Toliver struts his stuff in big win 6 hours ago LSU has a reputation for being “DBU” due to all of the defensive backs the program has sent to the NFL. And when the staff lands recruits like Kevin Toliver II that tradition will continue. Toliver showed why he is a five-star prospect and ranked No. 8 overall in the 247Sports Composite on Friday as he picked off three passes in the second half of a 42-28 win against Lakeland Christian. He also registered four tackles and caught a couple of passes for 63 yards in a game that sent his Trinity Christian Academy squad to the Class 3A State Championship Game. Toliver has been committed to LSU for more than two years and is a solid pledge for the Tigers.
Now he's recruiting for us...get in there and sway somebody, KT2! http://www.nola.com/recruiting/index.ssf/2014/12/lsu_commitment_kevin_toliver_s.html#incart_m-rpt-2
Heck, Chuck Muncie was a RB for the Saints. His brother played for the Colts I believe and his name was Nelson Munsey!
Has anyone seen this kids box jump? Its unbelievable how explosive this kid is. Les Miles sure does know how to recruit the state of Florida.
Five-star recruit Kevin Toliver II remained committed to LSU for 820 days Florida prep star’s commitment longest in Les Miles’ tenure Ross Dellenger| [email protected] Feb. 02, 2015 0 Comments Jimbo Fisher looked Kevin Toliver II in the eyes. “You’re going to change that ‘L’ to an ‘F,’ ” the Florida State coach said to the top-flight recruit. That’s according to Toliver’s father, who was sitting in Fisher’s office at the time of the meeting. This was during a junior day visit to Tallahassee, Florida, in the spring of 2013. The “L” stood for LSU, where Toliver was committed. The “F,” of course, stood for Florida State. Moments after the meeting, the young Toliver turned to his father, also named Kevin Toliver: “‘Dad, I want to decommit and commit to Florida State,’ ” he told him. That never happened. More On This Topic Kevin Toliver II, a highly recruited cornerback from Florida, stayed true to a verbal commitment of more than two years when he enrolled at LSU in January. National Signing Day on Wednesday will make official a stunning fact: No other signee in Les Miles’ 10 years was committed for a longer period than Toliver. He has the record — by far. He was committed to LSU for a whopping 820 days, nearly 300 days longer than the next best under Miles. He’s a rarity in a modern-day recruiting circus full of decommitments and signing day surprises. “It’s very rare,” said Sonny Shipp, a local recruiting reporter for 247Sports, “especially when you consider someone of his caliber. There was probably as little drama with his recruitment than any other player ranked (in the top 10) in the country that I can ever recall.” There was no public drama, at least. Toliver did, indeed, waver multiple times from the non-binding verbal pledge he made to LSU in November 2012, his father said. He just never publicly made a stink about it, and he never made any rash decisions, in part because of his parents’ guidance. His father, in a recent interview, made public those close encounters during a two-year-long recruiting battle for a kid who committed early in his sophomore year of high school. Kevin Toliver II did not return calls seeking comment. While LSU fought to keep its prized commit — Toliver is a five-star prospect — other schools made tempting pitches. “He wavered a couple of times, I’ll admit it,” the elder Toliver said. “He did waver.” There was the instance at Florida State and strong flirtations with Virginia Tech and Auburn. LSU, meanwhile, was always there, an eventual landing spot for a guy who, at one point, was ranked the top recruit in the 2015 class. Scout.com’s Scott Kennedy can only think of one player as highly recruited as Toliver to hold true on such a lengthy commitment to an out-of-state college: former Georgia receiver A.J. Green. Green committed 16 months before signing day; Toliver committed 27 months before signing day. It’s probably been a hold-your-breath moment for the Tigers. “Having to wait over two years to finally see him …” Kennedy said. “It’s like (buying) a new car and waiting two years to drive it.” Here’s how far out Toliver committed: Nineteen of the 20 players in the 2014 class who committed to LSU before signing day last year did so after Toliver’s pledge. “Whoever thought they could get his attention was trying,” said Shea Dixon, a local recruiting reporter for 247Sports. “He’s probably got 100 offers.” They tried, most notably Florida State, Virginia Tech and