[2024] Recruiting Class Grades Batch 13

[tsweezy]

Well, this should be the last batch. I think I got everybody at this point. I will pretend the intention was to save the best for last, but really I just forgot I hadn't done these ones already, oops.

@SyndaKyt @smackemz @SageBow enjoy

 

University of Utah

Pac-12 / Big 12 Conference

2023: 2-10 (1-8)
 

Recruiting Class Basics:

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

ESPN: 20th
Rivals: 12th
247: 9th

Composite: 11th

 

Signees below:

School	Name	Stars	Ovr	Pot	Pos	Archetype	City	State
UTAH	Eric Minckler	3	C	D+	C	Run Blocking	Thomaston	GA
UTAH	Michael Summers	4	B-	C+	CB	Man Coverage	Decorah	IA
UTAH	David Reyes	3	C+	B	CB	Ball Hawk	Tallahassee	FL
UTAH	Charles Mabry	2	C-	B-	CB	Man Coverage	West Jordan	UT
UTAH	Gilberto Torres	4	B-	C+	DE	Balanced	Riverton	UT
UTAH	Christopher Mccarthy	3	C	C+	DE	Balanced	St. Martinville	LA
UTAH	Mark Slye	3	C	B+	DT	Balanced	Midwest City	OK
UTAH	Charles Meyer	1	D	A	DT	Balanced	Bradenton	FL
UTAH	Vincent Chatham	4	B-	C	FS	Ball Hawk	Eastman	GA
UTAH	William Gelb	4	C+	B-	ILB	Run Stopper	Bountiful	UT
UTAH	Jerald Romano	2	D	B-	ILB	Run Stopper	Henderson	NV
UTAH	John Oster	3	C	B-	OG	Balanced	Buford	GA
UTAH	Gary Mardis	1	D	C+	OG	Run Blocking	Morgan	UT
UTAH	Dennis Lara	3	C	A	OLB	Coverage	Georgetown	TX
UTAH	Michael Hinton	2	D	B-	OLB	Run Stopper	Salt Lake City	UT
UTAH	Gary Warmerdam	3	C	B	OT	Run Blocking	Jefferson	LA
UTAH	David Knox	2	C-	B-	OT	Run Blocking	Beggs	OK
UTAH	James Lambert	0	D	D+	P	Accuracy	Bountiful	UT
UTAH	Dominick Pfeiff	3	C	B	QB	Scrambler	Decatur	TN
UTAH	John Lewis	4	B-	C	RB	Receiving	Grove City	OH
UTAH	Rong Fua	4	C+	B+	RB	Balanced	Honolulu	HI
UTAH	Mason Weiner	4	B-	B+	SS	Zone Coverage	Loomis	CA
UTAH	Luis Mejilla	4	C+	A	TE	Blocking	Bushnell	FL
UTAH	Kenneth Novak	4	C+	C+	WR	Red Zone Threat	Enterprise	UT
UTAH	John Diggs	3	C	C+	WR	Possesion	Rome	GA

