Alex Anzalone recruiting updates: On to Florida

Anzalone was once an Ohio State commit, but broke it off after SB Nation’s Land-Grant Holy Land revealed a registered sex offender had been granted access to Buckeyes recruits, including Anzalone. In July, he committed to Notre Dame over Penn State and Florida, but decommitted on Jan. 10, pledged to the Gators that same day, and enrolled in school on Jan. 11. He’s thus reminded us multiple times why you shouldn’t bother recruits on Twitter.

Anzalone gives Will Muschamp’s defense one of the best linebackers in the class of 2013 -- he is considered the second-best player at his position by Rivals and the No. 28 overall prospect in the class. As for how he’ll fit in at Florida, let’s turn to SB Nation’s Alligator Army:

Recruiting in college football is really important. In some respects, it may be the most important part of the whole enterprise. Unfortunately, the world of major college football recruiting can get pretty damn dark at times, making it difficult to follow closely without feeling just a tad bit dirty.

This past week was one of those times, as highly touted linebacker Alex Anzalone decommitted from Notre Dame on Thursday to enroll early at Florida. Before committing to Notre Dame, he spent a few months as an Ohio State commit. When the news hit the internet on Thursday afternoon that Anzalone was jumping ship on the Irish, a whole host of upset fans took to their keyboards to give young Alex a piece of their minds. If you like peering into the darkness, I suggest going back and reading his Twitter mentions.

Pennsylvania high school linebacker Alex Anzalone has de-committed from Notre Dame, and is planning on enrolling early at the University of Florida, according to Irish Illustrated, reportedly in part due to Brian Kelly’s NFL interest.

The Gators have been in pursuit of Anzalone for a long time, so it’s no surprise if he ends up at Florida after his long and winding recruitment. If he does actually enroll early in Gainesville, it’s a big win for Florida, as they’ll be adding a player rated in the top 50 prospects in the country. The Wyomissing, Pa., native is a consensus four-star prospect, and listed in the top five of inside linebacker prospects.

Alex Anzalone discusses his decision to camp at Florida’s Friday Night Lights event Friday before the start of ESPN’s Gridiron Kings.

Anzalone is still extremely solid to Notre Dame. He has no plans to take official visits to schools other than Notre Dame.

Alex Anzalone, a top linebacker recruit, committed to Notre Dame Sunday at Nike’s premier camp, The Opening. Anzalone stars for Wyomissing (Pa.) High School. He stands 6’3 and checks in at 225 pounds. Anzalone chose the Fighting Irish over offers from Penn State and Florida, as well as Ohio State, Alabama and a host of others.

Anzalone was committed to the Ohio State Buckeyes for a time, but he was then involved in a bizarre series of events including a sex offender reaching out to Anzalone and meeting him during a visit for the Ohio State spring game. He subsequently decommitted.

Charles Eric Waugh spoke for the first time since his arrest in a 75-minute interview published Sunday by the Columbus Post-Dispatch. Waugh faces up to 10 years in prison for failing to comply with the terms of his state’s sex offender registry. In his comments, Waugh explained his actions and apologized to Ohio State players and coaches.

Several photos of Waugh and teenage Ohio State recruits surfaced on the Internet, and his obsession with the Buckeyes was well-documented in an investigation by the SB Nation blog Land-Grant Holy Land. He tweeted what were meant to be inspirational messages to 129 former, current and potential players in April. The act was unsettling to some, though Waugh said he was simply trying to be encouraging.

Coach Urban Meyer can’t directly talk about a recruit by name, as that’s a NCAA violation, but he’s now broadly addressed the topic.

According to reports, Anzalone is still considering the Buckeyes.

Your creepy recruiting story of the day comes from a kid in Alex Anzalone who has unfortunately already been at the center of one too many of these stories in this 2013 recruiting cycle.

As you can read in this Alex Anzalone story stream, the Pennsylvania linebacker was at one time committed to Ohio State, but decommitted after contact with a crazy Ohio State fan who also happened to be a convicted sex offender.

That was the question asked of recruiting analyst Bill Kuerlic by Bob Hunter of The Columbus Dispatch. The answer was a surprising “yes”.

Anything is possible, but I would not favor Ohio State over Penn State or Notre Dame at this time.

Alex Anzalone, a consensus four-star recruit, decommitted from Ohio State yesterday. We’re not sure why Anzalone departed, but you have to wonder if it has anything to do with the creepy, creepy situation surrounding Ohio State fan Charles Waugh, a registered sex offender who contacted and took pictures with Anzalone and other recruits, SB Nation’s Land-Grant Holy Land reported.

For those unfamiliar, a quick summary of the Waugh situation: Charles Waugh is an Ohio State fan in his early 30’s who, in 2007, pleaded guilty to possession of matter portraying sexual performances by minors. On April 30, he sent a motivational message on Twitter to 129 people affiliated with Ohio State athletics, some of whom retweeted it. This drew attention to his behavior and the fact that he had previously went out of his way to meet up and take pictures with OSU athletes including Anzalone. On May 3, Ohio State sent a mass text to student athletes alerting them of the situation and instructing people to avoid contact. On May 4, Anzalone decommitted.