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According to Rick Kimbrel, UCLA has landed impact running back Rushel Shell:
#8clap on the phone with Rushel Shell and he is committed to #UCLA says he loves Steve Broussard and Jim Mora!
— Rick Kimbrel (@RickKimbrel) April 15, 2013
Shell was a 5* recruit and #4 rated running back out of high school in 2012, and chose to stay close to home and play at Pitt over Alabama, Florida, Ohio State, Auburn, and Oregon, among others. He's a big, physical back with the talent to excel in Westwood. Last year, he carried the ball 141 times for 641 yards and 4 touchdowns, including an amazing game against Virginia Tech where he carried the ball 23 times for 157 yards. He was limited for much of the season due to a back injury, but still put up impressive numbers for a backup.
As some may recall, Shell was recruited by Todd Graham before he bailed on Pitt and his players via text message to take the job at Arizona St. Shell did have some discipline issues at Pitt, including a suspension for violating team rules, but given the fact that the staff that recruited him immediately took coaching jobs elsewhere, it is not hard to see why problems could arise. Regardless, Shell starts fresh in Westwood and could provide an impact to the rushing attack as soon as this season.
Shell is expected to file for a waiver in order to play immediately. It is unclear at this point whether or not the NCAA would grant the waiver, but there are rumors that Shell experienced problems with both teammates and coaches last season, and could be moving west to be closer to family.
We'll close with some highlights:
GO BRUINS!!!