Iowa Western C.C. tight end Ryan Hubbell is the newest member of Charlie Strong's 2012 (or 2011?) recruiting class after committing to Louisville on Wednesday. He was scheduled to visit Northern Illinois this weekend, but cancelled that visit before committing to Strong.
Hubbell, a 6-5, 240-pound sophomore, was considered to be one of the top JUCO tight ends available and is scheduled to enroll in January to compete for the position in spring practice with returning upperclassmen Nate Nord and Chris White and incoming freshmen Larry Jefferson (3-star from College Park, GA) and Hunter Bowles (2-star from Glasgow, KY).
Via a radio interview with the Louisville Sports Live guys, Mike Hughes of Inside The Ville said Hubbell started out as a wide receiver, grew into the tight end position at Iowa Western, and has really improved his blocking.
Assuming he enrolls in January, it will be interesting to see if Hubbell counts towards the 2011 class or 2012. If I understand correctly, Gerod Holliman and Jerrelle Moore left two open spots in the 2011 class that can still be filled by JUCO early-enrollees like Hubbell. I could be (and probably am) wrong.
If he counts towards 2012, Hubbell's commitment will mark the 18th player in the class to commit to Louisville (including Holliman). For reference, on this date three years ago Steve Kragthorpe had seven commitments for his 2009 class.
During his radio interview Wednesday night, Hughes added that Strong will now focus on landing two or three defensive linemen, sign another offensive lineman and possibly go after a running back, though it's not a big position of need.
Here's Hubbell in action: