Park Ridge (Ill.) Maine East senior three star ranked offensive tackle recruit Yaser Al-Awadi (6-foot-8, 295 pounds) is still uncommitted this summer as several of the nation's top recruits have been giving college programs verbal commitments in record numbers. So what's the latest with Al Awadi's recruiting process this summer and what's his next move?
"Recruiting has gotten pretty quiet this summer," Al-Awadi said. "A lot of the top schools who offered me all said they want to wait and see some senior season video of me. It's pretty understandable since I'm still a newcomers to football. All that does is motivate me to keep working hard and to work even harder this summer to have a great senior season."
Al-Awadi has been working out and gearing up for a very important senior season this fall.
"I'm just back to lifting and training and basically working my ass off. I'm very motivated to make it happen when it comes to my recruiting and ending up playing at a high level in college. I'm also getting ready to play on both sides of the football this coming season. I've been working hard with our defensive line coach to learn the defensive line and I'm excited to take on playing on both sides of the football this season."
Has Al Awadi gotten any feedback this summer from college coaches in regards to what improvements they want to see from him this fall?
"The different coaches have been in touch and they already know me, they know my game and they are now watching from a distance to see what improvements I can make this fall. I need to play more aggressive and play thought the whistle. I just need to play meaner and play with more of a chip on my shoulders and just be more aggressive on every snap."
Having the short turnaround from the spring season to the fall turns out to be a positive for Al Awadi.
"It's a good thing for me that we will have a quick turnaround from the spring to the fall football season. I didn't start playing football until my freshman year and it feels like I'm always trying to catch up with the game. I feel that with the short turnaround I can now start to close that gap."
My Take on Yaser Al Awadi's recruiting: Al Awadi no question has all of the physical tools to play college football at the high level, but as mentioned in the update he still is trying to develop his game and catch up from a learning curve. Several Power 5 schools are still in contact with him (Michigan State/Purdue among others) and he's no question a bit of a project at this stage of his process. If Al Awadi can show more upside improvements this fall, look for those schools on the sidelines to step up and eventually offer Al Awadi. The entire COVID issues with football recruiting are also playing a major role here for Al Awadi...as in schools are much less likely to extend a scholarship offer to a kid who's considered a bit more of a project compared to year's past. I can see Al Awadi's process being a later deal but he still has a shot at playing at the high college level. I can also see Al Awadi also consider a post-grad year as well.
"Recruiting has gotten pretty quiet this summer," Al-Awadi said. "A lot of the top schools who offered me all said they want to wait and see some senior season video of me. It's pretty understandable since I'm still a newcomers to football. All that does is motivate me to keep working hard and to work even harder this summer to have a great senior season."
Al-Awadi has been working out and gearing up for a very important senior season this fall.
"I'm just back to lifting and training and basically working my ass off. I'm very motivated to make it happen when it comes to my recruiting and ending up playing at a high level in college. I'm also getting ready to play on both sides of the football this coming season. I've been working hard with our defensive line coach to learn the defensive line and I'm excited to take on playing on both sides of the football this season."
Has Al Awadi gotten any feedback this summer from college coaches in regards to what improvements they want to see from him this fall?
"The different coaches have been in touch and they already know me, they know my game and they are now watching from a distance to see what improvements I can make this fall. I need to play more aggressive and play thought the whistle. I just need to play meaner and play with more of a chip on my shoulders and just be more aggressive on every snap."
Having the short turnaround from the spring season to the fall turns out to be a positive for Al Awadi.
"It's a good thing for me that we will have a quick turnaround from the spring to the fall football season. I didn't start playing football until my freshman year and it feels like I'm always trying to catch up with the game. I feel that with the short turnaround I can now start to close that gap."
My Take on Yaser Al Awadi's recruiting: Al Awadi no question has all of the physical tools to play college football at the high level, but as mentioned in the update he still is trying to develop his game and catch up from a learning curve. Several Power 5 schools are still in contact with him (Michigan State/Purdue among others) and he's no question a bit of a project at this stage of his process. If Al Awadi can show more upside improvements this fall, look for those schools on the sidelines to step up and eventually offer Al Awadi. The entire COVID issues with football recruiting are also playing a major role here for Al Awadi...as in schools are much less likely to extend a scholarship offer to a kid who's considered a bit more of a project compared to year's past. I can see Al Awadi's process being a later deal but he still has a shot at playing at the high college level. I can also see Al Awadi also consider a post-grad year as well.
