Category Archives: Recruiting News

Recruiting News

ESPN Released Final 2017 Top 100 Recruit Rankings

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It’s that time of year when all the various scouting services finalize their recruit rankings for the senior class as the recruiting scene shifts fully to the juniors, sophomores and even the high school freshman with the grassroots season imminently upon us. Rivals relesed their final Top 150 last week and Providence had all three of their committed recruits inside the marker, including Makai Ashton-Langford and Nate Watson both being inside the top 85. Dajour Dickens was ranked 121st by that publication. Watson finishes with ESPN as 4-star center with a grade of 82. He’s ranked 20th nationally in the center category. Dickens finishes with ESPN as a 3-star center with a grade of 76. He’s ranked 42nd nationally in the center category.

All in all, the Big East had 16 commitments in Rivals Top 150. ESPN’s final Top 100 wasn’t as kind to the Friars or the league. Providence’s lone representation in the final ESPN Top 100 for the Class of 2017 is Ashton-Langford, who does get a little boost up to 36 from the 44th by Rivals. The Big East only has 7 of their commitments inside the Top 100 line and it should be noted that there are players ranked inside the Top-70 by Rivals who aren’t on ESPN’s Top 100, so it isn’t just players ranked in the 101-150 range missing from ESPN’s list.

2017 Top 100 Big East Notables

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Recruiting News

All Three 2017 Providence Commits Inside Final Rivals Top 150

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Even though Providence may not be done adding players to next season’s roster the three players they have signed in the Class of 2017 all finished inside the Top 150 in the final release by Rivals.com out on Wednesday. Not only did Makai Ashton-Langford, Nate Watson and Dajour Dickens all finish in the top 150, but Ashton-Langford was in the Top-45 and Watson the Top-85. The Big East also had a very good recruiting haul and there are still a few uncommitted players in Rivals’ Top 150 that some Big East programs remain in the mix for.

2017 Top 150 Big East Notables

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Recruiting News

Makai Ashton-Langford Makes It Official and Signs with Providence

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Ed Cooley and Providence got great news on April 10th when Makai Ashton-Langford called the Friar head coach from his dorm room at Brewster Academy to commit after getting his release from UConn nearly two weeks prior. Ashton-Langford cannot sign a second National Letter of Intent because NLI rules prohibit an athlete from signing more than one per calendar year. Instead, Ashton-Langford signed a grant-in-aid package with Providence. Brewster Academy head coach Jason Smith tweeted that Ashton-Langford signed his scholarship paperwork on Wednesday making his commitment to Providence official.

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Recruiting News

Makai Ashton-Langford Chooses Providence This Time Around

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Providence lost out on Makai Ashton-Langford the first go-round when the Worcester native committed to UConn and Kevin Ollie in September. This time Ed Cooley closed the deal and got a commitment from Ashton-Langford shortly after he was on campus for an official visit. Cooley built up a great relationship with both the player and the parents when chasing the Mass Rivals point guard the last several years and it appears that relationship was the key to Providence securing the services of the top-35 player. Ashton-Langford took an official visit starting April 7th after Cooley went up to Brewster Academy to meet with him on the first day coaches could be back on the road recruiting after the Final Four dead period.

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Recruiting News

Providence to Host 2017 Top 35 Point Guard Makai Ashton-Langford for Official Visit

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It’s been less than a week since the news broke that  2017 point guard Makai Ashton-Langford was re-opening his recruitment after comitting to UConn in September. Thursday was the first day coaches could hit the road and visit with recruits after the dead period that it put up around the Final Four and, predictably, Ed Cooley trekked up to Brewster Academy to visit with the top-35 point guard. Many Friar fans were getting manic over the fact that no news was coming out about a player who had Providence in his final two schools before choosing UConn but, Cooley left Brewster with an official visit date set for the Worcester native to come see the Providence campus. Adam Finkelstein tweeted out that Ashton-Langford will be on the Providence campus this weekend to take that official visit. Finkelstein also broke the news of Ashton-Langford requesting his release from UConn last week.

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Recruiting News

2017 Makai Ashton-Langford Granted Release from UConn, Re-Opening Recruitment

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The rumor mill had been buzzing that 2017 point guard Makai Ashton-Langford was considering re-opening his recruitment after signing a binding National Letter of Intent with UConn in November. On Friday, it became a reality. ESPN.com’s Adam Finkelstein reported that the top-40 recruit out of Brewster Academy was in fact asking UConn to be released from his NLI. The rumor mill began it’s buzzing after Glen Miller, longtime assistant coach and lead recruiter for Ashton-Langford for the Huskies, left the program last week. A report by Gavin Keefe of The Day indicated Miller was asked to leave. UConn is now looking at the possibility of losing one of their prized 2017 recruits in Ashton-Langford and two current players, Vance Jackson and Steven Enoch, to transfer since the news of Miller’s departure.

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Recruiting News

Providence Walk-On Andrew Fonts, Recruit Cole Swider Playing in All-Star Game in Portsmouth

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It’s apparently All-Star game season in Rhode Island. Friar fans had the unique opportunity to witness three of Providence’s top local recruiting targets play on the same team last Saturday in the “All About the Buckets” All-Star game in Warwick benefiting Camp ERROL. On Wednesday night one of those targets, Cole Swider, will be playing in the 2nd Annual Rhode Island Higher Learning Sports Spring Classic at Portsmouth High School. A portion of the events proceeds will benefit the James L. Maher Center in Middletown, RI. For more on the work that is done at the Maher Center, click here.

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