Football: Report from Vegas 7 on 7 tourney
While most sports fans had their minds on college basketball on Sunday and which teams are going where in the NCAA Tournament this week, many of the top high school football players in the West were in cold and windy Las Vegas for something called the New Level Athletics/Scout.com 7 on 7 passing camp/tournament.
Having talked to dozens of prep prospects from Utah and other states, and having watched about six hours worth of games, I will be posting about the camp for the next several days.
The thing that stood out the most was how heated and intense the competition was. When you get guys playing for their schools and/or state pride, it brings out the best and worst in everybody. Even the coaches got into it.
The team from Washington met the No. 2 team from California in the championship game, but I didn't stick around to see who won after the two teams from Utah were eliminated in the semifinals and/or quarterfinals.
Both Utah teams did well, with both making it to the final six, but Utah was the only state there other than California with more than one team, so its talent was a bit diluted. California had three teams.
I honestly think that if Utah had taken just one team of the best skill position players it had, it might have won the title or at least played for it. The again, sheer talent doesn't always win out in 7 on 7 tournaments.
The most talented team there, the No. 1 California team, had three USC commits, two UCLA commits and seven or eight other guys who already have 6-7 offers each. It was stacked to win the title, and it let everyone know it during Saturday's get-togethers, talking smack at every turn.
Alas, it lost to the No. 2 California team in the semis, and was also humbled by Colorado in pool play.
By the way, the Washington team featured quarterback Jake Heaps, who told me in between games today that he has offers from BYU and Washington.
However, the two best quarterbacks I saw were Logan's Jeff Manning, who played for Utah No. 2, and a junior from Pocatello, Idaho, by the name of Taysom Hill. He attends Highland High in Idaho and his brother, Jordan Hill, once committed to BYU but ended up at Arizona State, he said.
The highlight for the Idaho boys was beating Utah. No. 1 16-6 in pool play. Hill delivered some big-time throws in that game, while Utah No. 1 struggled at the quarterback position, especially when the wind was gusting.
However, the Utahns got the last laugh when Idaho was eliminated before them in the tournament bracket.
I chatted with Idaho's Hill and Washington's Heaps and will have more on their recruiting situations this week. I also spoke to receiver Brett Thompson from Eldorado Hills, Calif., who played for a California No. 3 team that didn't have a quarterback who could get him the ball, let alone anyone else.
Thompson went to the same high school (Oak Grove) as BYU receiver Austin Collie and says he has offers from BYU and UNLV. More on him later, too.
Having talked to dozens of prep prospects from Utah and other states, and having watched about six hours worth of games, I will be posting about the camp for the next several days.
The thing that stood out the most was how heated and intense the competition was. When you get guys playing for their schools and/or state pride, it brings out the best and worst in everybody. Even the coaches got into it.
The team from Washington met the No. 2 team from California in the championship game, but I didn't stick around to see who won after the two teams from Utah were eliminated in the semifinals and/or quarterfinals.
Both Utah teams did well, with both making it to the final six, but Utah was the only state there other than California with more than one team, so its talent was a bit diluted. California had three teams.
I honestly think that if Utah had taken just one team of the best skill position players it had, it might have won the title or at least played for it. The again, sheer talent doesn't always win out in 7 on 7 tournaments.
The most talented team there, the No. 1 California team, had three USC commits, two UCLA commits and seven or eight other guys who already have 6-7 offers each. It was stacked to win the title, and it let everyone know it during Saturday's get-togethers, talking smack at every turn.
Alas, it lost to the No. 2 California team in the semis, and was also humbled by Colorado in pool play.
By the way, the Washington team featured quarterback Jake Heaps, who told me in between games today that he has offers from BYU and Washington.
However, the two best quarterbacks I saw were Logan's Jeff Manning, who played for Utah No. 2, and a junior from Pocatello, Idaho, by the name of Taysom Hill. He attends Highland High in Idaho and his brother, Jordan Hill, once committed to BYU but ended up at Arizona State, he said.
The highlight for the Idaho boys was beating Utah. No. 1 16-6 in pool play. Hill delivered some big-time throws in that game, while Utah No. 1 struggled at the quarterback position, especially when the wind was gusting.
However, the Utahns got the last laugh when Idaho was eliminated before them in the tournament bracket.
I chatted with Idaho's Hill and Washington's Heaps and will have more on their recruiting situations this week. I also spoke to receiver Brett Thompson from Eldorado Hills, Calif., who played for a California No. 3 team that didn't have a quarterback who could get him the ball, let alone anyone else.
Thompson went to the same high school (Oak Grove) as BYU receiver Austin Collie and says he has offers from BYU and UNLV. More on him later, too.
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