Jurrell Casey, the 6-foot-2, 282-pound three-star defensive tackle from Poly High School in Long Beach, Calif., will be making his announcement later today (Jan. 30) during High School Spotlight on Fox Sports Net. Although the show tapes on Wednesday, Jan. 30 at 4:30 pm, it won't air until Thursday, Jan. 31.
Casey, Scout.com's No. 32 defensive tackle, and his teammate (four-star safety and top 100 prospect) Vaughn Telemaque are both scheduled to make their announcements on the show.
By all indications, it seems as though Casey will be making his announcement in favor of USC, his favorite school throughout the recruiting process. In fact, at one point Casey said there was an "80 percent" chance he'd choose the Trojans.
"I've got my mind made up," Casey said. "Everyone will know after the show. I'm more worried about Vaughn because he says he still doesn't know. We've been talking about playing together in college forever and it would be great if we went to school together. I know he likes Miami (in addition to USC and Oregon) too, so we'll see. I'll be happy for him wherever he chooses. I just really hope he figures it out before we get to the studio."
Casey and Telemaque helped lead the Jackrabbits to a 13-1 record and the Div. 1 Pac-5 championship. "It's really helpful having Vaughn there going through the same stuff as me," he said. "We can compare notes and it's just a relief because I never feel like I'm alone in this."
While Casey admits he enjoyed the recruiting process, he says he's looking forward to putting it behind him. "I had a fun time," he said. "I really loved getting to go on visits and seeing places I normal wouldn't see. Really the worst part about the visits was all the walking we had to do, but it was still a great time. I liked recruiting, but now it's time to move on."
"They (USC) are still my top choice," he said. "They've got a great shot, but I really like Oregon a lot too. Those two are closer than I thought they'd be."
Casey visited the Trojans on Jan. 18 and says they are recruiting him the hardest. "It was a fun trip," he said. "I had fun with all the players and the coaches and I liked getting to know them better. I've been there before so I'm pretty comfortable with everything.
"I really like the players they have and I have a good relationship with everyone there, even the guys they are recruiting this year," he said. "I'm friends with a lot of the guys committed to go there.
"I love how the coaches tell you that if you put in the time and hard work you'll get a chance to play," he said. "They don't let guys slack off and really expect a lot from you."
He visited Oregon on Nov. 3 and Ole Miss on Oct. 6. "I like Oregon a lot too," he said. "They have a good program and had a good run this season. If Dennis Dixon didn't get injured they could have been in the national championship. I think they can do it again too."
Casey seemed surprised that none of the Oregon coaches came to visit him during January. "USC has really been the only school to come on an in-home visit this month. They are really showing me how much they want me."
Early in the season Casey also considered Nebraska and Michigan. "I lost interest in Nebraska early and never really considered them," he said. "I was going to visit Michigan, but they filled their spots and didn't have an offer for me anymore."
A potential hiccup for Casey is his academics. He reports a 2.7 core GPA and got a 13 ACT twice. He took the SAT on Jan. 26. "I hope I did real good on the SAT," he said. "I need something over 800. I think I can do it and the coaches think I can too. They have faith I'll make it."