Auburn, Kevin Toliver said. Each of those three schools stubbed their toes during a fragile recruiting process. Communication was the big issue. After that meeting in Tallahassee with Fisher in April 2013, the Toliver family didn’t hear from the coach for a year, Toliver said. “Jimbo Fisher had told my son, when we had that visit, ‘I’m going to recruit you hard until you change that L to an F,’ ” Toliver said. “He said that right in front of me. We didn’t see that. That’s what put FSU on the bottom.” Virginia Tech may have flipped the younger Toliver’s commitment with a simple, “Hello.” Even Toliver’s father admits that he honestly thought his son would end up at Virginia Tech. Then came the official visit this past fall. Virginia Tech’s defensive backs coach never introduced himself or spoke to the recruit’s mother, Stephanie Toliver, until the third day of a three-day visit, the elder Toliver said. During a Sunday meeting with defensive coordinator Bud Foster, Stephanie Toliver called out secondary coach Torrian Gray, who also was in the room. “ ‘I’ve been here all weekend, and I haven’t met you,’ ” Stephanie told the coach, Toliver said. “He apologized. You should have seen the look on Bud Foster’s face. He nearly fell out.” On the drive back from Blacksburg, Stephanie Toliver told her son that she couldn’t “swallow” being ignored for two days by the guy who would be coaching her son’s position. Kevin Toliver II never took a visit to Auburn, but he wanted to. If he had, who knows if he would be in Baton Rouge? At one point, Auburn was Toliver’s No. 2 pick “if it didn’t work out with LSU,” his dad said. The prospect told Auburn coaches in the summer that he wanted to visit. He even spoke to one of them in the fall about setting up an official visit. “We’ve got to get to Auburn,” Toliver told his dad often in the fall. Finally, the younger Toliver got an Auburn coach on the phone. “He said, ‘I want to come on a visit,’ ” Toliver’s dad said. “Let me get back to you,” the Auburn coach told Toliver. Said Kevin Toliver: “We’re still waiting for that call.” Through all of this, LSU never stopped recruiting Toliver until he enrolled in classes last month, and the Tolivers never had communication issues with LSU like it did for Auburn and Florida State. The Tigers staff presented the family with a schedule of when to call coaches, the elder Toliver said. Recruits can place unlimited phone calls to coaches, but coaches can’t do the same to recruits. “When I would call, I would always get them on the phone,” Toliver said of LSU. “They gave us a schedule of when to call, what time, what day. When we’d call (Florida State), we’d miss them. So I stopped calling.” LSU defensive backs coach Corey Raymond was the primary recruiter on Toliver, and recruiting coordinator Frank Wilson joined his recruitment as signing day neared. Sharon Lewis, LSU’s assistant athletic director for football recruiting, helped with the paperwork process. In the end, LSU got a five-star prospect whom 247Sports’ composite rankings peg as the nation’s second-best cornerback in the 2015 class. It was a long, long time coming — 820 days, to be exact. How long will that record stand? University High linebacker Dylan Moses committed in the fall of 2013 as a ninth-grader. Also, LSU has a commitment for the 2018 class from quarterback Zadock Dinkelmann, the nephew of former Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Ty Detmer. He committed as an eighth-grader. “We’ll see if he stays (committed),” said Mike Scarborough of Rivals.com. “That’s set the record.” Follow Ross Dellenger on Twitter @DellengerAdv. --- SOLID VERBALS Longest LSU commits in the Les Miles era who signed (or enrolled) with the Tigers: CB Kevin Toliver II Signing class: 2015 Date committed: Nov. 5, 2012 Days committed: 820 DB Devin Voorhies Signing class: 2014 Date committed: Aug. 28, 2012 Days committed: 526 WR Avery Peterson Signing class: 2012 Date committed: Sept. 1, 2010 Days committed: 518 OL La’el Collins Signing class: 2011 Date committed: Sept. 28, 2009 Days committed: 492
All too often it's about relationships with coaches, a coach staying in touch with a kid. Over the weeks, months, years. This is what makes the hire of Steele and O, it shows what they can do in a short time. LSU is getting ready for its camps, yep, even while still filling this class. Recruiting never stops, oh it has a few slow spots, but you can bet once this class is full, it's a fast transition into the 2016 class. And like any coach will tell you, better players made him a better coach.
