Jon Embree and the Colorado Buffaloes coaching staff landed three new verbal commits in what became a very busy weekend for CU recruiting. Colorado offensive lineman John Lisella joins California wide receivers Elijah Dunston and Bryce Bobo (such a great name) as the eighth, ninth and tenth members of the Buffs' 2013 class.
The additions were news to everyone, even the multiple recruiting sites that cover the Buffaloes didn't see this coming. All three players are, at least for now, under the radar type guys with just a few offers under their belts. That certainly doesn't mean that any, or all, of the three won't rise up the charts during their senior high school seasons, but it has caused some to call into question what the Buffaloes staff has seen that many other teams have not.
The rise of the recruiting services and their arbitrary rating systems have changed the way recruiting is viewed, as fans want to see their coaches bring in high-profile, highly ranked guys. But Jon Embree has always said that he was going to bring in high-character kids that buy into his system and the way that he is going to run this program. The class he's bringing in certainly fits that model, and any time you start getting too caught up in the number of stars a commit has, go ahead and revisit the running backs that came in with the class of 2008.
The Buffaloes now have 10 commits in June for the first time since Rivals started tracking recruiting in 2002. Last season, CU didn't receive their tenth commit until late January. Let's take a quick look at the new Buffaloes.
Bryce Bobo, wide receiver: Bobo is a receiver from Covina, California who committed without having ever visited Boulder. He is a taller, but lanky target, coming in at 6'3, 175 lbs. Last year, he was a first-team all-league selection with 53 catches for 856 yards. He had received an offer from Idaho and had begun receiving interest from Utah, Wisconsin, Wyoming, San Diego State, FIU, and Nevada.
Elijah Dunston, wide receiver: Elijah is a 6'1 burner out of West Hills, California. He has been clocked with a 4.43 40-yard dash and participated in the state finals in the 4x1 and 4x4 relays this year. Last football season Dunston finished with 50 receptions for 641 yards and 11 touchdowns, good for an average of over 12 yards per catch. Dunston had offers from Wyoming and New Mexico and was receiving attention from Oregon State and Minnesota.
John Lisella, offensive tackle: Lisella is a Boston native who now plays at Columbine high school in Littleton. He had been thinking of heading back east to play ball, but was swayed when Coach J.D. Brookhart convinced him to visit Boulder. Lisella plays both left tackle and defensive line for Columbine. He was a first-team all-conference and academic first-team all-state selection in his junior season. He held offers from Air Force and New Mexico State and had begun drawing interest from Connecticut, CSU, Michigan, Princeton, Notre Dame, UCLA and Oregon State.