By Lee Ann Herring-Olvedo
Sylvester Croom used to say, “I value time. To be late for anything is one of the most disrespectful things you can do.” When it comes to the recruiting game in the SEC you don’t want to be late to the game whether you have five scholarships or 18 scholarship to offer. No matter the number if you want a player you have to work for it before they will want to work for you.
Well it has been clear that the 2013 UK Football recruiting process by the time Spring ball ended was playing late in the game to say the least. While many of the SEC powerhouses like Alabama, LSU and the newbies in A&M & Mizzou had already reached commitments into the teen numbers. UK was still following far behind with only two commits to our list. A lot of the buzz was that with our limited number of scholarships which would total between 18-20 has caused us to be more selective.
While that’s a fair statement as I have said we can’t be frugal in our offers because we really need to create more depth on both ends of the ball – I can’t stress that statement enough. I am by no means saying to throw away an abundance of offers but just to not be afraid to open and look at other potential means of creating a stronger force for the Cats that will be effective in 2013.
Well, for most of our readers that have read my articles you know that my roots lie in the Lonestar state and the only orange you will ever catch me bleeding is burnt orange if I am not in Kentucky bleeding blue. With that said you will also know when it comes to recruiting in the SEC like many people in the BBN I do not like to lose to those Vols from Tennessee!
Third time was a charm for the Cats on the commitment trail. At a towering 6’4”ft. his quick release, pocket passing and pro-style ways are a force that the Wildcats needed to land in 2013. Just nearly a month since we landed our “signal caller” from Signal Mountain HS, QB, Reese Phillips’ infamous cryptic tweet turned him from “bleeding orange to bleeding blue.”
Let’s go behind the gridiron with 2013 commit Reese Phillips:
Clearly a lot of universities in your home state of Tennessee had their eye on you. What ultimately made you feel that the Big Blue Nation would be the perfect fit for you?
Phillips: “What about this decision is not a good idea, that’s what it came down to I mean you’re playing in the SEC, you’re playing for a quarterback guru in Randy Sanders, I will get a chance to play Tennessee every year, and lastly I am the only quarterback they want and it just felt like home immediately.”
Do you feel that being able to know where you are going to play ball in 2013 helps for you to concentrate and focus on your senior year campaign and give you the opportunity to improve your game overall?
Phillips: “This decision will definitely help me focus on my year in high school and I expect to be much more relaxed and be able to go out and do what I do. It can help me make my game better with all the free time and now that my future is set it will definitely help me.”
What do you see as some of the strengths and dynamics that you can bring to the table in the future for the Cats on offense to make an impact early on?
Phillips: “Leadership, consistency, accuracy… I believe these three things are some of the biggest things to success along with the mental part of the game, some quarterbacks around the nation might throw for 5000 yards or whatever but it comes down to the intangibles.”
What has your recruiting experience been like for you thus far and are there things that you would like to see in the future to improve recruiting process?
Phillips: “It’s been pretty great , but I would be lying if I said it has not been stressful, I’m glad it’s over in a way but it was a great experience no doubt.”
As you know the SEC has one of the toughest defensive lines in the nation, so what if any are some things you feel you need to improve on as a QB to help you be able to with stand the long haul at UK?
Phillips: “Maybe pocket presence, footwork, you can always improve on something no one is ever perfect but overall maybe pocket presence and the mental part of the game.”
What is your football playing philosophy?
Phillipa: “Consistency… I think this is the biggest thing to any sport really, I believe obviously a lot in leader ship and team first but as a quarterback and an all-around football player consistency is the biggest factor.”
Any last remarks you would like to share to our readers and the Big Blue Nation?
Phillips: “I just want to say how excited I am about being a part of the BBN, I have grown up an enormous Tennessee fan but I’m very excited to be all blue. I expect to be the starter eventually and I’m ready to learn and get better.”
16 Responses to Bleeding Orange to Bleeding Blue: Behind The Gridiron with 2013 Commit QB Reese Phillips
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This young man has great touch on the ball, good release, and can make all the throws. He’s definitely been “under the radar” but I expect that will change this Fall. I’m really impressed with his skills.
I agree – Good touch, Good release, Can drop back, Roll Out, or Throw back against the grain. Does appear to be “Under the Radar”.
As I said in the last article, We are glad to have you, Reese. Welcome to Kentucky!
I think with the right coaching and continued development his frame would be a good asset to our offense in the future!
Bill- I am glad we are able to recruit more under the radar kids to help balance out the gaps that need to be filled! Sometimes these are the kids who turn out to be the best to coach and it is clear that a kid like Reese will have a great deal of time to even get better as he starts his senior season if he continues to improve by the time he gets to lexington he will truly help to be a good driving force on the offense that we can always use!
