EL PASO, Texas – Tired of searching for recruiting information or trying to debunk some rumors you saw on a message board? Well you’ve come to the right place. Miner Illustrated has decided to give its fans a one-stop shop to read all about it through the “Scouting Mine.”

Each edition of the Scouting Mine the staff at MI will bring you all of the UTEP information you can handle each week regarding football, basketball and any other sport that has relevant recruiting information.

If we’ve missed something or you’d like to send us a note if you’re a recruit, parent or sports fan, feel free to contact us at show [at] minerillustrated.com.

Quick scheduling note …

The Scouting Mine and Pete’s Quarry Podcast will switch days for the first portion of the summer due to a flurry of work conflicts from the MI staff. This will ensure we still bring you same content, you’ll just have to wait another day for the podcast. On the bright side you get the Scouting Mine a day early. Nothing wrong with that.

Small reminder …

To save time and make sure every edition of the Scouting Mine gives diehard Miner fans the most comprehensive news, the updated information will be added to the top of each new article, while other links and notes will remain on the bottom.

Hopefully this allows previous and new readers the ability to enjoy our content every week and not have to search for a small note they saw last week. Thanks and let us know how it works!

Big reminder …

For those who would like to see information on the 2011 recruiting class, click here to see a list of prospects that the MI staff has their eyes on. The list is updated weekly with commits, stories and new school additions.

Special Monday (June 21) Podcast …

It’s not often we record Pete’s Quarry on Monday, nor is it everyday we’re able to get new UTEP head coach Tim Floyd on as a guest. So we caught up with the first-year Miner coach and got his thoughts on his return to the Sun City, the current team and his thoughts on recruiting. What are you waiting for? Check it out!

Leading off …

Received this e-mail note on Jonovan Griffin, a wide receiver from McKinney, Texas (Boyd HS), from Danny Levario right before I posted the Scouting Mine. Here’s some quick hits, but we’ll play the full interview in this week’s Pete’s Quarry Podcast. So don’t miss it!

-Has not committed and is garnering interest from some top flight schools: Texas Tech, Tulane, Oklahoma St., Arkansas, LSU, SMU, TCU, and UTEP.

-Did not elaborate on which have offered (my feeling is that only UTEP, SMU and TCU have) but did confirm that UTEP will get one of his five official visits.

-Recruited by UTEP running backs coach Jeff Banks and got an “on the spot” offer out of UTEP’s Cedar Hill Camp this past summer.

-Strengths: Speed, vision and versatility. He’s currently Boyd’s quarterback but is being recruited as an athlete by most schools.

-Weaknesses: Slight build, needs to put on more pounds and route running.

Levario’s Thoughts: This guy is electrifying on film and has great cut-back ability and speed.  He has been clocked at 4.5/40 but plays faster.  He’s very shifty and could make immediate impact in return game.  After a year of redshirting to work on route running and work on build, he can be a great playmaker for any team.  Great upside with this kid and comes across very well.  My guess is that if UTEP has a good season and the depth charts look favorable, he could very well spurn BCS offers to come to UTEP.

Levario chimes in …

Danny Levario spoke with cornerback Demetrius Jackson from Baldwin Park, Calif. HS yesterday and he’s excited about his commitment.  He mentioned that he would take his official in early September (he said the Houston game, but that’s impossible since it’s in Houston so, he may have gotten his dates crossed).  UTEP coaches Allen Johnson (cornerbacks) and Andre Patterson (defensive coordinator) are recruiting him.  His verbal is solid.

Levario’s Thoughts: He has some technique issues that he needs to address.  My evaluation was the same as his in that he needs to work on staying low throughout his pedal.  He stands up way too tall for a corner.  He’s got decent recovery speed but not great.  His size is an issue with taller receivers but he’s not afraid to be physical.  He cuts very well and just needs to be more disciplined on “one-and-ones”.  I think once he works on bettering his technique, his speed will improve and he can be a serviceable corner for UTEP.  His three-star rating is accurate in my opinion.

