Sam Carchidi: Coach McBride often scores big with recruiters

To high school football fans, the year can be divided into three sections:

The regular season.

The NJSIAA playoffs.

The recruiting season.

Winslow Township coach Mike McBride usually has his teams among the elite in the first two parts of the season. And when it comes to the third part, no one outworks McBride.

No coach does more for his players in helping them get connections to play on the collegiate level.

It happened when McBride coached at Woodrow Wilson, which consistently sent players to Division I schools.

And it's happening at Winslow, where McBride just completed his second season coaching at the Camden County school.

When players sign binding letters of intent Feb. 6, don't be surprised if Winslow produces more major-college signings than any South Jersey team.

It appears that Division I schools will sign five Winslow players: defensive back Reuben Johnson; Tyrone McBride, the coach's nephew and a player who is being recruited as a linebacker; wide receivers Brandon Jones and Damon Julian; and running back/linebacker Keith Robinson.

"It's been hectic getting all the visits organized, but at the same time, it's a nice feeling," Mike McBride said.

Johnson is being pursued by Marshall, Toledo, East Carolina and Cincinnati, while McBride is being recruited by Massachusetts, Marshall, East Carolina and Cincinnati. Jones probably will end up at Rutgers, Virginia, Villanova or Toledo. Talley is high on the recruiting lists of Toledo, New Hampshire and Rhode Island, and Robinson is considering William & Mary, Rhode Island and New Hampshire.

As you can see, some of the players may be teammates in college. Wherever they end up, they should be thankful for the long hours McBride has spent making sure they aren't overlooked in the unpredictable and sometimes political recruiting game.

It's political because college coaches sometimes feel obligated to recruit players from their own areas; if it's a close decision between offering a scholarship to a local player or an out-of-area player, many college coaches will go the safe route and choose the local standout.

To his credit, McBride has worked hard to make sure his players get a fair shake.

Marcus Witherspoon, the talented Holy Spirit linebacker, is still leaning toward attending Michigan, according to Spirit coach Bill Walsh. "But he wants to explore other options," Walsh said.

Witherspoon committed to Michigan before the season, but he has started visiting other colleges because of Michigan's recent coaching change. Witherspoon visited Tennessee over the weekend.

Holy Spirit's William Washington, The Inquirer's South Jersey offensive player of the year, visited Lackawanna Junior College with Walsh last weekend. "He's still undecided, but it's a pretty good option for him," Walsh said. "Their starting tailback from last year is going to Clemson, and [Washington] could be a good fit."

Academically, Washington will not qualify for a Division I scholarship, Walsh said, so he will go the junior-college route for two years.

Lackawanna, located in Scranton, "is only three hours away, and they had 20 I-A and I-AA offers [for their players] this year, so it's a pretty good option," Walsh said.

Holy Spirit went 12-0 and finished No. 1 in The Inquirer's South Jersey rankings, and it has four other players - offensive linemen Pat Schell and Will Martin, running back Nick Hall, and linebacker Chris Mancuso - who are being recruited.

Schell and Martin are being pursued by Maine and Wagner, while Mancuso has drawn interest from Holy Cross and Rhode Island.

West Chester, Rhode Island, East Stroudsburg and Bloomsburg are in the running for the fleet Hall, who is the son of Dino Hall, the 5-foot-7 dynamo who starred at Glassboro State (now Rowan University) and became one of the NFL's premier return men with the Cleveland Browns.