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	B/B+	Kyle Heisey has this position on lock. Strong run blocker B+ overall, coming back for another year, really good setup. Behind him are a pair of underclassmen C+ players	1	Eric Minckler is a 3 star with D+ potential. He's the worst guy in the room and will probably never be the best option during his time at Utah. To be fair, they're pretty loaded so it doesn't really matter	C-
CB	B	The dreaded mixed room. Their number 1 CB is a B+ man corner who is good but not great. Behind him are a couple of zone guys including their best future player: Patrick Gormley a So blue chip B overall. Of course last year they signed another pair of C+ 3 star man guys so it's totally up in the air what direction they go with the room. It's gonna be weak this year though	3	Ok so it looks like they're happy to go man. Michael Summers is a B 4-star freshman which is a very solid pickup and he can be good enough to start next year (or redshirt and then they'll do a future transition from zone to man). David Reyes is a nice ball hawk prospect too .	B
DE	C	Honestly this room looks SPARSE. Hildenberg is a B overall who's meh as the DE1. Opposite him is fellow senior Hungalu who is a C+ run stopper and hence bad at everything and mid at run stopping. They have a few undercalssmen who will jump into that B-/B zone next year so it's on an upwards trend but this year and next aren't gonna be good	2	Gilberto Torres is another B blue chip from instate who actually should be good enough to get a starting spot when he walks onto campus. That's a great pickup and Mccarthy is a fine enough 3 star to pair with him. Good additions	B
DT	B/B+	Much better here. Clay Machorro is one of their A overalls and has a couple A+ attributes to boot. Next to him is likely going to be (So) Norman Burton, another blue chipper B overall. They've got an additional pair of B overalls and last cycle Randolph Hancox took a redshirt and progressed well. I think this room is good now and will be good for several years	2	As expected not a high priority focus. Slye is a B+ potential 3-star so he'll benefit from a few bench years. Meyer sucks but oh well	C+
FB	C+	They've got a pair of ok looking FBs	0	Didn't sign any	-
FS	A-	JC is their best defensive player and has a shot at getting drafted after the season. Phenomenal run stopper and athlete but just ok in coverage. Behind him Durant is probably the starter next year and Crump was last years redshirt who has 2 more years to wait	1	Their 3rd B overall blue chip signee, Vincent Chatham is a ball hawker B overall who's jumped into line for the future. He'll almost certainly redshirt this year and then has a shot to beat out Durant next season or start as a (So). I think that locks this room down for a while	B+
ILB	C-	I'm assuming they're running a 4-3 and only need one but man they don't even have that. The best option is last year's signee James Raymond. Anytime you need to start a So 3-star C+ you're in trouble. The good news is he has A- potential so he should actually turn into something nice. It's gonna be a tough year though.	2	William Gelb is an in-state blue chip who I like at the position. It's gonna be a tough decision though. He's currently a C+ with B- potential so he's probably strictly worse than Raymond and will remain so for the next 3 years. Either he takes over right now, or he redshirts and waits to start until he's a (Jr). Either option works	B-
K	C+	Lewis is pretty good this year and they signed a 3-star Power kicker last year. They're fine	0	Didn't sign any	-
OG	A-	Ooo this is a really good squad. Mortensen made a big jump and is the rare A overall (Jr) 3-star. He has A+ potential too so he actually should be a draft pick in 2 seasons and really good road-grader until then. Next to him is last years Santiago: a blue chip A- potential who made a jump to ~B+ level and similarly has 2 more years to get starting progressions. There's an immediate drop to C+ guys behind them but this is a strong long term starting unit	2	Oster is an ok depth 3-star guy and Mardis sucks. Bit of a mid class here	C
