The Opening, Day 2: Five commit to Pac-12 schools

BEAVERTON, Ore. — Something about the Great Northwest has attracted The Opening players to the Pacific-12 Conference.

Five players announced their college commitments on Tuesday in the second day of The Opening and all are headed to Pac-12 schools, including Roosevelt (San Antonio) cornerback Arrion Springs, who is headed two hours south to the University of Oregon.

A pair of St. John Bosco (Bellflower, Calif.) cornerbacks, Naijiel Hale and Jaleel Wadood, committed on the same day. Hale, the son of the late rapper Nate Dogg, pledged to Arizona and Wadood is heading north to Cal.

Two wide receivers also made the big decision: Summit (Fontana, Calif.) incoming senior Erik Brown to Washington and Artavis Scott of East Lake (Tarpon Springs, Fla.) will join Hale in Arizona.

Flexible lineman: Andrew Brown, the nation's No. 5 overall recruit, a 6-foot-4, 290-pound defensive lineman from Oscar Smith (Chesapeake, Va.) said he's taken after NFL super lineman Julius Peppers.

"His workouts are intense, man," he said. "I've been doing them since middle school. He focuses on flexibility and strength. That's what I try to work on."

That flexibility led Brown to a prep sports career that featured stints on both the basketball and soccer teams. Imagine a 290-pound fullback barreling down on a would-be goal scorer.

"I love soccer because of the camaraderie on the team," he said.

Asked if football was still his favorite, he answered emphatically "Yes." What does he like best? "Honestly if you have a bad day, you can release all your anger out on the football field. And that feels good."

More sporting efforts: Lorenzo Carter, another top-five national recruit and defensive lineman from Norcross (Ga.), said he was pushed into football because "I was always fouling out as a kid in basketball."

Carter, whose family is full of basketball players, said despite his hoop skills, he never considers handling the ball in football.

"I just can't stand offense at all," said the 6-5, 230-pound defensive end. "I'm not any good at it. I just like tackling people."

Da'Shawn Hand, the nation's No. 1 recruit, a ripped 6-4, 265-pound defensive end from Woodbridge (Va.), said his idol has always been Bo Jackson and because of it has tried every sport under the sun.

"Everything but golf," he said. "Actually I tried it once, missed the ball four or five times and decided it wasn't for me. The ball was just sitting there."

This and that: Nike's 7-on-7 tournament, called 7-on, opened with play on Tuesday and after one day here is how they are seeded: 1. Apocalypse; 2. Field Generals; 3. Land Sharks; 4. Vapor Carbon; 5. Super Bad; 6. Alpha Pro. … The 7 0n, Lineman Challenge championship and Elite 11 quarterback competition will be decided Wednesday. … Temperatures have hovered at about 95 degrees over the first two days of The Opening but figure to cool by more than 10 degrees on Wednesday. … Brown, who committed to Virginia last week, said he's been trying to convince uncommitted Hand to join him in Charlottesville. "I think I'm getting somewhere with (Hand)," Brown said. "Last night I think he really took me and Virginia into consideration." … No comment from Hand.

See 247sports.com's — the recruiting experts — roundtable view of The Opening's top players