Comings and goings from 66 …

The Miners have done exceptionally well early on the recruiting trail, but with the Camp Socorro only a week away, the focus will shift from recruiting to building a winning team for the 2010 season. Earlier this week Carlos M. Silva, Jr. reported the addition of two stellar recruits for 2011. Offensive lineman Clint Simon and Demetrius Jackson. Jackson, a three-star prospect according to Rivals.com and 33rd ranked defensive back, can add quality and speed to the start of an outstanding 2011 recruiting class. He just gave a strong verbal to the Miners according to Danny a few days ago, so huge get for the Miners.

Tommie Robins, as reported by Carlos on one of the Miner Illustrated Twitter accounts, is receiving a long look by the Miners. Robins, a 6-foot 1 inch 215 pound athlete from Pflugerville, Texas. was a workout warrior at the Nike Camp held at Texas A&M. Robins transferred to Pflugerville’s Henrickson High School from Louisiana’s football power house John Curtis HS prior to his junior year. He played running back and safety, but was overlooked and didn’t get to settle into a position. With his solid 4.5 speed and size,  he is projected as a linebacker at the Division I level. Last year he was awarded second team All District as a kick returner.  You’ll see why when you check out his video highlights. Currently Robins has offers from Texas A&M, Southeast Louisiana, Texas State and Sam Houston State. LSU, Utah, Rice, TCU and the Miners are other schools showing strong interest in Robins.

In other recruiting news, three players the Miners were actively recruiting have pledged to other schools; Chazz Sampson (Tulsa), Daniel Spencer (Houston) and Tyler Johnstone (Oregon).

The Miners are also showing interest in Katy linebacker Grant Clifton. Clifton, at 6-feet 215 pounds, is a Dave Campbell Top 300 player who is an aggressive and sure-tackling inside linebacker with above average fundamentals. He has offers from Colorado, North Texas and Tulane. In my opinion if the Miners could land Clifton, he would be a perfect complement to Miners other three verbal linebacker commitments: Durant, Darling and Crutchfield.

Basketball recruit recap …

Josh Puga, our basketball recruiting guru, has found a few gems over the last week. Here’s some of the prospects he is looking into in the coming days.

Shaq Thomas 6-foot 6 inch, Small forward, NIA Prep, Newark, N.J.

Thomas is a multi-tooled player that has all the skills to be a starter at the D1 level.  He can knock down the long jumper, has good handles, finishes at the rim and can defend well. Thomas is ranked on Rivals150 (currently 107), but should be top 100 soon.  He mentioned UTEP as one of the schools showing interest while participating at Hoop Group Elite Camp in Pennsylvania. On Zagsbolg.com, Thomas also mentioned West Virginia, Cincinnati, VA Tech, Boston College among other schools.  Currently he has an offer from Seton Hall, but more should be on the way towards the end of July.

Here are two sites with some info on Thomas:
http://rivals.yahoo.com/highschool/basketball/recruiting/player-Shaquille-Thomas-84976
http://www.zagsblog.com/2010/07/09/harkless-rules-out-uconn-jack-stars-at-hoop-group/

Cezar Guerrero 6-foot, Point guard, Saint John Bosco High School, Bellflower, Calif.

Guerrero is an intriguing point guard prospect that sees the floor very well and is a tremendous passer.  He has great ball control and is a very flashy player who can finish in the paint check out this Youtube video.  Some have compared him to Grevis Vasquez, the former floor leader at Maryland. Guerrero has a nice mid-range jump shot, but could improve beyond the arch.  He is a good defender with quick hands that allow him to steal the ball frequently and create turnovers.  He sat out a year because of transfer rules, but he is determined to have a great senior year back at St. John Bosco.  Along with UTEP, he is considering UCLA, St. Johns, Arizona and many others.

