Like rooks on a chess board

   Alex Bell. Then Danzel Manley.

   I should have gone to the horse track and boxed the exacta.

   How in the world would I know that when I talked to Bell and Manley at ODU's first scrimmage game two weeks ago that they'd be the first two players to commit to the Monarchs for the upcoming signing period?

   Truth be told, I just saw two really big dudes walking around in the crowd. They looked like football players. I asked if they were. We got to talking.

   I think they both just thought is was entertaining to talk to the sports writer who was wearing the loudest Hawaiian shirt on the planet. They probably both went home, got with their crew and said, "Man, this shirt was ... "

   But back to the subject at hand.

   ODU needed linemen. They've gotten off to a quick start in solving that problem.

   The coaches cannot talk about recruits until they've received a national letter of intent, meaning early February. But one has to believe that a 6-5 1/2, 265-pound right tackle and a 6-6, 304-pound left tackle are the pieces to a puzzle that a Division I-AA team on the upstart would seek.

   Here's a thought: What if they aren't done growing?

   ODU's first recruiting class was foiled at two positions: offensive line and linebacker. The Monarchs aimed high and missed on a couple. They got about half of what they were looking for at those spots. 

   This start to the recruiting campaign bodes well. Remember who the first two to commit were last year about this time: defensive back Ricky Nichols and defensive end Andrew Turner. For what I've seen at practice, Nichols and Turner are great additions to the program, rocks to build the foundation.

   The feeling in this corner is that Bell and Manley could be the same.     

ADVISORY: Users are solely responsible for opinions they post here and for following agreed-upon rules of civility. Comments do not reflect the views of The Virginian-Pilot or its Web sites. Comments are automatically checked for inappropriate language, but readers might find some comments offensive or inaccurate. If you believe a comment violates our rules, click the "Report Violation" link below the comment.