Lee Ann thanks for adding all those additional insights for us. Anxious for your take on why UK suddenly seems to be doing so well in Florida
Pat Riley used to say, ‘When you’re playing against a stacked deck, compete even harder. Show the world how much you’ll fight for the winner’s circle. If you do, someday the cellophane will crackle off a fresh pack, one that belongs to you, and the cards will be stacked in your favor. ”
Nothing makes people step up their game like competition and motivation by critics. I think this has been one of the reasons why UK recruiting has seen a recent success in the state of FL. With Charlie strong recruiting so well in FL which hasnt been UK strong point in the past I think has been a good motivator for Joker and his staff to become more agressive.
Over the last couple months its seems that UK Football agressiveness has stepped up on the trail and FL is there new Texas!
Another factor is the players recruiting leverage. No ones can say that players, coaches and families don’t talk during visit to schools in the SEC and comparison shop. With the summer season being the time most of the kids will come to camps or coaches will come to them I believe that just the word of mouth of players and families that all play in not only the same state but in the same programs or rival programs often can make or break a sale of a program. We are seeing more so than ever how players are using these recruiting leverages as a means not just for themselves but also for players who they play with to get to the same school. I think this is a new trend that could be helpful for teams to make better use of the limited recruiting signees and get a packaged deal. When you have a qb and WR who have been playing since grade school and able to sign them together you can only build upon that!
Not totally thrilled with him. Check out his recruit vid. He underthrows the ball on multiple plays. Good size, though. Good end up being good with a lot of work.
Its no question that he will need to be developed even more before he arrives on campus and has a good chance to be a force on our offense. But I agree that his frame could be something that could help improve our command on offense. I think with under the radar kids like Reese it can truly work to our advantage because we have more time to develop them and shape them to play into being a better fit to what we are running. I think often at times the biggest mistake teams make in both recruiting and players is that they focus to much on the ratings and assume that a star player will be a fit for there program. But in reality teams need to find players taht fit into there system and will perform the best in it!
Lee Ann, I’m excited to see that you got the chance to speak with Reese. Since the moment he committed, I was interested to see what you thought about it. A few months ago you had written an article about a QB prospect that wasn’t getting much attention from our staff, and you weren’t quite sure why. It would seem now that they certainly had other opportunities that they were exploring. I’m not asking you to try to compare the two prospects, as that wouldn’t be fair to you or them. However, I would like to know if, as a fan, you are satisfied with this commitment?
And again, great interview… I always enjoy your articles.
I am interested in this as well.
Joshua, I am always thrilled foremost when we can steal a kid away from Tenn! But in all truth I am looking forward to see how Reese develops in his senior season as I said enough there is alway room for young players to improve and his frame and abilities are on there way!
In my previous article where I featured QB prospect Boeing Brown and his visit to UK my primary concern was the rate and which UK was recruiting overall! It seemed we were off to a slow start and in the SEC its difficult to stay dormant for long or else you miss out the oppurtunity on alot of potentially good recruits.
Its good to see we have picked up the pace on the trail but of course we still have a ways to go overall to match up and cover ground for the time we have lost and I can’t stress enough we can’t simply rely on letting the SEC brand sell itself we have to be agressive on the UK Football Brand. We have alot of good selling points we can work to our advantage and that is what I would like to see!
Everyone knows that not all High School QB’s that are being recruited will play QB in College. Obviously Towles & probably Reese will get their chance at QB. The best for Reese is for Towles to play this fall & for Reese to Redshirt (Which he expects) to give 2 years of seperation.
I think that there are a lot of other High School QB’s that should be recruited for OTHER positions because they are the best “Athletes” on their High School team. They could play a different position in College. I think this group could offer several more “Under the Radar players”.
Some of other teams are able to recruit more than one top QB per year. Take a look at A&M’s 2013 list. (Two four star QB’s in this class). I know that both are from Texas and A&M has tradition but I wonder what these players were promised.
I don’t understand all of the details about the Scholarship limits but it seems that other teams work around this. Academic scholarships, Grayshirts etc. ??
Thanks for your article Lee Ann, I have enjoyed them all.
I couldn’t agree more about recruting athletes and hybrid players that we can convert. I think too many times when you over recruit a postion that in the long run you could have recruited more under the rador kids that could be coached to new postions. Especially in the SEC you need to get more of the “athlete” type players to be able to give your team a stronger depth and look!
Yes in Texas especially QBs pool and depth go on for miles because its one of the strongest 4-5star producing QBs so places like Texas & A&M dont have to look to far to secure these kids. Like these powerhouse teams they do find work arounds there are always loopholes that can be used to our advantage.
Not sure what film John is looking at to make his comments. This kid is on the money with his passing and footwork. Reminds me of a young TimTebow I can see how he passes for 70%. very catchable ball,
Agree with you Alex. Phillips’ video looks pretty strong to me, too
I think hes going to be a great addition to the team in the future. There is always room for players to improve no question. Reese is off to a strong start and can only continue to become stronger. He will be a great athlete to coach at UK and his frame and abilities will be an effective asset that can only help the offense excel in its abilities to capitalize!