, LB, Gastonia
Jarrod James, OL, Goldsboro
Travis Hughes, LB, Virginia Beach
Kameron Jackson, DB, Madison, Ala.
Romar Morris, ATH, Salisbury
Darien Rankin, DB, Salisbury
Devonte Brown, DT, Fayetteville, N.C.
Eric Ebron, TE, Greensboro
Tim Scott, DB, Fredericksburg, Va.
Brandon Ellerbe, DB, Wadesboro, N.C.
Shawn Underwood, DT, Fuquay-Varina
Keeon Virgile, LB, North Miami Beach
Kiaro Holts, OL, Indianapolis


N.C. STATE SIGNEES
*McKay Frandsen, DE
Brian Taylor, QB  - (7:22 a.m.)
Benson Browne, TE - (7:55 a.m.)
Tyrrell Burriss, DB - (8:08 a.m.)
Michael Peek, LB - (8:11 a.m.)
Alex Barr, OL - (8:24 a.m.)
Wil Baumann, P - (8:39 a.m.)
Brandon Pittman, LB - (8:39 a.m.)
Mike Rose, DE - (8:48 a.m.)
Hakim Jones, DB - (9:04 a.m.)
Hakeem Flowers, WR - (9:33 a.m.)
Dave Mann, DE - (9:44 a.m.)

*Enrolled at NC State for the 2011 spring semester

Ken Tysiac