[2024] Recruiting Class Grades Batch 11

[tsweezy]

By now you know the drill. Leave some engagement so I'm motivated to do more and get to your team sooner

 

@Spoof @npklemm

 

Clemson University

Atlantic Coast Conference

2023: 3-9 (1-7)
 

Recruiting Class Basics:

CLEM signed 1 5-stars, 2 4-stars, 11 3-stars, 7 2-stars, and 4 1-stars. They signed 14 players with B or better potentials and 2 B overalls. Rankings below:

ESPN: 26th
Rivals: 36th
247: 41st

Composite: 30th

 

Signees below:

School	Name	Stars	Ovr	Pot	Pos	Archetype	City	State
CLEM	Michael Kreher	4	C+	B	C	Pass Blocking	Decaturville	TN
CLEM	Baby Yoda	3	C	C+	CB	Zone Coverage	Russellville	IN
CLEM	Paul Neumann	3	C	C+	DE	Speed Rusher	Baton Rouge	LA
CLEM	Ming Saechao	3	C	C+	DE	Speed Rusher	Whittier	CA
CLEM	John Bornstein	5	B-	A-	DT	Pass Rusher	Palatine	IL
CLEM	Thomas Livingston	3	C	C+	ILB	Field General	Lake Cormorant	MS
CLEM	John Sachs	3	C	C+	ILB	Run Stopper	Forsyth	GA
CLEM	Randall Foster	1	D	A	ILB	Field General	Brainerd	MN
CLEM	Ralph Smith	1	D	A	ILB	Run Stopper	Shallowater	TX
CLEM	David Goh	1	D	A	ILB	Coverage	Edison	NJ
CLEM	Richard Stoehr	3	C	C+	OG	Pass Blocking	Perry	FL
CLEM	Thomas Gosz	3	C	C+	OLB	Speed	Matthews	NC
CLEM	Robert Tyson	2	C	C-	OLB	Coverage	Natchez	MS
CLEM	Juan Gallegos	2	D	C+	OLB	Pass Rush	Sulphur	LA
CLEM	Ranjit Iqbal	2	D	C+	OLB	Run Stopper	Largo	FL
CLEM	Charles Olson	2	C	B+	OT	Balanced	Wheeling	WV
CLEM	Mike Jacquez	2	C	A	OT	Pass Blocking	Los Angeles	CA
CLEM	Gary Cotta	1	D	A	P	Balanced	Apopka	FL
CLEM	Raymond Park	3	C	B	QB	Pocket	Tyler	TX
CLEM	Henrik Gallagher	3	C	B	QB	Pocket	Clinton	MI
CLEM	Denny Baker	3	C	A	RB	Receiving	Dublin	OH
CLEM	Steven Dickson	2	D	C+	RB	Balanced	Smith Center	KS
CLEM	Armando Palomares	2	D	B+	RB	Speed	Omak	WA
CLEM	Michael Mandara	3	C	B+	TE	Receiving	Atlanta	GA
CLEM	Keven Hogg	4	B-	A	WR	Speed	East Bernard	TX

 

Below is a breakdown position-by-position of (from L-R) their current roster, what they did on the trail, and the grade I gave them in recruiting that position.

 

