DeLand safety Mark Joyce orally commits to USF

[Mama_Bull]

DeLand safety Mark Joyce orally commits to USF

Buddy Collings

Sentinel Staff Writer

July 28, 2009

DeLand safety Mark Joyce orally committed to USF Wednesday, saying he liked the idea of playing college ball close to home at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.

"The campus is beautiful and the coaches are amazing," Joyce said of USF. "They need safeties and I'll be a pretty good fit for that team."

The 6-foot, 205-pound senior is best known for his range and ability to hit on defense, but he also figures to play some on the offensive side of the field for DeLand this season. As a junior he was a Class 6A state track & field qualifier in both the 110-meter high hurdles and the 4x100 relay.

Joyce attended the Ole Miss camp over the weekend and also had gone to Miami to check out FIU this summer. According to Kevin Pettis, DeLand's coach, he had offers from those schools along with Texas Tech, Wisconsin and Georgia Tech.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/recruiting/orl-rec-mark-joyce-deland-usf-07282009,0,7146886.story

Welcome aboard.

[Mama_Bull]

Scout has him ranked three-stars #30 as an OLB.

http://recruiting.scout.com/a.z?s=73&p=8&c=1&nid=4376498

[Mama_Bull]

Rival also ranks him with three stars (5.6) as #58 Safety.

http://georgiatech.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?pr_key=98057

[gobulls83]

Sounds like a solid prospect. Think he'll be a safety at USF?

[Mama_Bull]

Sounds like a solid prospect. Think he'll be a safety at USF?

He'll  most likely be a safety.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fw9rEvxG5ok

[Mama_Bull]

[Jewbull]

Watching ESPNU it just scrolled across the bottom

[bulls96go]

what a difference 3 yrs makes...2005 we were hoping and praying for 3 star recruits to come here and we took flyers on the at risk ones.

Now we are getting commits from 3 stars guy's 6 months in advance and taking flyers on 4star guys.

in the Next 3 years we will be getting academically eligible 4star recruits to commit early and will have to take fewer chances.

CJL slow (meteoric) steady progress.

[Mama_Bull]

"I was talking about it with my coach and my parents a week and a half before I visited the school," said Joyce, who visited USF on Tuesday. "The coaching staff . . . I'm from the country and I fit in really good with them. It feels like I'm home when I'm with them."

Joyce, a state qualifier in multiple track events, also had offers from Ole Miss, Texas Tech and Florida International.

The 6-foot, 205-pounder registered 62 tackles -- seven for loss -- and two interceptions last season while playing exclusively on defense, but this year the speedster will play on both sides of the ball.

"They (recruited) him as a safety, but we pretty much play him everywhere," DeLand coach Kevin Pettis said. "He's going to get to carry the football on offense."

http://www.news-journalonline.com/NewsJournalOnline/Sports/Headlines/sptFBC01073009.htm

[Bullpride08]

what a difference 3 yrs makes...2005 we were hoping and praying for 3 star recruits to come here and we took flyers on the at risk ones.

Now we are getting commits from 3 stars guy's 6 months in advance and taking flyers on 4star guys.

in the Next 3 years we will be getting academically eligible 4star recruits to commit early and will have to take fewer chances.

CJL slow (meteoric) steady progress.

Well don't hold out any hope for four star LB's this year....I like this kid just thought we might have jumped the gun on him a bit early.  I think he would have committed to us later in the year if other options were exhausted (and maybe they are already).  He wanted to stay in-state and even if he was committed elsewhere this is a kid we could have plucked away later.  A good talent but he compares to Woodley Cadet who UCF took and is a three star.