Wisconsin’s 2013 class is getting fuller by the week, or at least that’s how it seems, but one player that’s still out there and a Wisconsin target had perhaps one of the best weeks at the highly regarded “The Opening”, which is a gathering of a lot of the top prospects around the country. That player is offensive lineman Scott Quessenberry.
He had the 2nd best SPARQ testing rating of any offensive lineman, admittedly in a testing system that’s not all that friendly to the big guys. He clocked a 5.10sec 40yard dash time and more according to this report from 247sports. Quessenberry finished off the event by being named one of the Top 5 offensive lineman at the camp and got to go head-to-head with some of the top D-Line prospects during the showcase of the event on ESPNU on Saturday.
His showing there even earned him an invite to the 2013 Under Armour All-American game (insider alert) according Erick McKinney, ESPN’s West Coast Recruiting Coordinator.
On the unfortunate side of things, it appears he is no longer keen on the Badgers, narrowing his list after The Opening, telling multiple sources that it’s really between Cal, Nebraska, and Washington for his commitment.
Also at The Opening was 2014 offensive line target Ross Pierschbacher. We spoke with him earlier today to get his thoughts on the event and what’s been going on with his recruitment over the summer.
Coming directly off The Opening, where he was one of the younger offensive lineman there, Pierschbacher got an idea of just where he stands in his development.
“What I’ve learned the most is just taking a step back and just seeing how good these guys really are,” he said. “Kind of opened my eyes up. I came in thinking I was pretty strong and whatnot and thought, ‘whoa these guys are way ahead of me’, but they also have a year on me, but just knowing I have to work at it now and putting it in perspective.”
Pierschbacher is up to 280lbs after this past weekend, but says his usual weight is about 275lbs and was up due to the food being fed to them at The Opening.
Currently he doesn’t have a specific top ten or top five list of schools and is taking more of a wait
and see approach until the offers stop coming in during the fall to really evaluate where he is at. Currently he boasts offers from the likes of Iowa, Iowa State, Nebraska, and Northern Iowa in addition to Wisconsin obviously.
“I don’t really see myself being a ‘big time’ player, so I kind of like to keep to myself and let it [the recruiting world] work itself out.” said Pierschbacher in regards to how things are playing out in his recruitment.
Wisconsin is one of the schools hardest after him and according to Pierschbacher playing at a school in the Big Ten is something he’s looking for in the recruitment process.
“I like the style of the Big Ten and I kind of see myself as a Big Ten lineman, just my style of play compared to theirs (Iowa State and the Big 12),” he said.
He attended Wisconsin’s one day camp in June and visited the Spring football game as well already this year.
He’s taken those opportunities to build relationships, stating “For me it’s just getting to know coach Markuson and if I could see myself there.”
“I really like the lake and State Street, it’s probably the coolest campus I’ve seen so far.” Pierschbacher said of Madison. “There’s so much to do and so alive all the time, I really enjoyed that.”
As for what’s driving his decision making process Wisconsin may have an advantage as he’s looking at the tradition and history at the offensive line position as an important piece to his process.
“Just how they send people to the NFL,” said Pierschbacher about what he’s looking for. “There’s a difference between getting better and getting ‘more’ better. I’m definitely keeping that in mind and that’s a big part of my decision.”
Despite his interest in staying inside the Midwest he’s apparently not limiting things completely to that region as he stated to us today that he’s considering taking some official visits to schools on the coasts and down south this fall. He named USC, Stanford, Alabama, and LSU as places he’d like to visit depending on offers.
As for expecting a decision, don’t expect it to come anytime soon.
“I guess we’ll see when the offers stop coming and see if I’m comfortable with my decision then. Then if not, I’m fine with going into Senior year and taking more visits.” said Pierschbacher. “The earliest would be this time next year.”
Are you enjoying the new emphasis on more recruiting news and notes? Something we could improve on or you’d like to see? Send us your feedback by leaving a comment or by hitting us up on Facebook and Twitter. Remember we are here to serve your needs and wants, so don’t be shy!
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
