The chase for Pennell

July

One part of research that was a little lost in Tuesday’s Behind the Scenes story is the fact that the recruitment of Ryan Pennell (above) has really exploded in the last three weeks. I wanted to provide a little more detail on Pennell here.

1. Pennell has received nearly a dozen offers already. And they are not from podunk programs. I was told Pennell has received offers from: Wake Forest, Louisville, Michigan, Duke, Jacksonville, Coastal Carolina, High Point, Elon, Winthrop, and Manhattan.

2. LSU is in the mix. And, as I mentioned in the story, the defending national champ has dispatched a key member of its staff to watch the Rye Neck senior-to-be pitch a couple times. All signs point to the Tigers liking him, too.

3. His phone has been busy. Pennell has been besieged by calls since the latest recruiting period began on July 1. It has actually made the process more complicated than he originally anticipated. “It’s pretty overwhelming,” he said.

4. He could end up anywhere. His coach, Joe Mercurio, told me Pennell won’t necessarily end up at the highest-level program available to him. Baseball, of course, is different than basketball or football. Every offer is different. A smaller program may offer him close to a 100 percent scholarship. A larger program may be half as much. As with any star player, don’t read the list of colleges and think any program is out of the picture.

5. Pennell hopes to decide in the next six weeks, but… . As the lefty tries to wrap his mind around the numerous opportunities, the choice grows more and more difficult. Here’s what he said about making a final decision: “I wanted to make a decision by around when school starts, but I don’t want to rush it.”

This entry was posted on Thursday, July 23rd, 2009 at 1:17 pm by Josh Thomson. Print | Email

12 Responses to “The chase for Pennell”

HS BB July 23rd, 2009 at 6:04 pm
Why anyone would want this business aired in public is beyond me. I am pretty sure pennell or his family provided that level of detail, and I don’t blame josh because he’s just doing his job. It’s just unfortunate that something that should be private business ends up as a blog post.
HS BB July 23rd, 2009 at 6:06 pm
Sorry, meant to say I’m pretty sure pennell or his family DID NOT provide that level of detail.
FAN July 23rd, 2009 at 6:54 pm
Clippers Coach has been selling the kids in his org on this blog since the spring. I’m sure he does a good job of selling them to the College Coaches on the phone and at the tourneys, but when you do it here, no College Coach is looking. He’s obviously selling his program. If the Pennells are not offering this level of detail, he should be ashamed. And agree with HS BB, Josh is just doing his job, and well.
TRhit July 23rd, 2009 at 8:16 pm
Great to see Ryan doing so well—-he played with us last fall and was not only an outstanding pitcher but and even mor eoutstanding person from a great family

we look forward to having Ryan back with us this Fall
HRs July 23rd, 2009 at 10:50 pm
Granted the Clipper coach is active and it should be respected. But why is there no mention of his HS coach? Are you essentially saying that Coach Mercurio is head contact with Pennell’s recrutiment? I am not attacking in anyway, I am just curious. I know for a fact that Coach Slater has spoken to several coaches so it seems odd that he was left out of article.

In the end this is great for Pennell and it is a solid job by the Clippers organziation to be so involved.
Management July 25th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
From a High School coaches standpoint, he should be “THE” authority when it comes to a player. He has the backround with the grades, family and sees the player nearly 190 days a year on and off the field.

Second, Coastal Carolina offers an outstanding program and has between 3-6 plaers drafted per year. Not bad for a smaller D 1 school. Go Chants…...........
Josh July 26th, 2009 at 4:12 pm
You might want to contact Ryan Pennell as word is that he has made a decision.
Fan July 26th, 2009 at 5:43 pm
Holding our breath
fan July 26th, 2009 at 8:10 pm
congratulations to pennell in his commitment to Elon. They are very lucky to have him in there program.
class of 10 July 27th, 2009 at 4:33 pm
any word on rosenfield?
Josh Thomson July 27th, 2009 at 4:42 pm
As of our last conversation, Rosenfeld had not made a decision. I’ll let you know when he does.
rawdog July 27th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
I heard that he decided on duke?

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