Position	Current position grade	Current status	Number signed	Recruiting status	Croot Grade
C	C+/B-	Todd Wagner is last year's line captain signee, a 3 star B potential player who's already jumped to B- overall. That's not very good this year, but it is pretty good for a sophomore and the long term planning looks up. Also Cooper is good enough depth	1	Michael Kreher is a Tennessee boy (those guys rock) and a nice blue chip with B potential. He's a little blocked by Wagner one year above him so we'll see if Clemson lets them compete outright or tries to stagger them	B
CB	A-	Honestly this is really good. Jones is a high A overall blue chip who's probably going in the first half of the upcoming draft. On the other side of the field is ball hawk LeMahieu with an A-. They also have another B/B- pair of upperclassmen (and a mediocre 2 star from last year). Of course 2 of them are man guys and 2 are zone.. which makes a tough call as to what direction to go. Next year they'll have a man senior and a zone junior and that's it, so this is an important class	1	Baby Yoda is first off a great name. I don't know if Purdue got him swiped or if Clemson just got to benefit but nice. He's only average on the field though as a 3/C/C character. I'm very surprised Clemson didn't sign a second corner though, as things stand Yoda is in line to start next season. They've got to sign 2 or 3 this upcoming cycle	C
DE	B-	A surprising amount of depth with 4 upperclassmen B-/B players. Triggs is the only one who kinda scares you though, the rest are just good backup pieces. The good news is they signed 2 each of the past two classes so while they may not have stars, they aren't in danger of falling off	2	This cycle saw the same approach: 2 average 3-stars. The room has a ton of these guys so on the depth front and "good enough" front it's alright. Maybe they'll take a swing at a blue chipper if they can hit their other targets	C+
DT	B-/B	I'm not sure what to make of this... they have a shit ton of ILBs (but most of them are bad) and a dominant NT so I assume they'll run a 3-4 but it seems like they don't really want to. Anyways, Elflein is that big center piece and as an A- he's very strong and stuffs runs up the middle. Behind him is another (Jr) C+ nose tackle, so a relatively steep drop off, and it would definitely hurt to take the malus of running them in a 4-3. The 2 2-star signees last cycle are bad but have high potential I guess	1	There are hardly any 4-stars on the roster, and Bornstein is the first 5-star Clemson fans have seen! Must have been a great pitch to pull him out of Illinois and he looks very, very good. A pass rusher with A- potential it doesn't get much better. The only issue is the aforementioned 3-4/4-3 decisions to make	A
FB	-	Don't have any	0	I'm so proud of them for committing to a FB-free roster
FS	B	A pretty solid doublet with Leslie as the senior B+ overall followed by Moreno at a B- as a junior. Rowell was last years signee and he's actually pretty solid for a 2-star as well	0	Didn't sign any, going to need one this cycle	-
ILB	B-	Krehbiel is a good coverage guy with a B+ overall as a senior. If they have to run a 3-4 it gets dicier though with the next up being either of the junior C+ speed guys: Mager or Hogan. I would not want to start either in ACC play	5	FIVE ILB signees is crazy, especially when they signed a 5-star pass rushing DT. Three of them are A potential 1-stars as well so like... powerball lottery tickets I guess. Livingston and Sachs are C+ potential 3-stars so they're likely to be in the same vein as most of the guys on this roster. Damn they have a lot of players here now	C
K	C	Bit of a worry here as Morales is a B- senior kicker and the only one rostered. He can make his XPs but next year they'll need someone to take over	0	I don't like seeing the whiff here. It's really rare that you have a kicker who can start as a freshman and Clemson really needs all the points they can get	D
OG	C/C+	Haase is actually a good player as a B+ junior, but he's not got a lot of help around him. I guess Flores is next in line as a 3-star from last class.He ain't ready though and damn sure shouldn't be starting this season. Bumpy few seasons ahead and you just have to hope the underclassmen progress well	1	Stoehr is a 3/C/C+ which is good by itself, he's immediately the #4 guy in the room. I would've liked to see either a second or a higher potential player though. It's not a big issue comparatively though	C-
