College Football Recruiting 2012: Shaq Thompson Commits To Cal Over USC

Five-star defensive back Shaq Thompson out of Grant (CA) has decided to end his recruitment early and has verbally committed to the University of California. Thompson is regarded as the premier defensive back recruit on the west coast and also is a dynamic running back.

The younger brother of Denver Broncos, and former Cal, cornerback Syd'Quad Thompson, Shaq comes from the same powerhouse program in high school that produced 2011 monster DT, and Cal recruit, Viliami Moala. He's already been given 5-star recruit status and is one of the top overall players on my board for 2012, due to his athleticism and ability to factor at three different positions.

Thompson is headed for steer and straight for Strawberry Canyon, let's find out why.

Who Is Shaq Thompson?

Thompson hails form Sacremento Grant (CA) High School, which is one of the premier high school football powerhouses in talent rich California. Thompson dominated games as ajunior on both sides of the ball, rushing for 1800 yards and 25 touchdowns as a running back and controlling the opposing team's receivers as defensive back.

He is the younger brother of former Cal cover corner Syd'Quad Thompson who is now with the Denver Broncos. Thompson is an excellent athlete and has been one of the top overall players in the Golden State for the past two seasons.

This is a huge pick up for Jeff Tedford, Clancy Pendergrast and California Golden Bears football. I grade Thompson a bit higher at this point than I did former USC safety and 5-star recruit Patrick Hall coming out.

Thompson Scouting Report

Thompson is a 6'1", 185 pounder that will line up at safety for the Bears, although he could get a look as a running back. Thompson has very good play speed and athleticism to combine with solid instincts on the back end.

He has a solid, quick back pedal and is quick read and react vs. the run. He flashes a willingness to plug holes vs. ball carriers and can be very effective in the box as an extra defender. Thompson has very good range and is not looked off easily. He's quick to decipher route combos and has leaping ability and ball skills to high point interceptions.

Thompson is also known as a big, bone crushing hitter.

Thompson can play corner in a pinch but is better at playing off-man than he is at press-man. He just lacks the upper body strength and quick strike ability to re-route receivers effectively in his jam. This is likely the only glaring flaw in his game at the moment.

Californai Defensive Scheme Fit

This is a great fit for the Cal defense because defensive coordinator Clancy Pendergrast loves to play an exotic style of defense wit an array of different front seven alignments and coverages in the secondary. Thompson is athletic enough to disguise various coverage packages and mix personnel for Pendergrast.

Perndergrast also is moving the Bears defense towards more of a man oriented scheme and Thompson surely can hold his own as a manned up safety in the Pac-12. He won't be asked to press much from the safety spot, and he actually has great hips and transition quickness to come out of his backpedal easily and plant and drive downhill on receivers quickly in off-man coverage.

This is a great fit for both Thompson and the California defense.

What This Means for California Football

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BERKELEY, CA - SEPTEMBER 01: DeSean Jackson #1 of the California Golden Bears and Head Coach Jeff Tedford run onto the field before the game against the Tennessee Volunteers at Memorial Stadium on September 1, 2007 in Berkeley, California. (Photo by Jo

This is a signal for Cal that the Bears will be a force on the recruiting trail this year. Jeff Tedford recruits well up and down the west coast and has shown in getting Keenan Allen a few years back that he can nab a prime time recruit.

Securing a 5-star recruit's commitment is always a big deal, when you can do it this early, it serves as a foundation for your recruiting class going forward. Now Tedford can build the class around Thompson and Zach Kline, a quaterback commit, to ensure a top notch class heads to Berkley.

Thompson will be one of the most highly ranked players overall in the country this year and he can use his clout to help recruit players to come join him at Cal. Getting him on board is a huge deal and big time pick up for Cal.

Who Else Was in the Race?

Thompson also held offers from USC and Auburn among others and considered both the Trojans and Tigers, but I always thought Cal was the team to beat.

He would have been a great and immediate fit at USC, who needs to add some depth at the safety spot and would have teamed with Erique Florence to form a formidable duo in the deep middle at Auburn.

But yet, it was Cal who remained strong secured his pledge. Now Thompson will look to capitalizing on his amazing junior season by dominating once again for Grant (CA) as a senior while also helping the Golden Bears haul in other talented recruits.