A slew of elite football recruits announced college commitments at this past weekend's Under Armour All-America Game and U.S. Army All-American Bowl, including a pair headed to BCS National Championship contender Notre Dame, but it was one very large potential Alabama commit who celebrated with a cartwheel.
During pregame festivities, John Burroughs (St. Louis, Mo.) High's Ezekiel Elliott showed off a cartwheel touchdown celebration he hoped to unleash in Saturday's U.S. Army All-American Bowl, so Placer (Calif.) High's Eddie Vanderdoes gave it a shot, too.
Only the former's an Ohio State-bound running back and the latter a defensive tackle, which makes the fact Vanderdoes managed to wheel all 6 feet, 3 inches and 302 pounds of his frame head over heels and land on his feet all the more impressive.
As one of his West squad teammates said, "You are so athletic."
Sadly, neither Elliott nor Vanderdoes got to perform the feat again in their 15-8 loss to the East. Anyhow, at least there's reason to celebrate for the following BCS football commits who announced their college decisions at the Under Armour All-America Game and U.S. Army All-American Bowl:
-- Petal (Miss.) High quarterback Anthony Alford will follow his prep coach Steve Buckley to Southern Mississippi. Buckley joined the collegiate staff as a running backs coach.
-- East Feliciana (Jackson, La.) High athlete Kendell Beckwith (LSU), Columbus (Miami, Fla.) High safety Deon Bush (University of Miami), Jefferson (Tampa, Fla.) High defensive end Tyriq McCord (The U), John Muir (Pasadena, Calif.) High cornerback Kevon Seymour (USC) and Trinity (Euless, Texas) High linebacker Brian Nance (Baylor) all chose to stay relatively close to home.
-- Norland (Miami, Fla.) High linebacker Keith Brown committed to Louisville after previous commitments to Miami and Illinois.
-- Phillip O. Berry (Charlotte, N.C.) High linebacker Nick Dawson selected Louisville rather than joining high school teammate Germone Hopper at Clemson.
-- Island Coast (Cape Coral, Fla.) High safety Jordan Diggs will play at South Carolina, following in the footsteps of his father, former Gamecocks linebacker Shed Diggs.
-- Crest (Shelby, N.C.) High defensive end Jonathan Bullard will join high school teammate Rhaheim Ledbetter at Florida.
-- Central Gwinnett (Lawrenceville, Ga.) High linebacker Trey Johnson joins Urban Meyer's impressive recruiting class at Ohio State.
-- Monrovia (Calif.) High defensive tackle Ellis McCarthy, Oaks Christian (Westlake Village, Calif.) High wide receiver Jordan Payton and Grant (Sacramento, Calif.) High safety Shaq Thompson will become teammates at California.
-- Armwood (Saffner, Fla.) High safety Leon McQuay III will travel across the country to play for Lane Kiffin at USC.
-- Jefferson (Brooklyn, Tenn.) High linebacker Ebenezer Ogundeko became Clemson's 16th commitment, selecting the Tigers over Syracuse.
-- Heritage Hall (Oklahoma City, Okla.) running back Barry Sanders Jr. chose Stanford over his Pro Football Hall of Fame dad's alma mater Oklahoma State.
-- A pair of safeties, Mission Viejo (Calif.) High's Max Redfield and Don Bosco (Ramsey, N.J.) Prep's Elijah Shumate, could be the future backfield for potential national champion Notre Dame, selecting the Fighting Irish from a pair of impressive lists of offers.
As for Vanderdoes -- of aforementioned acrobatic video fame -- he decommitted from USC last month and told AL.com over the weekend, "I love Alabama. I have a lot of love for them." If the Tide wins Monday night's BCS National Championship, he might just cartwheel all the way to Tuscaloosa.
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