Here are a couple sites about Guerrero:
http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/recruiting/player-Cezar-Guerrero-82492
http://www.calihighsports.com/articles/80

Puga also sent me an e-mail saying that walk-on Joseph Williams, who we mentioned in last week’s Scouting Mine, met with the coaching staff on Monday. We’re attempting to get something set up with the 6-foot 2 inch 290 pound prospect from Elkins High School and will try to have a story soon. Here’s the rest of the information on Williams for those who didn’t check out last week’s edition of the Scouting Mine:

Intriguing walk-on story …

Joseph Williams, a 6-foot 2 inch 290 pound prospect from Elkins High School in Houston (graduated 2009), will be enrolling at UTEP to walk-on this year. Didn’t have much interest out of high school, so  he decided to attend Union Christian Post Graduate Academy. I won’t go into too much detail about the school, but to summarize, he walked into a complete mess, left the school and returned to Houston. Here are a couple of websites to give Miner fans an idea of what I’m talking about.

http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20091010/NEWS0102/910110358/Students-stranded-at-football-academy and  http://news.cincinnati.com/article/20091110/NEWS0102/911110371/Stranded-Union-Christian-students-get-aid).

Puga’s Thoughts: Williams is visiting UTEP this Thursday with his mother and will be in town for his student orientation from July 12-15. He told me that he spoke with Nate Poss and he is planning to meet with defensive coordinator Andre Patterson next week. MI will be sure to talk with him more after he gets back from El Paso, so stay tuned.

66′s odd and ends …

The Miner recruiting season continues in full swing with the Miners pursuing two Dave  Campbell Top 300 players.  Athletes, regardless of  the position are high on the Miners wish list, with speed a highly sought after commodity in this years recruiting search. With four fast athletically gifted players already verbally committed, the Miners are in hot pursuit of two more.

Lufkin’s  quarterback Deautre Smiley (6-foot 2 inches/215 pounds/4.5) has been offered by the Miners. Smiley is  a gifted  mobile dual threat quarterback who has a strong and accurate arm and has exceptional running ability. Last year Smiley rushed for 926 yards, including a very impressive 17 touchdowns, and had 1588 yards passing with a 62 percent completion rate, including 18 touchdown passes. It is readily evident why he is listed as a  Dave Campbell Top 20 quarterback. ESPN’s video highlight tape clearly shows his outstanding combination of passing and running ability.   Along with his speed Smiley has good strength and a 33″ vertical. Currently, he holds offers from Kansas State and the Miners.

Gerry Hamilton reported in  his recent recruiting blog that Michael Mudoh, the gifted defensive back from Ft. Bend Bush, has been offered by UTEP. Mudah (5-foot 9 inches /182 pounds/4.40) is also a Dave Campbell Top 300 recruit. The talented Mudoh was a junior All State player in 2009.  For those interested his Rivals highlights are excellent viewing.  He currently has offers from Baylor, Colorado State, Tulsa and the Miners.

Two other prospects, offensive lineman Oni Omoile (6-foot 3 inches/275 pounds) and defensive end Nathanel Taylor (6-foot 3 inches/220 pounds/4.6) have been offered by the Miners.  Omoile has good size and strength and is an “under the radar” prospect with very good potential.  Taylor is  a speedy defensive end who played well in 2009 as evidenced by his 37 tackles. Sheer numbers don’t reflect his big player capability… included in his tackles were seven sacks and eight tackles for losses.

In other news Reggie Gilbert, a highly touted defensive end being recruited by the Miners, verbally committed to Arizona.

66 chimes in once again …

The Miners have reportedly added four players to their offer list for the 2010 class. The staff is continuing to aggressively recruit on the defensive as evidenced by their recent verbal commitments of three outstanding linebackers in Brandon Durant, Wardell Crutchfield and Tyrone Darling.

The most intriguing prospect, albeit a highly coveted prospect, is Sam Tai (Liberty HS), Las Vegas, Nevada. Tai is projected as a defensive end or linebacker. Scout rates Tai as a three star recruit and has him ranked as the 67th top defensive end in the country. At 6’4 and 234 pounds the athletically gifted Tai played quarterback last year as well as earning “All League” honors at defensive end. In 2009 he had four sacks and 32 tackles while playing both ways.  He has picked up an impressive list of offers including Colorado, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, UNLV and Wyoming in addition to the Miners. Currently Colorado is one of his favorites, however, with Coach Patterson’s connections in the Las Vegas area, I wouldn’t count the Miners out.

Another recent Miner offer went to safety Mauricio Sanchez (Warren HS) San Antonio, TX 6-0/180/4.5. Sanchez is a fast, hard hitting and sure tackling safety, who would be a nice addition for the Miners with current Miner safties Braxton Amy, Brandon Miller and Wiston Jeuene in their senior season. He led his team with 110 tackles. He was recently offered by the Miners and is receiving from several other schools. Sanchez is receiving interest from Duke, New Mexico, Rice, SMU and Houston.

