Army All-American Bowl 2017: Top Recruits Announcing Commitments at Game

Some of the best prep football players in the country will gather at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday for the 2017 U.S. Army All-American Bowl, earning a chance to test themselves against elite competition and showcase their skills beyond local television broadcasts and grainy YouTube highlight reels.

It's safe to say the majority of these players will spend their college careers awash in the national spotlight playing for big-time college programs. The Army All-American Bowl is a chance to get ready for the attention and competition to come.

While many of the players set to hit the field Saturday already know where they will be playing their college ball next season, some are still undecided.

A small group of those uncommitted prospects are going to take advantage of the national spotlight and announce their commitments at the game itself, which is set to begin at 1 p.m. ET and will be televised on NBC.

Here are the seven recruits planning to announce their commitments at the big exhibition, per 247Sports' Steve Wiltfong:

Player, Position	School	Class Rank	Position Rank
Foster Sarell, OT	Graham Kapowsin (Graham, WA)	2	1
Darnay Holmes, CB	Calabasas (Calabasas, CA)	9	1
Jeffrey Okudah, ATH	South Grand Prairie (Grand Prairie, TX)	12	1
Bubba Bolden, S	Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, NV)	38	2
Eno Benjamin, RB	Wylie East (Wylie, TX)	106	10
Chuck Filiaga, OT	Aledo (Aledo, TX)	125	15
Jamire Calvin, WR	Cathedral (Los Angeles, CA)	231	33

The big recruiting prize announcing his commitment on Saturday is offensive tackle Foster Sarell, Scout.com's No. 2 overall prospect in the nation and top offensive lineman. Per Scout.com (via the Seattle Times' Adam Jude), Sarell has whittled his choices down to five schools: Washington, Notre Dame, Nebraska, Stanford and USC. 

Jude does note "the general feeling is he is down to two choices: UW and Stanford." The Huskies would make sense for Sarell, who plays high school ball roughly an hour from Seattle. Washington is coming off a brilliant season that saw them win the Pac-12 championship and reach the College Football Playoff, where they lost to Alabama 24-7. 

Stanford is an excellent program in its own right and boasts a strong winning tradition, so the choice can't be an easy one for Sarell. College football fans will be eager to see which cap the big lineman dons on Saturday. 

Chuck Filiaga of Aledo, Texas, is the other offensive lineman ready to announce on Saturday. A 4-star recruit, Filiaga told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Eric Zarate that Michigan, Nebraska and Oklahoma are his top three choices. Filiaga, nominally a left tackle, will have the chance to show off his versatility in the Army All-American Bowl. 

"We don't have any right tackles or right guards. We have seven left tackles," Filiaga said, per Zarate. "So they're spreading us out. It's a good adjustment to show colleges your athleticism, that you can play both sides."

Darnay Holmes and Jeffrey Okudah are a pair of 5-star defensive backs ready to commit to a program at the Army All-American Bowl. Holmes is the top cornerback in the nation, while Okudah is listed as an athlete by Scout.com but is shaping up to be a cornerback at the next level.

Bleacher Report's Damon Sayles captured the two running drills together in preparation for Saturday's game: 

Holmes, from Calabasas, California, is on the radar of both USC and UCLA, but Ohio State, Nebraska and Michigan are in the mix as well. According to 247Sports' "crystal ball" predictions, 26 percent of those polled have him choosing the Buckeyes. 

Okudah could very well join the Buckeyes as well, as he is looking for a school that can help him develop at his position.

"It's going to come down tomorrow," Okudah said Thursday, per USA Today's Jim Halley. "We are going to sit down in my room and talk about it before I make the final decision. It comes down to which school is better at the development of my position and the best plan for life after football."

Halley notes that Ohio State has done excellent work getting defensive backs to the pros: 

"

Okudah's mention of professional development might be a nod to Ohio State as the Buckeyes have had 18 defensive backs taken in the first three rounds over the past 26 years and have another likely first-rounder in 2017 in safety Malik Hooker. Florida State is not far behind, though, with 17 taken in the same period.

"

While the two might be ready to join forces at Ohio State, Holmes could perhaps be persuaded to stay in Southern California. Sayles noted he can play wide receiver at the next level, and the prospect of playing with USC's Sam Darnold or UCLA's Josh Rosen could prove to be enticing.

Darnold's brilliant performance in the Trojans' 52-49 win over Penn State in the Rose Bowl could be excellent recruiting fodder for those thinking about joining USC. 

Bubba Bolden is another elite defensive back that is yet to make an official commitment. The 4-star safety from Las Vegas football powerhouse Bishop Gorman High School decommitted from USC in July, but still has the Trojans on his radar.

The other school in contention appears to be Ohio State. Bolden had an official visit with them on Nov. 5, and three of his Bishop Gorman teammates are committed to playing in Columbus.

While USC is the heavy favorite, according to 247Sports, Eleven Warriors' Andrew Lind caught Bolden perhaps signaling his intent to play at Ohio State: 

Bolden isn't making the wait easy on Trojan and Buckeyes diehards. 

Running back Eno Benjamin (Wylie, Texas) and wide receiver Jamire Calvin (Los Angeles, California) are the two lowest-rated recruits announcing their commitments Saturday, but they are still eyeing some big-time programs at the next level. 

Calvin looks set to leave his California home, with Nebraska and Notre Dame the two front-runners, per Scout.com. The 4-star recruit did receive December offers from Texas and Oregon, so there's plenty of intrigue in his decision.

In prepping for the bowl game, Calvin was happy to show off the defensive back-shattering moves he can bring to the next level: 

As for Benjamin, he has a number of suitors. Bleacher Report's Sanjay Kirpalani has more on his recruitment process:

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After an early commitment to Iowa, 4-star running back Eno Benjamin reopened his recruitment in October.

Scheduled to be an early enrollee, Benjamin will make his commitment during Saturday's game and be on campus for spring football at whichever school he chooses.

As a senior, Benjamin rushed for 2,604 yards and 32 touchdowns.

Among the schools in the running for Benjamin include Arizona State, Michigan, Missouri, Texas and Utah.

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Kirpalani sees Benjamin heading to Arizona State in the spring, but fans won't know until Saturday. It's going to be a busy day for all these future college athletes, with a big game and a massive, life-altering decision to make on Saturday.

The televised spectacle will be but a mere introduction to the pressure and intense scrutiny that comes with playing at the next level. 

    

Note: Recruiting and ranking information is courtesy of Scout.com unless otherwise noted.