Recruiting class growing

One thing I noticed when researching the list of Yale's early commitments was a lack of offensive linemen, the team's biggest weakness during the 2008 season. With four starters and a key reserve graduating, bringing in some impact offensive linemen had to be a point of emphasis.

I realize that recruiting in the Ivy League is a different animal with the talent pool determined more by SAT scores and grade-point averages as 40-yard times and bench pressing prowess but still, bringing in some linemen is a must.

Yale moved in the right direction with the commitment of 6-foot-5, 275 pound Justin Hymes out of Allegany High in Cumberland, Md. Info on the commitment, a bit about the process and Hymes' background is available on the Allegany football team's website.

Rivals.com is reporting that Nick Daffin, a defensive end out of Elder High, has also committed to Yale which would bring the number of confirmed commitments to 13.

With another key recruiting weekend coming up, the commitments should start rolling in.

I have been reaching out to high school coaches of athletes linked with Yale both via e-mail and phone with mixed results.

What I can say is that Yale is still in the mix with receiver Jerry Rice Jr. from the Menlo School in Atherton, Calif. For those who aren't aware of it, yes it is the son of the legendary receiver. Menlo School coach Mark Newton said in an e-mail to me earlier this week that Rice is still considering Yale. Rice has been waiting to see if he gets any offers from the host of Pac-10 schools expressing interest. While it is not as simple as being a case of Rice coming to Yale if there are no Pac-10 offers coming his way, word is that his father would like for his son to come to Yale if no Pac-10 schools step up.

Yale is still pursuing a number of offensive linemen but it doesn't appear as if Micah Colston of Parkside High in Salisbury, Md. is one of them. Colston recently played in the Crab Bowl all-star game and listed Yale as one of the schools he was considering. However, Parkside High coach Brendan Riley said there hasn't been much interest from Yale's end. Penn has been recruiting Colston hard according to Riley and other schools showing interest include Maryland, Towson and Vanderbilt. UConn had shown a bit of interest but Riley said he hadn't heard from the Huskies recently.

In the Dallas Morning News' recruiting blog, two Harvard commits are mentioned including Lake Highlands defensive end Reid McCann who picked the Crimson over Iowa State, Princeton and Yale.