Alex Villarreal (Hidalgo HS) Hidalgo, TX  6’4/ 290/ 4.9 in an excellent defensive prospect who in a good conditioning and strength program has a very nice upside. Villarreal is a Dave Campbell Top 300 player and was All-District as a junior. He’s got excellent size and good speed for a big man. Currently he has reported offers from Texas State, Texas (San Antonio), Houston and the Miners.

Reportedly the Miners have also offered Rodney Young, the outstanding linebacker out of  Spring, Texas Dekaney High School. Young is another fast linebacker at 4.6 and, at 6’0 & 200 pounds, has good size. Rivals lists Young as a two star recruit, but I anticipate this will rise during the year. Young earned second team “All League” honors in District 13-5A as a junior. Currently, in addition to the Miners offer, Young has offers from Northwestern and UT (San Antonio).

Recruiting note: Offensive lineman Joshua Robinson, a Dave Campbell Top 300 recruit, who was offered by the Miners, opted to give a verbal commitment to Louisiana Tech this past weekend.

English update …

It’s been awhile since we’ve mentioned any basketball recruiting information but got a small update on La Verne Lutheran’s Bruce English. The senior to be told me he’s received interest from Washington State and West Virginia. Things should start to get intersting once the end of summer rolls around, but we’ll be sure to let you know the latest with English and teammate Carl “CJ” Cooper.

No Rushing to conclusions …

Danny sent me this note Tuesday afternoon on defensive end James Rushing of Houston Memorial High: “Spoke with him (Tuesday) morning and he has listed UTEP, Air Force and Harvard as official offers.  He’s getting interest from Baylor, La Tech, SMU and Texas A&M. The Aggies are considering him as a preferred walk-on or possible late schollie offer.  UTEP is very much in the mix, and at this point may have a slight edge.  More to come in story to post later this week.

DL’s Thoughts: This is an “under the radar”kid who has great upside.  He’s got college ready height for his position, but needs to add more bulk.  His speed will help on the edges whether he plays a rush end in a 4-3 or a OLB in a 3-4.  Rushing is a smart kid and could pick up schemes quickly.  With a year in UTEP’s training table and workout regiment, he could turn into a star for Patterson’s attacking defense.

Update on Lovett Gibson …

Josh Puga has been working the phones and sent me this note late Tuesday night. Been speaking with Lovett Gibson (WR-Cedar Hill-Dallas, Texas), and he stated that Minnesota is his No. 1 choice at this point, but UTEP is very much in the mix. Gibson is keeping his options open and UTEP is still a possibility. He is being recruited by UTEP wide receivers Guy Holliday and met most of the staff at the UTEP camp held in Dallas.

Puga’s Thoughts: Gibson is contemplating heading to Tulsa for an individual day camp on July 16 or 17.  Nothing new to report on offers, but from what I have been reading online he is hoping to garner a few more in state offers.  Will update you as I get more info and hopefully I can get him on the horn soon.

Ewings update …

Haven’t mentioned the name Trai Ewings in a bit but it looks like his recruiting could be heating up. I spoke to him on Tuesday afternoon and he said that he attended UTEP’s football camp in Austin, Texas. Fortunately the trip wasn’t much since he’s only an hour out of the state capital, living in Kileen, Texas. Also know he’s being recruited by linebacker coach Robert Rodriguez. We’ll have more on the safety/linebacker prospect, who we spoke to awhile ago, when information becomes available.

Silva’s Thoughts: Ewings has great speed and footwork and would be a welcomed addition to the linebacking core or defensive back position. We’ll see how his recruiting picks up after he made the trip to the UTEP football camp.

UTEP’s first offer? …

Found this nugget while perusing the Internet on Tuesday. Corona Santiago’s Simon Connette has received an offer according to this blog post. His statistics show he is always around the ball, averaging 8.5 tackles a game and his highlight tape isn’t too shabby either. Stay tuned for more information on the 5-foot 11 inch defensive back from Corona, Calif.

