En route back from his official visit to Lafayette, La., this past weekend, Oxford standout QB Guy Cameron Billups said his the weekend went well.While Billups wasn’t offered a scholarship during the visit, he said the coaching staff has him targeted as the only prep quarterback they want to bring in.
Despite completing 183 of 304 passes for 2,944 yards and 33 touchdowns during his senior season, Billups appears to be in a number crunch with National Signing Day just around the corner.
“(Louisiana-Lafayette) offered me a preferred walk-on,” he said. “They said a scholarship may open up in three weeks or whatever, but right now they have five quarterbacks on scholarship. Three of them will be gone in two years, so it’s not like there’s 800 freshmen. I’m the only high school quarterback they want to bring in, but they just don’t have the scholarship right now.
“They’re trying to put their plan in while using the plan of the other guy (former head coach Rickey Bustle).”
Of the four quarterbacks on UL-L’s roster this season, there were two sophomores, one freshman and junior starter Chris Masson. Add to the mix Terrance Broadway, a dual-threat quarterback that recently transferred to UL-L from Houston.
Broadway, a former 4-star recruit, played as a true freshman for the Cougars this season and is reportedly seeking a hardship waiver so he can play immediately.
Billups has official visits set for Rice next weekend and then both Delta State and Southeastern Louisiana the following weekend.
Like at UL-L, it appears each of the other schools has an abundance of underclassmen quarterbacks.
Billups said like UL-L, Rice is offering a preferred walk-on spot with the possibility of gray-shirting this upcoming season and earning a scholarship in the future.
The Owls currently have one quarterback — two-star dual-threat QB Driphus Jackson — committed to its 2011 signing class according to Rivals.com affiliate OwlSportsWatch.com.
Oxford senior tight end Larry Pettis (10) hauls in a pass.
REAFFIRMED PLEDGES: Joining Billups in Lafayette this weekend were Oxford teammates Larry Pettis and DeShaun McNeal.
Both Pettis and McNeal are verbal pledges of UL-L and said the visit helped reaffirm their commitments.
“It just made me know I’m coming down here,” Pettis said.
Added McNeal: “I liked the coaching staff. They were all excited about the upcoming season. I like the facilities and they’re in the process of making renovations to have even better facilities.”
GROWING IN NUMBER: According to The Daily Advertiser’s Joshua Parrott, the Ragin’ Cajuns’ recruiting class expanded to 16 this weekend with the verbal pledges of defensive tackle Christian Ringo of Jackson, defensive end Chris Prater of Starkville and New Orleans defensive back Sean Thomas.
Check Monday’s Oxford EAGLE for the complete roundup of the Oxford trio’s visit to Lafayette. (January 16, 2011)
