Report- Uconn adds "4 star" transfer from FLA St.

[the Blades]

EJ Levenberry is transferring to UConn

Levenberry, had 60 tackles in his two seasons with the Seminoles and played as a true freshman. He was recruited by
UConn head coach Bob Diaco, (at Notre Dame) and defensive coordinator Anthony Poindexter and linebackers coach
Vincent Brown when they were with Virginia. He is set to enroll at UConn in June.

Levenberry said UConn plans to file an appeal with the NCAA on his behalf to waive the requirement for him to sit out a year
because he transferred from one Division I program to another. If the appeal is denied, Levenberry will redshirt in the fall. He
will have 2 years of playing eligibility remaining.

6-3/246...... LB.....Woodbridge, VA ( C. D. Hylton )
E.J. Levenberry Jr. - Rivals recruiting profile

This post was edited on 3/14 3:20 PM by the Blades

 

[phibetas373]

FSU Profile: http://www.seminoles.com/ViewArticle.dbml?ATCLID=209572997&DB_OEM_ID=32900

2014 Outlook: Seen as a rising star on Florida State's talented
linebacker corps. Virginia native who can make end-to-end plays because of his
great athleticism and speed. Led the Garnet team with eight tackles in the
annual Garnet and Gold spring game. One of FSU's candidates to have a breakout
season if he can follow up on his playmaking abilities shown in
2013.

2013: Impressive true freshman linebacker who made
a major impact in 2013 appearing in 13 games and making one start...intercepted
a pass and returned it 78 yards for a touchdown against Idaho; added two
tackles...led the team and set a new career high with eight tackles, 1.0 TFL and
one pass break-up against NC State...registered four tackles and forced a fumble
against Maryland...tied for second on the team with six tackles at Wake
Forest...added six tackles against Syracuse…had five special teams tackles as a
member of the kickoff coverage unit…ranked ninth on the team with 39 tackles,
including 1.0 tackles for loss.

PERSONAL: Was a force
during his senior season in high school, registering 172 tackles (129 solo, 23
for loss), 14 deflections and 24 quarterback hurries as the Bulldogs posted a
10-3 record and reached the Virginia Group AAA Division 6 state
semifinals...Levenberry registered 20 tackles, including 15 solo stops in his
final game for the Bulldogs...C.D. Hylton was 21-4 over the course of
Levenberry's two seasons as a star linebacker...a two-time Washington Post
All-Met selection...physical and explosive player who has outstanding football
instincts...held a 5-star rating from PrepStar and 4-star rankings from ESPN,
Rivals, Scout and 247...consensus top 12 linebacker in the nation among
recruiting sites...participated in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl...played his
first two seasons of high school football at perennial Washington, D.C. area
power DeMatha Catholic...held offers from 20 major programs, ultimately choosing
FSU over Tennessee, Alabama and Oklahoma.

 

[oldandintheway]

Hey Blades, educate me here please. What did I miss regarding UCONN's request for a waiver for EJ Levenberry not to sit out "because he's transferring form one D1 program to another", isn't that the reason why an athlete must sit out a year, because in fact he is transferring from one D1 program to another? Is it because he is enrolled in a JC for this current semester? Thanks, Old & In the Way.

 

[the Blades]

Good question.... who really knows what the NCAA thinks or does, they have been so inconsistent with the rules, depending on what school and what player....Graham Stewart would have been the test case... as we know he was a similar 4 star LB who came in from the Florida Gators,( though he did have the closer to home/family angle) but then Uconn never completed his waiver request because he missed the year with an injury, if I recall. I will try to read up more about the JC angle but I usually go with the Uconn rule. If it's anything that benefits Uconn the NCAA is against it.

Also this : "Florida coach Will Muschamp has written a letter to the NCAA urging Stewart be given the waiver that would allow him to play immediately.".....Don't know if EJ has the same blessing from FSU or if it will even matter.

But here's the list: NCAA Transfer Exceptions. College Transfer Waivers.

 

[oldandintheway]

Blades, Thanks.

 

[the Blades]

From the Courant's:

Desmond Conner 6 hours ago
" Diaco said he's not sure if Levenberry can get eligible this year..... but I'm hearing it's a longshot "

 

[CT Nole Fan]

As a Florida State fan and a UConn season ticket holder this delighted me to hear.

My opinion on Levenberry was that he had outstanding talent, but never quite fit in on the Noles roster. He was a little bigger and slower than most FSU linebackers. But not quite as much as someone like Jeff Luc (who ended up at Cincy). That said, his transfer was a surprise, as he was supposed to challenge for a starting role next year. This guy wasn't a bust at FSU and did play and did ok when he got his chance.

A great add for UConn and I believe him to be the among the most (if not the most) talented players on the roster now.

When he was recruited out of high school EJ had a top 30 ranking in the first rankings for his class, but slid down a little in subsequent rankings.

 

[CT Nole Fan]

As a Florida State fan and a UConn season ticket holder this delighted me to hear.