OLB	B	4 Upperclassmen on the roster and none signed last cycle. Parkey is an A overall run stopping 4-star and he's actually really good. On the other side I guess they'll run out B- overall Garcia who comes back next year (and has A+ potential). The other 2 juniors are just C+ guys riding it out	4	GD Clemson frickin loved LBs this cycle didn't they. 9 OLB/ILBs is ridiculous. Anyways, Gosz is the best OLB signee as a 3CC+. the other 3 are meh 2-stars who have pretty bad potentials too. Not impressed with the quality	C
OT	B+	I actually like this rooms setup. You've got Figueroa as the blue chip (Jr) A overall starter. Dude has a chance to become a 1st/2nd rounder next year and easily locks up the LT slot. A little more complicated behind that as you have a mix of 4 Jr/Sr 2/3 stars who are all B overalls, ok pass blockers, and ass at run blocking. No matter what they choose, everybody but 1 comes back so there will be even more options next season	2	They signed a pair of 2 stars who aren't great BUT have B+/A potential and don't need to start until they'd be at least juniors. So this isn't actually that bad, there's a chance to get a gem here	C
P	B+	They signed two high potential guys last year and have a B+ senior for this season. So punter is checked off for now	1	Added a random 1 star which I don't really like. Could've used that scholarship elsewhere	D+
QB	C	Oh... this is rough. I forget the name of whoever was playing bad for them last season but they don't have many good options this year either. I guess Yanda is at least smart even if he has C throwing attributes. Maybe they go with Kelly or Tyrone Brown and go pure triple option without bothering to pass. Idk but I'm not envious of them trying to figure it out	2	Park and Gallagher are B potential pocket passers. They aren't ready now and won't be short term saviors but healthier to have in the room than the current stock. I really, really would like to see Clemson go hard after a 5-star or top level 4-star this cycle. It would completely reverse the room and help the program.	C
RB	C+	After the QB room I was hoping they could lean on the ground game but ehhh.Beato is a power back who's capable of getting yardage up the middle (but not really elsewhere) and as a (Jr) is an ok 2 year starter. Stanek is his less good power backup and then they have a few junior receiving backs who are less good yet. Meh on this room. Lots of dive plays incoming	3	Denny Baker is one of the brighter spots as a 3 star with A potential. I do think he could progress well and make some good plays as an upperclassman, and Clemson needs more players like that. The 2 D overall 2-stars are just chaff though	C+/B-
SS	C	There's a scheme mismatch with the FS but it doesn't matter much because McMahon is almost equally mediocre at both man and zone. Last years signee Paul Sweet doesn't look too much better either. Not bullish on this room	0	Didn't sign any, this should be a somewhat high priority	D
TE	C-	Yikes. Marlowe is the vertical threat senior who gets number 1 billing but like.. he shouldn't be. Decently fast and agile but can't block, catch, or run routes. The other guy in this room is even worse, a D overall Vert threat from last cycle. They should be involved as little as possible in games	1	Michael Mandara is a 3 star B+ potential who is already TE2 and is the number 1 guy next season. He's got a bright future, but again the room is in danger when these guys need to start so early.	C
WR	C+/B-	Is this or OT the best offensive group? They are pretty deep with a senior A- red zone threat in Del Rosario who is physically quite imposing. Mcgee is the blue chip junior behind him with better hands and slightly worse testing numbers. They also have 5 other B- upperclassmen so if they want they could plausibly run a successful 4/5-wide scheme and have Yanda make good decisions with short throws. Last year only saw 1 signee: a 3 star	1	I think Hogg is the 2nd best signee in this class behind Bornstein and he's very good. I definitely want players like that .A 4-star B overall A potential speed demon he's the perfect complement to a good pocket passer. He might start this year or bide his time, idk how Clemson plays it. 2 WRs in 2 years though just isn't enough numbers and they do need to sign a slightly larger quantity of guys	B/B+

