Fernandez gets major commitment for 2009

USF women's basketball coach Jose Fernandez has landed a major commitment from one of the state's top prospects from the Class of 2009, getting a pledge this week from Jennifer George, a 6-foot-2 rising junior at Orlando's Bishop Moore High.

If it seems far ahead to make such a commitment, George said she knew where she wanted to play college basketball when she was a freshman, visiting USF's campus for the first time.

"It was love at first sight," said George, who averaged 12.5 points and 7.2 rebounds in helping Bishop Moore to a 27-3 record, losing in the Class 4A state semifinals to eventual champ Jensen Beach. "I'm really excited about committing. Everything about (USF) just made me want to play there."

George, who made the commitment Friday while attending a team camp at USF, played her freshman year at Timber Creek, then transferred to Bishop Moore, earning third-team all-state honors. She played center last season and obviously could get taller in the next two years, though coach Sean Brady said she has the athleticism to be a forward in college. By her senior year, it's reasonable that George could be the most highly ranked recruit in USF's history.

Having George on board could help the Bulls land other coveted recruits, with three scholarships available for the Class of 2008. USF is pursuing some of her AAU teammates from the Orlando Comets program, and one of her classmates at Bishop Moore, rising junior guard Lindsey Watson, was a first-team all-state selection.

Comments

[Claudel]

Great grab. Hopefully she makes it on campus. These early recruits always make me wary.

Excellent. Sign of things to come.