Football
A reliable source tells me that Devoe Torrence, the nation's No. 6 athlete who was recently acquitted of rape charges, will join the Zips for fall camp which starts Sunday.
If true, Torrence would be the most touted recruit ever to play for Akron. He had scholarship offers from Ohio State, Michigan and other BCS schools before his legal issues arose. Torrence committed to Ohio State, but never signed a letter of intent in February because the Buckeyes retracted their scholarship offer.
Torrence was charged with having sex with a 12-year-old girl. The judge declared that evidence was lacking, mainly because the victim admitted her tendency to lie.
Torrence, 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, played running back at Massillon Washington High School. Although some colleges felt he'd make a terrific linebacker, Torrence was slated to play running back for the Buckeyes, too.
Running a 4.55 in the 40-yard dash, Torrence is not the fastest or shiftiest rusher around, but it takes a lot of manpower to tackle him. He is a physical runner who sheds tacklers with ease. Rivals.com gives him four stars and calls him the No. 66 player in the nation for the 2008 class. Scout.com is less praising, saying Torrence is only the No. 102 running back.
As I stated, this is from a source that I trust, but I cannot verify the story myself. Given that Torrence joined the team in the past couple days, the 2008 roster does not reflect his addition.
If true, Torrence would join a crowded backfield that includes incumbent (sort of) Dennis Kennedy, University of Miami transfer Andrew Johnson, reliable Alex Allen and short-yardage runner Joe Tuzze. His fastest route to the field might be on defense.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
I'm just not sure what to think about this. We can't afford to have a Maurice Clarett type incident here, but it sure would be nice to have an athlete like that on the team.
I'm just going to have to trust JD here, I guess. After all, he nearly blew up the team trying to get rid of "problem players" before last season, and i can't see him allowing somebody who would cause a big problem on the team after all he had to go through the last time.
"I’m just going to have to trust JD here…"
You guys remember this when Tyree Evans comes to Kent.
WAS THIS KID OFFERED A SCHOLARSHIP OR IS HE A WALKON?
Ask yourself: Is this kid going to add to Akron's graduation rate? Sadly, no. In that case, you've got to question the logic when Akron is already losing schollies due to grad shortfall.
This reeks of desperation on JD's part.
Joe DesJardines,
Why are you so sure he will not graduate? Would he have graduated at OSU or Michigan or other schools? Do you know what JD's graduation rate is?
Flash Fan, I think this guy fits better with your history of puffing QB's:
http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3520053