The countdown to National Signing Day is on and with Duke pretty much filled up for the class of 2007, the usual last month drama in recruiting is a bit lacking. To help fill the void, we spoke with high school coaches who tutored three of Duke's current 18 commitments during their prep careers.

Bart Carlisi
Head Coach: Rochester (NY) Bishop Kearny
Coached Duke commit Tony Jackson

On what most impressed him about Jackson's senior season

"He had a real good year. He turned into a leader this year and that was more important than anything. We knew he was a good football player but the growth that goes along with it [was most impressive]. He became a team leader this year and he never gave up, he has a great work ethic and a great offseason ethic. It carried on into the games; it was a given in the games."

On his defensive role in high school

"He played a combination of a linebacker and a [safety], so he started out the year playing that but because of an injury [to another player] he had to move to linebacker for us. We had put him in the secondary because of the fact we had heard that he may be playing in the secondary when he goes on to the next level. We were trying to give him experience so it isn't totally new to him when he went down to Duke."


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