 

Man AI really cratered this team. They have a lot of holes on the roster that have started opening up and even a great recruiting cycle can't fix them all in a year. This wasn't a great recruiting cycle though so it'll take a bit longer. I think(?) they got unlucky with a few decisions and coach was wetting his feet in recruiting for the first time, but they seemed simultaneously too ambitious and not ambitious enough. I think for this upcoming year there are so many priorities that outside of slinging for a 5-star QB/RB (which would be fucking sick to get), the best approach is to accumulate as many overlooked low end 4 star / high potential 3 stars as possible and most importantly not waste points on losing battles. If they can seed the roster with those types of signees the future will start looking up, but right now Clemson is just treading water

 

Class Grade: C

 

 

Ball (so hard) State University

Mid-American Conference

2023: 7-6 (3-5)
 

Recruiting Class Basics:

BALL signed 6 4-stars, 9 3-stars, 5 2-stars, and 2 1-stars. They signed 11 players with B or better potentials and 0 B overalls. Rankings below:

ESPN: 98th
Rivals: 72nd
247: 31st

Composite: 57th

 

Signees below:

School	Name	Stars	Ovr	Pot	Pos	Archetype	City	State
BALL	Guillermo Tomas	3	C	C+	C	Run Blocking	Avon	OH
BALL	Charles Coleman	3	C	C	CB	Man Coverage	Albany	GA
BALL	Cesar Mateo	3	C	C+	CB	Man Coverage	Goliad	TX
BALL	William Boggs	2	C	B-	CB	Man Coverage	Rossville	GA
BALL	Edward Gerlach	0	C-	D-	DE	Run Stopper	Palmer	AK
BALL	Christopher Kingston	1	D	A+	DT	Nose Tackle	Eufaula	AL
BALL	Donald Horst	4	C+	A-	FS	Zone Coverage	Liberty	MO
BALL	Michael Albanese	4	C+	C+	ILB	Field General	Melville	NY
BALL	Benjamin Snyder	0	D	B+	K	Balanced	Soldotna	AK
BALL	Lee Hayes	3	C	C+	OG	Run Blocking	Holliday	TX
BALL	Eric Morris	3	C	C	OG	Run Blocking	Dexter	MI
BALL	Eliseo Baker	2	C	B	OG	Balanced	Hampton	GA
BALL	Juan Floresgarcia	2	C	B-	OG	Run Blocking	Conklin	NY
BALL	Carlos Lucero	1	D	A+	OG	Run Blocking	Edinburg	TX
BALL	Mitchell Neveu	0	D	B	OLB	Coverage	Anchorage	AK
BALL	Jerome Harris	3	C	B-	OT	Pass Blocking	Hinesville	GA
BALL	Kevin Johnson	4	C+	B	QB	Scrambler	Oak Park	MI
BALL	Jeffrey Mona	3	C	B-	QB	Scrambler	Ripon	CA
BALL	Kenneth Curry	4	C+	A-	RB	Speed	Marietta	GA
BALL	Louis Dolan	3	C-	B	RB	Power	Arlington Heights	IL
BALL	Bruce Rabalais	2	C-	B-	SS	Zone Coverage	Merrillville	IN
BALL	Joshua Osorio	4	C+	C+	TE	Vertical Threat	Plant City	FL
BALL	Ralph Nieter	4	C+	B+	WR	Possesion	Oskaloosa	IA
BALL	Nick Klemm	3	C	B	WR	Speed	Elkhart	IN
BALL	Jesse Ryan	2	C-	B-	WR	Possesion	Berea	OH

Below is a breakdown position-by-position of (from L-R) their current roster, what they did on the trail, and the grade I gave them in recruiting that position.

 

