Jacksonville lands two prospects

New Jacksonville University head coach Cliff Warren has been busy looking for players to help him build the Atlantic Sun program. He started the class of 2005 strong with two verbal commitments.

Marcus Allen and Justin Jack visited the Dolphins on Sunday and decided that the two of them wanted to be a part of the new regime at Jacksonville.

"First, it was close to home and second, it's a new start there," Allen said on why he picked Jacksonville. "They are really building up the program there. With Coach Warren, they have new good coach, a new athletic director and the president is just two years into the job. I wanted to be a part of something new and exciting."

"There is just some energy down there," Jack said. "It's positive throughout the whole program. Everyone is enthusiastic about getting the program up where it used to be back in the day."

The two prospects share a common bond. Both have older brothers that play in the ACC. Jack's brother, Jarrett, played for Warren at Georgia Tech. Allen's brother, Steve, is on the roster at Clemson.

Allen, a 6-foot-7 forward from the famed Dillard High School in Ft. Lauderdale, and Jack, a 6-foot-5 shooting guard from Friendly High School in the Ft. Washington, Md., said they hit it off from the get go.

"We talked about that a few times when we were down there and we realized we had a similar background," Jack said. "We hit it off."

Seeing what Warren has done for Jarrett, the younger Jack said he was ready to be coached into a better player, too.

"I know that if I stick with Coach Warren and listen to what he has to say, I'm going to be successful," Jack said. "The wing is one of the areas they want to improve on and I know if I come in and work hard and make the improvements I need to make, I can help the team right away."

Allen also said he's ready for the challenge ahead.

"Coach Warren is real cool but he's also just straight up with you," Allen said. "He coached under Paul Hewitt at Georgia Tech so you know he knows the game. I think I can come in a be a big impact for them in a lot of areas, especially rebounding and scoring."