Went to the STM/Evangel game last night, saw Miles and Grimes there to watch this kid play. Once Tillery was pointed out to me he was clearly a man amongst boys. They had him playing both ways and he seemed to tire out in the first half and ended up getting hurt (looked like his knee or leg injury)......but before that he was crushing people. Hope he's ok and ends up being a Tiger.
A little more: A little about what Grimes has done: Massive Evangel prospect Jerry Tillery has been committed to Notre Dame for some time, but his recruitment remains full of intrigue as he continues to take other visits, including numerous trips to Baton Rouge. At 6-foot-6, 305 pounds, Tillery has a great frame, but it's his athleticism coupled with his size that have schools from coast to coast clamoring for his signature. With most of his official visits used up, Tillery has one more scheduled before making his final decision; a decision that will have huge implications for LSU and Notre Dame. "I've taken four of my official visits and I'm scheduled to make my final one to Notre Dame in two weeks," Tillery said when asked about his final visits. "I committed to Notre Dame a long time ago and I wanted to take all of my official visits to reconfirm my feelings that I originally had. "I take the visit to South Bend on December 12, I believe, and shortly after that I'll make things clear with everyone involved as to what my intentions are. I'm not going to be making an announcement at an All-American Game or anything like that. I'm trying to minimize the drama with my recruitment as much as possible." Tillery is regarded as the state's best offensive lineman prospect, but has been extremely disruptive at defensive tackle for Evangel as well. As for his favorite position, well, Tillery just wants to play. "I feel like I can be a great offensive tackle or defensive tackle," he said. "Ultimately, I just want to play early so whatever position I'm needed at the most is fine with me. "LSU is telling me they have pretty good depth on the defensive line. They have some offensive tackles leaving so they need some young guys there. That's what I hear mostly from them. "Notre Dame has a need at both positions and they told me I can play whatever I want. I talk to the offensive line coach mostly so I anticipate that I would be playing on that side of the ball up there. The Tigers have made a strong push to keep Tillery home. The effort began shortly after the hiring of offensive line coach Jeff Grimes earlier this year. The newly appointed trench-trainer had a lot of ground to make up. "The previous offensive line coach didn't recruit me at all so I didn't hear anything from LSU until Coach Grimes got there," Tillery said. "We've built a good relationship since then. He's a player's coach and he has coached some pretty big names. He is just an all-around good guy."
He seems like a solid kid mentally, I love the fact that he doesn't like all the attention and doesn't want to make a scene. To me that speaks volumes about the quality of his character. Hope we land him but I'm thinking he sticks with his original commitment.
I tend to believe he's a ND lean, but that may just be me not trying to get my hopes up. He would be a huge commit. I don't find it hard to believe that stud didn't recruit him, he never struck me as a really sharp fellow.
Some kids follow teams outside the state of La, seen this many times. But like I said, Grimes has made headway, Grimes has also got in on a few more. Signing day should tell us more. Grimes has put in the time and effort with Tillery, has made a great push. Now he is still in on a few more and trying to get a couple from the Fla class to look back at LSU. I understand Grimes has been doing the leg work, would like to see it payoff. After these next couple years, he will be showing kids going into the NFL draft, something that has been missing at LSU for years. As bad as the Curley and Gerry D years were, we still put recruits into the NFL and the Draft. Faneca, Mawae, McClure, Louis Williams, Winey and Marcus Price.