Current position grade	Current status	Number signed	Recruiting status	Croot Grade
B	Rob McNichols has had a weird career trajectory, a (Sr) he's a B+ now and more than capable at anything if not elite, but he's been a B overall since his (Fr) year so he really jumped at the start and then barely progressed. Anyways he leaves and Cooks looks good for next season but last years signees are underwhelming	1	Tomas is a solid C guy who is likely capable enough to take the mantle from Cooks in the future. Nice signing	C
B/B+	Nate Walker is a physically elite ball hawker, but not quite a top shelf cover guy. Still extremely dangerous on one side. The other side likely goes to (So) Tommy Murphy, an in state blue chip B overall. The depth is just ok with another B- and a C+ behind them.	3	A triple set of man coverage C overalls. None of them have super high potential, but numbers-wise this bumps up the numbers in the room. Definitely a man coverage team	C+
B/B+	wow they went HARD on this position last year signing 5 guys! Rickey Marte is an A- overall junior and comes back next season which is really nice. Cruceta is the opposite side with Mason Mihalik trying to fend off Berna to be the starter next season. Then they have a shit ton of C+/C overall guys to be developed	1	They had a shit ton of DEs already and only added a walk-on from Alaska, who's at least a C-, but also has bad potential and is 11th/11 in the room	-
B+/A-	Justin Fields?? The nose tackle? well he's really good, an A- (Jr) who is a beefy boy up the middle. There's notttt much behind him though as next year they only have one other DT, Ricardo Soto a pass rushing mediocre 2 star	1	This room was already thin and they only added a 1-star to it. Getting sketchier	D
C+	Whatever, Rodriguez can block ok	0	Didn't sign any
C	Some rough development here. Lunsford was a C for 3 years and finally progressed to... a C+ with one year left. They did sign a pair of 2-stars last season who are mid Cs now so not a huge bump incoming for the future either	1	A really nice upgrade here! Donald Hurst is an A- potential 4-star who actually looks like he could win the starting job this year and lock it down for the future. About as much as you could ask for in a croot	A-
B+/A-	Oh they're actually quite stout up the middle. Noteboom is the best guy, a 4 star B+. Then they have a B and 2 B- to decide for the other starting slot. All 4 of these guys have another year of eligibility so next year actually looks quite good for them. They signed a couple guys the last 2 cycles but I'm eh on them	1	They had good guys who were old, and Albanese is now a good guy who's young. The field general from NY, I don't think he fits the right archetype for a 3-4 but does have undeniable talent	B
C+	Alex Parker is a B overall (Jr) with pretty good kick accuracy. He's the only guy in the room so they should get his replacement soon	1	Only added a walk on from Alaska who is not good. Still a spot they'll try to hit next year	-
B+	Kaser is really good, and has a chance to get drafted after this season as an A overall. They are thin besides that as the 2 choices are B- overall (Jr) and a C+ (So). Neither are very good at anything and as it stands will both be starters next year so need a big jump	5	Ok this was a spot that needed bodies and they got them. 5 guys coming in, 4 are C overalls. Unfortuantely the only really high potential is the D overall 1-star guy, so I don't see any of them as breakout stars in the future, but still assuaged some worry	C+
C	Wow this is not a good room. Both upperclassmen are C+ overalls and they're the best options! So there is basically nobody ready to make plays in this group. They did sign a trio of 3 stars in the last 2 cycles but tose guys are just not prepped enough to make a difference yet. Big weak spot for the team	1	I'm surprised they didn't sign any here. I guess they're ok rolling with Mooney and Cooley long term. Another Alaskan walk on (weird what that state produces)	-
A	Dominant room here. I guess this was a focus for the staff. John Nunez is the big name obviously as a 5-star signee from last cycle who's an A overall. Joaquin Williams is actually also an A overall senior who is going to go pro this year. So double As is as good as it gets but they also have a pair of B+ backups too! and even their underclassmen 3s are B- already. Filthy rich at OT	1	Last cycle was a jackpot, so this had to be a low priority. They still took a 3-star B- potential kid though so they are embracing OT-U	C+/B-
F	There are no punters rostered. Yikes	0	Dawg, sign a punter. please	F
A	Scott Romero is quietly in the argument for a top-5 QB in CFB and he has another year left! A+ TP and TA, the dude has a cannon and control over it. Really nothing they could do to improve it here. The last two years they've signed some frankly bad scrambler backups so there's no plan B and I assume they'll want to sign that next guy at some point	2	Now they have a future starter behind Romero. Kevin Johnson is a blue chip scrambler from michigan with B potential. Vastly different archetype but he's got talent and I'd believe he'll be ready to play when Romero leaves	B
B/B+	The senior class worked out fairly well with a B+ and 2 B overalls. Kobernus is the clear best, but they have good depth here. In the future, I think Daniel Lee gets a start next season and last years redshirt Ronald Brennan is the future best player	2	Kenneth Curry is a room elevator. 4 star speed back from GA with A- potential he's not going to play this season, but he could be 1b next year and the future IT guy in the backfield. Also took a power 3 star who's starting from much lower on the totem pole	B/B+
B	Dilson Cortes is a strong dude who doesn't care much for the finer points of coverage. He's definitely able to bring down a RB though and returns for another year next season. I don't see anybody on roster who can replace him after that though	1	Rabalais is... not impressive to me. They just signed 3 guys just like him or slightly better last cycle so I don't think he has room to turn into much or make a real contribution unfortunately	C-
B/B+	Lillard is a good receiving threat and comes back next year so he's a plus guy in the room. Behind him Royce Wreh-Wilson is a vert threat Soph 4-star who can grow into a starting role and is servicable in spurts now. Cody Byrd is just a depth blocker	1	Osorio is a solid vertical threat who keeps the TE room viable for several years. Blue chip C+ potential he's not going to see the field this year but he will down the line	B
B-	Dario Lindsay is yet another (Jr) 3-star who's turned into an A- overall (they have quite a few of them actually). He's definitely their best WR option, and then they have a B and B- behind him. The underclassman options are really not that good though	3	I was ambivalent about the WR group, but this is a good class. Nieter will get the headlines as a blue chip B+ potential, but Nick Klemm (no relation) is actually right on his heels and is a serious threat as a future starter. I don't think Jesse Ryan is good though. Overall this room got better which is the goal	B/B+

 

I... don't know how to grade this exactly. They certainly signed some good players but I think the roster distribution is just stilted. I know it's hard to paper over AI recruiting misses butthe discrepancy between rooms like OT and OLB is just massive and I didn't see a lot of effort to bring up those bad rooms this cycle. Also please sign a punter. In general, I think the roster is getting better in spurts and they just need to actually focus on the last couple of rooms to put it over the top into being a good team

 

Class Grade: C/C+

 

 

School	Grade	Batch
Western Michigan	A-	Intro
Purdue	A	1
Northern Illinois	C+	1
Michigan	B-	2
Washington State	B/B+	2
Tulsa	B/B+	3
Temple	C+	3
Kansas	B	3
James Madison	C+/B-	4
BYU	C	5
Florida State	B-	5
Indiana	B	5
Houston	B	6
UNLV	B+	6
Georgia	B-	7
Bowling Green	B-	7
Florida	B	8
Stanford	B-	8
Wisconsin	B+	9
Illinois	C	9

Tulane	B	10
California	C+/B-	10
Clemson	C	11
Ball State	C/C+	11