OLB	B+	OLB is actually looking pretty good. They have a trio of juniors a pair of whom are low B+ guys. I think they get 2 years of starting and Mitch Brown takes a redshirt so he can get a year at the end. Their underclassmen are a little thinner with just two C overalls from last years class	2	I like Dennis Lara, 3-star A potential should grow well. I don't care for Hinton though and think he will always be bad	C+
OT	B+/A-	Just like OG they have a really solid OT room. This year it's Pressly as an A- and Shields as a B+. With 2 and 3 years respectively they have a STRONG future in a year or 2. they've signed a ton of B potential 3 stars behind them to grow and frankly I think it's a solid setup	2	Warmerdam fits the 3 star B potential mold as a development guy. Knox is not quite as good but both are possible senior starters	C/C+
P	C+	Same as kicker, they have a fine senior and a fine guy from last year. Good enough	1	Took a walk on, don't care	-
QB	B	I think it's pretty clear the coaches are all in on (So) Alcides Holden. A scrambling QB with very good athletic attributes he does still need to learn the finer points about throwing the football (C- TP/TA). Jake Dozier is the senior balanced QB who wanted to make a run at being the starter as he is the worse athlete but has B-/B throwing attributes. However with the run blockers and RB room I think Holden actually fits the offense better and gets much needed starting snaps for progressions. I think he'll be a great player as an upperclassmen and they just want him to be "good enough" this year to make a bowl	1	Who will be Holden's future replacement? It won't be Pfeiff, the scrambling 3 star they signed here. He's fine depth but just isn't as competitive as the rest of the room. look for their future starter to be signed this next class or the year after	C
RB	A-/A	Troy Young is clearly the best offensive player and going to make a run at being a draft pick. the A overall speed back has 4.3 speed and is strong to boot plus a good pass blocker. I think he's going to be the centerpiece of this offense and Utah goes as far as he takes them. They even have a good second option as Joe Lopez is a B+ (So) power back. Different styles but a nice continuation of talent. Only Lopez and Jensen on the roster after this year though so need to get some guys	2	There was an in-state 5 star that left the state, but Utah doesn't care too much as they signed a pair of 4-stars: receiving B overall John Lewis and balanced B+ potential Rong Fua. This is a deadly duo for years to come and with Joe Lopez are a scary prospect to face for anyone looking to key on a particular running back	A-
SS	C+	Captain Wilson has a dope name and is a 2-star B- starter here. He's got ok zone skills but not so great at anything else. The other 2 guys in the room are C+/C overalls and they don't have a great future pipeline here either	1	Another good name with Mason Weiner. The 4-star California zone kid is a B overall with B+ potential and is actually one of the best SS prospects in the class. Frankly it'll be a battle to see if he wins the starting spot as a true freshman or takes a redshirt and starts once Captain leaves. Either way its 4 years of Weiner in the future.	A-
TE	C-	This should be a key position for the running based offense but it doesn't have key personnel. Cyrus Perkins is the number one option as a C+ vertical threat. Not ideal. Behind him are a pair of C+/C- sophomores who also don't inspire a ton of fear and gameplanning. Would like to see them hit this position a bit	1	Mejilla is a really solid blue chipper from Florida with A potential. A blocker he is going to be a great complement to the ground and pound with some timely leak outs. He could start this year and probably should. Very timely addition but I think they still need another 1 or 2 signees next year	B/B+
WR	B+	Not an important room but they have some good players still. Antetokoumpo is a route runner (not basketball player) who's an A overall and will absolutely be Holden's first read in almost all situtaions. Liebl is a blue chip from last season who's a current B overall and just going to get better in the future. They've got an ok future pipeline too if nothing crazy	2	They picked up another instate blue chip red zone threat Kenneth Novak. That should be a good fit for this offense honestly. John Diggs is just an ok player. Given how run focused they are they really just need classes like this to keep defenses honest	C+/B-

