Scout on new Florida State commit: "He's a difference maker wherever he goes"

With FSU's football recruiting on such a torrid pace, it's easy to forget that Luke Loucks is trying to do some big things with the basketball program as well. The latest commitment from Miami-area two-sport prospect Jasen Lopez is one that could be a difference maker on both the gridiron and the hardwood.

Lopez, listed at 5-foot-10, 165 pounds, might not have the ideal size for either sport, but he's a big-time player at one of the big-time programs in the state. He averaged 25 points and over six rebounds a game as a junior at Chaminade-Madonna Prep and had over 80 catches and 1,300 yards on the football field.

Now, I'll be the first to say that stats can be for losers, but if there's one thing to know about Chaminade-Madonna's program, it's that it wants all the smoke. The Lions don't avoid competition and don't run from anyone. That's why Lopez had to produce against some of the top teams in the nation. Watch him gash American Heritage for over 200 yards in a November game last season.

Lopez was just as good on the court and even in a losing effort to state powerhouse Miami Country Day, Lopez managed to pour in 20 points. I put in a phone call to my longtime friend Larry Blustein, who has been a top talent evaluator in the state for four decades and hosts the South Florida High School Sports Show on WQAM 560 in Miami. He had the following to add on Lopez:

"He's probably one of the best athletes in the state," Blustein said. "He's the type of kid that can take you apart in football and basketball. No one really knew much about him before last year, but he's a difference maker wherever he goes. In street clothes he looks like a librarian, but you get him in a game and everybody will tell you that he's a beast. He's the real deal."

This makes two commits in two days for FSU basketball

It's the second day of good news for FSU basketball. Earlier in the week, the program was able to announce the addition of Russian big man Egor Rhyzov for the upcoming season. This deal was put together through the help of some former 'Noles -- Okaro White and Dwayne Bacon -- two of Rhyzov's teammates on Zenit Saint Petersburg.

Rhyzov is just 19 years old, and the 6-foot-11, 220-pounder already has a few years under his belt playing with grown men.