2008 NDSU Recruits

[99Bison]

Actually he had great hands and speed in college if i remember right?

Nope, not good hands then either at that time... Many drops then too, and some that hurt em real bad in big games.

Wurz is a little different, he is a more of a catching type than blocking. His drops appear to be more of concentration loss than otherwise stone hands.

[AEBison1998]

Flew from Chicago to Fargo last night with Coach Garza and a few young men who I assume are recruits.

One guy was absolutely huge (the wrestler referred to above?). Each player looked stoic, athletic. Hope they enjoy Fargo.

Did you happen to see two guys each about 6'3"ish about 210 lbs who run a 4.45 with a cannon arm, and ivy league smarts? ....Just hoping....

[Mr_Meanor]

I wonder what the recruits are thinking about the -20 degree weather. I wonder how big of an influence that has on kids?

[HerdBot]

Flew from Chicago to Fargo last night with Coach Garza and a few young men who I assume are recruits.

One guy was absolutely huge (the wrestler referred to above?). Each player looked stoic, athletic. Hope they enjoy Fargo.

They sure picked a cold day to host recruits! I mean it can't get any colder than this this... However it was below zero in Chicago too so the guys are definatley NOT pussies when it comes to the weather. Even though it's colder than hell, somehow recruits get hooked.

[Mr. Burgundy]

It is old, but I found it again this morning, I can't wait for this kid next year!!! This article was obviously written prior to him verballing to NDSU. Pretty much the same that I have always heard about him, not a total speedster, but great hands. Hey, if he was faster....we would have lost him!

__________________________________________________ ___
With a desire to implement the spread offense at Minnesota, the new coaching staff is going to add talent at the receiver position. One of the best in state options is Hakeem Bourne-McFarlane (6-foot-3, 200 pounds) of Bloomington Kennedy. Bourne-McFarlane has no offers yet, but is receiving interest from all of the top programs in the upper Midwest.



According to his head coach, Bourne-McFarlane has the best hands of any high school receiver he has ever seen.
Three of the Big Ten's biggest rivals have been in contact with Bourne-McFarlane.

"Right now I am hearing from Wisconsin, Iowa, Minnesota, and North Dakota State." Bourne-McFarlane said. Right now they are all just talking, no fire yet. No one has offered, but I think Minnesota could be getting close."

Bourne-McFarlane is very impressed with Tim Brewster, the new head coach at Minnesota. He has not met any of the other schools head coaches and that is an advantage for Minnesota.

"Coach Brewster is really thinking big at Minnesota. I know some people that play at the U and they speak highly of him and what he is going to do there. He is the only head coach that has stopped by my school. Wisconsin had their receiver coach out and North Dakota State had an assistant out to meet me. Coach Brewster has put together a really nice staff and they are going to throw the ball more so as a receiver that means a lot."

Bourne-McFarlane will be looking at several aspects of the different schools that are recruiting him before making a decision. There is one part of his selection criteria he will not be flexible with, position.

"I want to remain at receiver in college. Wisconsin told my coach that I would make a good outside linebacker, but I don't like playing defense. I am also going to be looking at what the coaching staff says to me while they are recruiting me. I want to feel like they really want me, not that they are just telling me what I want to hear. I also want to go to a school with good academics. I want to make sure that whatever I decide to get my degree in, that I get a good education so I can succeed in life after football. I have some time to look around, I am not going to make any decisions until after my senior season."

This spring and summer will be very busy for Bourne-McFarlane. He is planning on going to as many camps and combines as he can to get the maximum exposure for himself. His college tour will start this weekend.

"I will be going to junior day at Minnesota this weekend. I am also going to go to camps a Minnesota, Wisconsin, and NDSU for sure. I might also go to Iowa. I am looking at going to at least one other out of state camp to get my name out there. I want to go to USC and maybe one more. I have to talk with my coach and decide which one will be best."

Kennedy Head Coach Dave Frisell counts Bourne-McFarlane as one of the best receivers he has ever seen at the high school level. He believes his star could also succeed on defense in college.

"Hakeem has great hands, best hands I have seen in high school football." Said Coach Frisell. "He is athletic and strong. Hakeem is just learning how to use that strength to his advantage. He needs to work on his running technique and get a little faster, but if you watch film of him he has great game speed and runs away from people so he can run. He is going to run track this spring and that will help a great deal. If he can improve this aspect of his game, he is a D-I receiver for sure. I think he could play outside linebacker or strong safety at the D-I level as well."

[Jdubs21]

wow sounds impressive, and if he redshirts...jsut think how much faster and stronger he will get

[DORMIE]

Talked to one of the assistants at the MBB on Saturday. Didn't ask him about any recruits. He just said that if cold was an issue with a kid, we wouldn't want him. Also said that he had a busy 2 weeks coming up traveling to Chicago and Houston. He said that Coach Nystrum got the kid from Michigan.

[Trainer]

Okay, I'm going to take a guess on who the football player/wrestler is from Illinois (Chicago) that supposedly commited according to the Bison Media Blog. I'll say it's Jason Schepler (6'3 240 lbs.) from Sycamore, IL. He is the third ranked heavyweight in Illinois and also received quite a few honors as a defensive end in football. There's a link to a story down below. Remember this is only an educated/uneducated guess....

http://daily-chronicle.com/articles/...s/sports01.txt

I'll add a second link to a story which says he's leaning towards playing football at the University of Illinois, but is keeping his options open...
http://www.daily-chronicle.com/artic...s/sports01.txt

[Bison Dan]

Okay, I'm going to take a guess on who the football player/wrestler is from Illinois (Chicago) that supposedly commited according to the Bison Media Blog. I'll say it's Jason Schepler (6'3 240 lbs.) from Sycamore, IL. He is the third ranked heavyweight in Illinois and also received quite a few honors as a defensive end in football. There's a link to a story down below. Remember this is only an educated/uneducated guess....

http://daily-chronicle.com/articles/...s/sports01.txt

I'll add a second link to a story which says he's leaning towards playing football at the University of Illinois, but is keeping his options open...
http://www.daily-chronicle.com/artic...s/sports01.txt

Sounds about right. He does sound like a good get.

[BisonNeil]

Okay, I'm going to take a guess on who the football player/wrestler is from Illinois (Chicago) that supposedly commited according to the Bison Media Blog. I'll say it's Jason Schepler (6'3 240 lbs.) from Sycamore, IL. He is the third ranked heavyweight in Illinois and also received quite a few honors as a defensive end in football. There's a link to a story down below. Remember this is only an educated/uneducated guess....

http://daily-chronicle.com/articles/...s/sports01.txt

I'll add a second link to a story which says he's leaning towards playing football at the University of Illinois, but is keeping his options open...
http://www.daily-chronicle.com/artic...s/sports01.txt

I hope you're right, he sounds great. Interesting dilema for him, walking on at IL or getting a scholie at a lower division school.