E.J. Levenberry sticks with Florida State commitment: Noles keep linebacker

E.J. Levenberry, one of the top inside linebacker recruits in the country, stuck with his commitment to the Florida State Seminoles in an announcement Tuesday night on InsideNova.com.

Levenberry starred for Woodbridge (VA) C.D. Hylton High School, where he transferred after playing for two years at Dematha Catholic in DC. Levenberry holds offers from all over the country, but ultimately chose the Seminoles over the Michigan Wolverines in April. He is a consensus four-star recruit.

Levenberry has ideal size for an inside linebacker recruit at 6'3 and 227 pounds. Curiously, some services rate him as an outside linebacker. Regardless, every service rates him as one of the top 25 linebackers nationally.

I do feel that Levenberry is a bit overrated by some, however, because he has been a known commodity since his freshman season. There is a strong tendency to rate a kid highly when he has been a good player for a long time, and perhaps a tendency to disregard whether a player is not continuing to improve at a steady clip. That said, he is still a very good recruit.

Levenberry has the power to take on blocks a the college level, and when he knows where he is going, he is able to close quite fast. I don't see special reactions from Levenberry, however, of mind or foot. And that is a bit of a concern. I'm not saying that Levenberry is too tight or stiff to play the position, but those hyping him to be the next superstar inside linebacker are missing the mark in my estimation. He is not the next Rolando McClain or Patrick Willis.

Levenberry can be a very good run-stopping piece in an excellent defense, and he should be able to control his area, provided the designated area is of limited yardage.