New Jersey lineman commits to Bulls

When USF coach Jim Leavitt chose John Hendrick to join his staff as defensive line coach, he said Hendrick would lead the Bulls' recruiting efforts in his native New Jersey. We've unearthed the first commitment from that rare northern push, as Zack Chibane, a 6-foot-4, 285-pound offensive lineman from Paramus, N.J., said Thursday that has committed to play for the Bulls.

"I really liked the area -- I've been going down there all my life," Chibane said. "Once I met the coaches and saw the facilities, it really put it over the top."

Chibane (pronounced shuh-BAIN) committed to the Bulls in September, and said he continues to talk to Hendrick every week or two. He knows the Tampa area well because he has a grandmother who lives in St. Petersburg. He's a two-way tackle at Paramus, with 30-plus tackles on defense, but the Bulls recruited him as an offensive linemen, most likely at guard, he said.

Chibane is another case of USF getting out in front on a recruit as the first BCS program to offer him a scholarship -- he's drawn interest from Big East rivals Connecticut, Syracuse and nearby Rutgers, as well as Maryland, but his only other formal scholarship offer is from Temple, where his brother is a student.

Chibane would be USF's second recruit from New Jersey in the Big East era, following cornerback Jerome Murphy, who is from Elizabeth. Paramus coach Dan Sabella said Chibane has been a key in his team's push for the state playoffs, which start next week.

"He's a tremendous pass blocker, with really long arms, and he's agile for his size," said Sabella, noting that Chibane is also on Paramus' wrestling team as a heavyweight. "This kid is still growing, too, so he has a chance to be a good 315 pounds."

With four seniors starting on the offensive line, the Bulls have made that a key position in their recruiting efforts, with commitments already from Wesley Chapel's Kamran Joyer, Tallahassee's John McGhin and to some extent, Gainesville's Kendall Kelly. Chibane is in good shape academically, with a score of 1100 (out of 1600) on the SAT, he said.

Comments

[Paul Wall]

Too early to tell.

[DELdaBULL]

Seems like a reach to me. Hope he turns out like the offensive line equivalent of Selvie.

[VOR]

Found this great interactive site that shows where the NFL talent comes from.

Can break it down by position & state.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/draft-history-graphic.htm

[JoeB]

Hope he brings some Jersey toughness to our O Line. Something we are in desperate need of.

[Norb]

We have lots of intrastate bridges, I like the idea of starting to build interstate bridges. NJ does have a good deal of talent, a lot of it ends up going over to Penn State, which is why Rutgers had issues getting them. Maybe this guy pans out, maybe not, but drafting a lower profile player from a school does more for your image, from that school's perspective, than drafting a higher profile guy.

Just remember Grothe & Selvie weren't highly recruited by other BCS schools.

[Dave W]

I should have added- I don't see the point in recruiting New Jersey, unless we're looking a superstar. There are probably 15 similar guys in Florida, and taking them could help build bridges in Florida high schools, which are far more important than NJ high schools.

[Dave W]

Well, I just don't see the point in going to New Jersey for a player that certainly isn't anything special compared to Florida players. Without a BCS offer, I doubt this guy is the immediate impact player we need. The other problem is he apparently is guard. We need real offensive tackles, not guards.

I don't care about recruiting stars; I've made that point frequently enough. My immediate reaction to a guy is based on his BCS offers. If a guy has none at this point in his senior season and plays at a reasonably high profile high school, I have to question it. Why hasn't Rutgers offered him? There has to be a reason.

We can afford to look for sleepers at a few positions, like LB and RB. But this year, two of our most touted recruits are RBs.

I think we need a JUCO offensive tackle, another WR (Difton would be nice. Saw Gabe Holmes picked Purdue), another LB (the kid from Plant City), a DE, a safety, and Eugene Smith. No need for more RBs, TEs, or OGs.

[jarred]

JR is a buddy of mine, i wasnt bein serious, but thanks for lookin out for him i guess

[Norb]

A lot of the better players in that area of NJ end up going to private HS (Don Bosco Prep, St Joes, Bergen Catholic) so I don't think the public area high schools are as closely watched. You have a better chance of getting under the radar talent out of the public high schools.

[G.A.]

Richard, Rivals has him as a two-star recruit; Scout doesn't rate him, but then again, they have him as "Zach."

His only other scholarship offer is Temple, so it's a case where USF sees talent that other BCS programs much closer to Paramus haven't deemed worth a scholarship. That doesn't mean he won't be a college star, it just means he's not widely respected yet within the conventions of recruiting sites.

[Richard Todd]

Is he considered a big pick-up or more of another project ?

[Blake]

The more quality O-linemen, the better. Now, if we can only get rid of Simmons as the coach, I think we might be making a move in the right direction.

[Tom]

I would like to see us go after some 4 star O-lineman. Our senior O-line isn't even that good this year. Next year Grothe is going to have to run for his life.

He asked a simple question. I was wondering the same thing. Go back to subway :P

[jarred]

jesus JR, get off Greg's back, u think u r some kind of expert on the matter? i didnt think so

[DELdaBULL]

Cool. Let's win some Big East games.

[G.A.]

Kelly's most recent comments to USFnation.com would have him solidly committed to USF, saying he's not going to visit elsewhere. At the same time, he's made previous comments since committing to USF that suggested he's willing to listen to other schools should offers come. Some sites are counting him as a commitment, others aren't.

[JR]

Greg, why do you say "to some extent" Kendall Kelly? He has said he is a SOLID commit to USF and has no plans for any other visits to other colleges. Just wondering...

[Windbane]

Cool, I hope we can piece together a line next year.