My opinion on Levenberry was that he had outstanding talent, but never quite fit in on the Noles roster. He was a little bigger and slower than most FSU linebackers. But not quite as much as someone like Jeff Luc (who ended up at Cincy). That said, his transfer was a surprise, as he was supposed to challenge for a starting role next year. This guy wasn't a bust at FSU and did play and did ok when he got his chance.

A great add for UConn and I believe him to be the among the most (if not the most) talented players on the roster now.

When he was recruited out of high school EJ had a top 30 ranking in the first rankings for his class, but slid down a little in subsequent rankings.

I got some more info on why he transferred over on the Warchant board, directly from the guy who runs the site and is privy to the information:

Was told that he simply wasn't a good fit for the defensive scheme FSU runs. Not fast enough sideline to sideline and below average in space when you have to cover TEs and RBs. Not saying he's a bad LB, just not the right fit for what FSU requires of its LBs. He's a perfect Big10 LB and I'm sure will do well at UConn.

 

[the Blades]

Makes sense....At 6-3/246 he seems like the bigger LB/DE hybrids like Ormsby or Carrezola that Diaco uses in his version of the 3/4.

 

[ktuck911]

If he can help set the edge for us on D, rush the passer better than anybody we have now, and drop back in coverage when need be, we've got ourselves a gem. Can't wait for him to suit up.

 

[the Blades]

Unfortunately he'll have to sit a year:
Matt Schonvisky ‏@MattSchonvisky 21m21 minutes ago
BREAKING: Levenberry, a 4-star transfer from Florida State is ineligible for '15 for @UConnFootball per NCAA legislation passed in offseason

Jim Fuller ‏@NHRJimFuller 9m9 minutes ago
there was a slim chance he could have been eligible this year because he transferred in from a JUCO

Matt Schonvisky ‏@MattSchonvisky 28m28 minutes ago
Summer Session 1 @UConn begins today & some newcomers are on campus for @UConnFootball including QB @grsa94 & LB EJ Levenberry #BleedBlue

 

[phibetas373]

I got some more info on why he transferred over on the Warchant board, directly from the guy who runs the site and is privy to the information:

Was told that he simply wasn't a good fit for the defensive scheme FSU runs. Not fast enough sideline to sideline and below average in space when you have to cover TEs and RBs. Not saying he's a bad LB, just not the right fit for what FSU requires of its LBs. He's a perfect Big10 LB and I'm sure will do well at UConn.

Whomever your source is I would not use him as a source and quote that person as fact if you want to be know as a credible person. The facts are he was never told he was not a good fit for their defensive scheme. The facts are Jimbo Fisher did not want him to leave the program and told him he would be the starter. The facts are FSU recruited EJ since he was in 9th grade so to say they did not know what they were getting or he was not a good fit for the defensive scheme is totally false. The facts are the players and the coach who recruited EJ all knew he was getting a raw deal from a coach on staff.

The facts are if you look at his playing time and contribution to the team as a freshman where he had 39 tackles vs. his time as a sophomore you should be able to read between the lines and conclude there was a story behind the story and it had nothing to do with his ability. He runs a 4.7, 40 and the facts are that is the number that NFL scouts want an inside linebacker to hit for a 1st round draft grade. Therefore, to say he was not fast enough sideline to sideline is nothing more than spin. Look at his high school highlight film and say he was not fast enough sideline to sideline. The players that he was chasing down played for Ocean Lakes which is one of the top schools in the state of Virginia avery year. Look at his interception for a TD at FSU. He was fast enough to score the TD for them as a freshman.

Just as you stated, your friend works for Warchant. Obviously, they want to put their spin on it that he was to slow or he was not wanted because no one would leave FSU. The facts are UCONN has a better strength coach, better food, a better linebacker coach and better academic support than the mighty FSU.

If you did your homework and not spread rumor/spin on this site you probably would have discovered that EJ played under now Georgia defensive coordinator Pruitt as a true freshman. He did not play as a sophomore due to some behind the scenes politics after Pruitt left. Pruitt left FSU for the same reasons EJ left for and headed to Georgia after one year at FSU. Now ask your friend at Warchant why Pruit would take a lateral position after a National Championship. I bet he will come up with a story also. In both cases look at EJ's film as a freshman and first 2 games as a sophomore and look at how the FSU defense played without Pruitt at the helm.

The facts are a request was made to Jimbo Fisher to write a letter on EJ's behalf to the NCAA stating that EJ would not have played at FSU and Jimbo declined because his position was that EJ was going to be the starter and he could not lie in the letter to the NCAA. This letter was necessary because TCU, Oregon and Georgia wanted EJ to be eligible immediately.

 

[the Blades]

phibetas373..... thanks for your input to the board, there is certainly more than one side to any story and then the truth. You seem very informed and I'll be glad to see EJ
suiting up for the Huskies when it happens. Also good to hear your view on the support he will have in the Uconn program and hope it helps him land in the same place( first round) that another Uconn player Byron Jones did this year, when it becomes EJ's NFL draft time.

 

[miket007]

Good choice coming to UCONN, they've been putting plenty of linebackers in the nfl lately.