Silva’s Thoughts: He shows great footwork and more importantly great fundamentals when it comes to hip movement ans staying square before the tackle.

Football runs in the family…

There is no question that Andre Patterson is a talented defensive coordinator and has a deep passion for the game. It’s no surprise that his son A.C. Patterson has followed in his footsteps and is playing football in Las Vegas, NV for Bishop Gorman High School. We talked about him briefly in the first edition of the Scouting Mine and Chris was able to speak with him Tuesday evening. He confirmed he has received an offer from UTEP, amongst other schools. Look for a full article on Patterson for Football Friday.

66 with more information …

I couldn’t hold off on this great information provided to me by avid Miner fan, UTEP66. He’s known for finding recruiting information by scouring the web for anyone even mentioning the word UTEP in an article. Here is what he found, not too shabby if I say so myself.

QB John Cabot (Torrey Pines HS) Encinitas, Calif., 6-foot 4 inches 205 pounds, 4.93

Cabot is big quarterback with excellent leadership skills….needs to work on mechanics and arm strength. John’s 2009 stats were 86/132 1245 yds 11 tds passing & 158 yds rushing with one td – Named Elite MVP Arizona 2010 Summer Camp. He has no offers.

QB Hank Jones (East Chambers HS) Winnie, Texas 6-foot 3 inches 198 pounds, 4.7

Jones is another dual threat prospect with good size and speed for a quarterback. In 2009 his statistics were very impressive with 235/1301 with 21 tds rushing & 78/154 1079 yds & 8 tds passing. Hank is an excellent leaded, with good intelligence and excellent speed. He needs to work on his arm strength, accuracy and overall mechanics. Jones has yet to receive an offer.

RB Samuel Kelley (Stony Point HS) Round Rock, Texas 5-foot 6 inches 160 pounds, 4.4

Kelly is a small running back with great speed and moves. His 2009 stats were 120-1054 13 tds rushing. Even with his big play ability to move up to the next level  Kelley needs to bulk up and get significantly stronger to improve his power running and tackle breaking ability. At this point, he is under the radar with only UTEP currently looking at him. While Samuel has yet to be offered it is hard not to like his big play potential.

Recruiting tidbits: Junior Pomee has moved up to a four star recruit and is now listed as the 10th best tight end prospect in the country. UTEP is recruiting several members of Dave Campbell’s Top 300.

In 66′s opinion: While early in the process, the Miners are in on a significant number of quality players and competing head-to-head with several BCS schools. We are in on several high profile wide receivers, several good quick defensive lineman, some nice size linebackers with good speed and have several fast defensive backs on our radar. For those who can’t get enough recruiting information, UTEP66 also posted a great story on some new UTEP prospects on the Fourth of July.

Notes from previous Scouting Mine editions:

Here’s what 66 sent us last week …

QB Driphus Jackson (Cedar Hill HS) Cedar Hill, TX 6-2/175/4.6

Jackson is quick QB with good speed who is projected as a safety at the college level.  In 2009 Driphus rushed for 338 yds and passed for 1506 yds,  49.5%, 16 tds and 9 interceptions. Drihpus has offers from Boise State, New Mexico, Minnesota, Tulsa  and UTEP.

WR  Lovett Gibson (Cedar Hill HS) Cedar Hill, TX 6-1/185

Gibson is big receiver with good speed.  Last year Lovett caught 14 passes for an 18.57 average and six tds.  Lovett has big play ability and would fit well in the Miners offensive scheme. Currently he has offers from Colorado,  Minnesota and UTEP.

WR Cedric Gilbert (Lancaster HS) Lancaster, TX 6-2/202/4.5 3*’s Ranked 71

Gilbert is tall, solidly built receiver with excellent speed. Last year Cedric caught 23 passes, 12.5 average and three tds.  Cedric is ranked as the 71st receiver nationally and is listed as the 77th top prospect in Texas by Feisty’s recruiting blog. Scouts reports he is attending several camps this summer among them UTEP’s. Currently he has offers  Colorado State, Tulsa and UTEP.

