The early signing window for NCAA schools has passed, and now heading into the new year opens the next wave of recruiting both in the transfer portal and the high school level. The stories of how these athletes chose their destinations are never written the same way, and sometimes home may not be where they expected to be in the earlier phases of their recruiting process. This edition of Blue Hens Recruiting Spotlight covers the stories of two high school seniors that announced their decommitments to schools in late November and are now mulling offers from a selection of schools that includes Delaware. These two members, both recruited from the Orlando region, are defensive lineman Trace Scott and 3-star defensive back Alex Nash. Let's get to hear their stories below.
Trace Scott
(Peyton Stanley)
Timothy Scott III, who goes by Trace due to being the third, is a 6'4", 260-pound defensive lineman from Timber Creek High School in Orlando, Florida. Trace accumulated 167 tackles, 39 tackles for loss, 8 sacks, 36 hurries, 1 interception, and 1 forced fumble as a four-year varsity member and two-time 1st-Team All-Metro Conference selectee. Speaking of what he wanted to focus on heading into his senior season, Scott answered, "I really focused on explosion and playing angry. It allowed for a huge jump in my game and for me to play faster." Standing out on the football field and in the classroom, holding a 4.5 GPA, Trace gained a lot of interest from college programs quickly. From April to June of last year, Scott accumulated 11 reported offers from Ivy League schools (Brown, Columbia), military academies (Army, Air Force), and FCS schools across the Mid Atlantic/New England Regions (Holy Cross, Bucknell, Duquesne, Colgate, Fordham, Colgate, Bryant). After an official visit in Colorado to the Air Force Academy, Scott verbally committed to be a Falcon on June 30th.
On November 20th, almost three weeks following the end of his high school career, Scott announced his decision to decommit from Air Force. Scott told me, "I realized that the military wasn’t for me and that I wasn’t ready for that kind of commitment." After standing out in his senior season with 19 tackles for loss and 3 sacks, more schools nationally took notice. Scott announced offers this fall and winter from South Dakota State, South Dakota, Austin Peay, Mercer, Long Island, Eastern Kentucky, Wofford, and a priority walk-on offer to be a Florida Gator. On his next home, Trace told me, "I'm looking for a school that will develop me as a person and as a player. I’d really like to have a shot at playing at the highest level, and with elite development and a lot of work, I think I have a shot."
Former Delaware defensive lineman coach Sam Daniels called and offered Trace a scholarship on December 8th. Even though the offer came after he reopened his recruitment, the Delaware coaching staff, specifically Special Teams Coordinator/safeties coach Art Link, were in contact with Scott early in his recruiting. "(I) was going to come up to a game last year, but my visit ended up getting canceled due to a hurricane. He was one of the first coaches I got to talk to." Coach Link, a Florida native and stationed to the Florida region for recruiting, had an in-home visit with Trace on December 13th. Since his decommitment, Scott has taken visits with Mercer and FCS's best South Dakota State. Trace and Link have discussed an official visit for January 18th. Announcing his final decision on his school will be soon after. "I’m hoping that Delaware will be my final visit before I make my final decision, so any of the days after that visit."
Alex Nash
(311 Sports)
Alex Nash, a three-star defensive back for Harmony High School in St. Cloud, Florida, is the second Floridian in our third-ever Blue Hen Recruiting Spotlight. Standing at 6'0" and 175 pounds, Alex registered 87 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, 6 interceptions, 3 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, and 23 pass deflections in 28 games through his varsity career as a Longhorn. Nash also made an impact on special teams with 2 kicks returned for touchdowns in 2023. In November 2022, Nash received his first offer from Florida A&M. Last February, he received an offer from MAC's Central Michigan. After a visit to Mount Pleasant in June, Nash verbally committed to be a Chippewa.
Even after his verbal commitment, both Art Link and defensive backs coach Corico Wright remained in contact with Nash. On September 27th, Alex reported an offer from Delaware. "The conversation remained the same... Coach Wright and Coach Link have always been supportive and remained in contact." Nash's relationship with the staff first initiated over the summer when he heard from them while volunteering at a youth football camp. "It was really cool to be able to share that experience with the younger kids I was coaching," he added. On November 29th, one day after Delaware announced its move to Conference USA and FBS, Nash announced his decommitment from Central Michigan. Nash told me, "After discussing my recruitment options with my family, I decided to move in a different direction from CMU." Following his decommitment, Nash also received an opportunity to play in Tampa at South Florida.
A day before Coach Link visited Scott, he was down the road at Harmony to visit Nash. During their visit, they finalized a trip for him to visit Newark January 11th-13th, which will also be his first time on campus. Alex shared, "I will make my final decision after I have the opportunity to make my official visit to the University of Delaware in January." A nickname given to him a while ago, Nash holds the nickname "Seatbelt". "I don't honestly remember who initially gave me that nickname, but it's from playing lockdown defense and keeping receivers strapped."
With visits set up across the next couple weeks, Delaware hopes to gain commitments from both Scott and Nash, who ironically go to school only 33 miles apart. The program has recently dived back into the Florida high school recruiting market under head coach Ryan Carty, who added wide receiver Ja'Carree Kelly in last year's freshman class. The next college football signing day will take place on Wednesday, February 7th. By this date, both Scott and Nash are expected to announce their commitments. Scott and Nash, potentially joining defensive lineman Kaeden Singleton, linebacker Colin Gallagher, and defensive back Meikhi Cuttino in the class of 2024, would be fantastic additions to the defensive side of the ball for next fall and beyond. We wish them safe travels to Newark when they visit and the best of luck in finding the school that best suits their future interests.
Twitter: @SSN_BlueHens