WR Junior Pomee (Rancho Verde HS Moreno Valley, CA 6-3/215/4.6  3*s Ranked 46

Pomee is a big, sure handed receiver with excellent speed for his size. He projects as awide receiver, but may grow into a tight end.  Junior is a good student with a 2.8 GPA. Pomee  played high school ball with Miner safety  sophomore to Richard Spencer. Earlier he listed his top five choices in order as  UCLA,  Florida, USC, UTEP and Boise State.  Reportedly he visit Arizona on June 9th and came away impressed with the Wildcats. Currently, he has offers from Arizona, UCLA, Washington and UTEP.

Pomee’s  recruiting will only heat up … he would be a big catch for the Miners.

DB  Leshundrick Morrison (Bryan Adams HS) Dallas, TX 5-11/180 3*s

Morrison is a talented athelete who primarily played wide receiver in 2009. He is projected at safety at the next level. Leshundrick is a three star player and is  ranked as 44th best prospect in Texas by Feisty’s recruiting blog. Currently he has offers from New Mexico, Baylor, Missouri, Texas Tech and UTEP.

UTEP camp prospects …

We couldn’t have hyped the UTEP summer camps which kicked off June 5 at the Sun Bowl anymore. Well, we finally got some answers, El Paso has talent. So much so that we filled up each of of our respective notepads full of tidbits and other relevant information to get you primed for the start of the recruiting season. Here are a couple more players from Danny Levario’s notebook:

The others that Levario mentioned …

Levario’s Thoughts: At the end of the day, from what I saw, there will probably be 2 or 3 offers to come out of this group: Roberts, Chris Cobos (OT from Lubbock High; 6’3”, 237), and Johnson.  I only include Cobos in this group because the staff kept such a watchful eye on this kid and he seems to have room to grow.  I didn’t get to see him perform in drills so, my guess is purely speculative. (Thanks to Chris for all the photos.)

Milton Roberts looks for a catch during UTEP's 7 on 7 passing camp at Glory Road Field. (Photo: Chris Avila)

Milton Roberts (Chapin HS, El Paso) chases down an Andress HS pass during the UTEP 7-on-7 tournament held June 6 at Glory Road Field. (Image: Chris Avila)

Who wowed Silva? …

FYI: This is an excerpt from a previous article written this week. Danny, Chris and I as we watched some great pass breakups during the 7-on-7 football camps held at the Sun Bowl, Glory Field and University Field. To say that we had a few “wow” moments would be a huge understatement as we watched a total of 20 teams on Sunday and a plethora of individual talents during Saturday’s skill camp.

One player in particular, Milton Roberts of Chapin HS in El Paso, impressed me the most with his speed on the defensive end. He played the safety or rover position for his team and seemed to thrive because of his speed and well-timed leaps for jump balls. This also boded well when he was on the offensive end making the same types of plays for touchdowns. I wouldn’t be shocked if the 6-foot 160 pound athlete could play the cornerback position.

We could almost repeat the same thing for his teammate Brandon Moss who also showed his skills exclusively on the offensive end. He caught a few balls in traffic which made us, as a whole, realize how much toughness and willingness he had to take a hit. Keep in mind, this is a padless 7 on 7 passing camp.

Brandon Moss runs a route during UTEP's 7 on 7 passing camp at Glory Road Field. (Photo: Chris Avila)

Brandon Moss of Chapin HS (Image: Chris Avila)

El Dorado played very well but without their No. 1 prospect in MJ McFarland who was in Austin for another football camp. McFarland, a four-star rated tight end by Rivals.com, has already committed to the Texas Longhorns.

Silva’s Thoughts: The coaching staff has benefitted greatly from putting on these camps locally and around the state of Texas. Head coach Mike Price once told me more than 70 percent of last year’s recruiting class had at least been to one of the Miners’ satellite camps. The season could be interesting just because of the influx of local talent hitting the scene.

As always, keep checking back to www.minerillustrated.com for the latest information regarding basketball, football, the recruiting trail and the rest of UTEP Athletics.

Carlos M. Silva, Jr. may be reached at show@minerillustrated.com.

Scouting Mine Disclaimer: While the information we are reporting is gathered from other news sources, blogs and internet message boards in some cases, we always try and confirm information from either the player mentioned or via official statements from the UTEP Athletic Department.