I didn't realize this was a borderline top-10 class but honestly it kinda fits. They signed quite a few impact players and matched it up pretty perfectly at positions where they can actually have a big impact. Their roster wasn't completely overhauled in one year, but this is about as good a class as you can reasonably expect on a yearly basis. I think if they replicate this next year focusing on the positions that they didn't hit this year they'll have the groundwork to be strong contenders in the big 12 for years to come.

 

Class Grade: B+

 

 

 

United States Naval Academy

American Athletic Conference

2023: 9-4 (6-2)
 

Recruiting Class Basics:

Navy signed 9 4-stars, 12 3-stars, and 1 2-star. They signed 18 players with B or better potentials and 4 B overalls. Rankings below:

ESPN: 46th
Rivals: 14th
247: 7th

Composite: 14th

 

Signees below:

School	Name	Stars	Ovr	Pot	Pos	Archetype	City	State
NAVY	Boaz Saint-Vil	4	B-	C-	C	Balanced	Hyattsville	MD
NAVY	Jerome Debarge	4	B-	A-	CB	Man Coverage	Woodbridge	VA
NAVY	Brian Ross	3	C	B+	CB	Ball Hawk	Kennett	MO
NAVY	Frederick Anderson	3	C	B	DE	Run Stopper	Coal City	IL
NAVY	Tu Guduru	3	C	C	DE	Balanced	West Orange	NJ
NAVY	Kent Fehrs	3	C	B	DE	Speed Rusher	Seattle	WA
NAVY	James Clark	4	C	B	DT	Pass Rusher	San Angelo	TX
NAVY	Jesus Pimienta	3	C	B	DT	Balanced	Hesperia	CA
NAVY	Robert Savoia	3	C	B+	FB	Blocking	Altamonte Springs	FL
NAVY	Seth Jones	0	D	A+	FS	Run Stopper	Brunswick	MD
NAVY	Charles Simpson	3	C	A	ILB	Field General	Fort Myers	FL
NAVY	Christopher Smith	0	D	F	ILB	Speed	Wilmington	DE
NAVY	Ernesto Rosales	4	B-	B+	OG	Balanced	Cinnaminson	NJ
NAVY	Robert Hamblin	3	C	B+	OG	Run Blocking	Jacksonville	FL
NAVY	David Robles	3	C	A	OLB	Speed	Norton	OH
NAVY	Thomas Mckinnon	3	C	B	OT	Balanced	Clarksville	OH
NAVY	Eric Perry	4	C+	B-	P	Accuracy	Forestville	MD
NAVY	Edward Glaser	3	C	B+	QB	Pocket	Kingsland	GA
NAVY	Fidel Vazquez	3	C	B	RB	Balanced	Seminole	FL
NAVY	David Wanat	0	D	C+	RB	Speed	Dover	DE
NAVY	Ray Burke	4	C+	B+	SS	Zone Coverage	Burnt Hills	NY
NAVY	Kristopher Bowmen	4	C+	A-	TE	Vertical Threat	Hialeah	FL
NAVY	Edward Milton	4	B-	C+	WR	Possesion	Columbia	MO
NAVY	Nicolas Burrows	4	C+	C+	WR	Speed	Murfreesboro	TN
NAVY	Jeremy Vladimir	2	C	A+	WR	Speed	Jackson	TN

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+	Jake Smith probably takes the starting spot this season as a B- player who's good at pass blocking and that's it. He's graduating this year though and I think the future of the position is last years James Wydra, a current 3 star C+ overall.	1	Boaz Saint-Vil has a great name and is a B overall blue chip. He immediately jumps into the conversation and while I don't think he wins the job this year, I think he will be the long term starter as soon as next season	B/B+
CB	B	Josh Beebe is a really good A- true junior who can play with most WR1s. However it is a bit of a steep drop off behind him. O'Daniel is the nominal 2, but he's a zone guy and his man coverage skills are pretty bad. Craig Edmunds is the other B- option as a man corner. Next year they'll have a few 3 stars who are currently C+ and need to make a large jump	2	Jerome Debarge is an excellent pickup. The man specialist is a B overall with A- potential which puts him in the elite recruit tier and I think he's ready to be CB2 next season and CB1 the year after that. Brian Ross is a B+ potential 3 star so he has potential down the line. One more good man corner this next class and the room will look excellent	B+/A-
DE	B	A weird mix with half run stoppers and half speed rushers. Not sure which scheme accomodates both archetypes but there are options. Dzanan Huff is the A- in the room and R.J. Palka is a (Sr) B+ on the opposite side. They also have Kilgo as a B (Sr) if they decide to run double run stoppers. Michael Harris was another good pickup last season as a current B/B 4-star	3	A trio of slightly above average 3-stars demonstrating the commitment to diversity as they are all different archetypes. I'm pretty whelmed by them, it'll take a few years for one to separate as a starting option	C/C+
DT	B-?	I really can't tell what scheme fits them best, I think they have a lot of options with pros and cons. Ben Burbridge is their clear best player her, an A- nose tackle. Behind him (or alongside him) is David eliciano a B- junior. Last year they also signed a pair of 3 stars and that's the whole room.	2	They needed more players and got them. Jesus Pimienta is a normal 3-star and James Clark is a B potential 4 star (although he comes in as a C overall lower than last years signees). Either way, this is good depth coming up and a lot of solid options in the future	B-
FB	C-	Some pretty mediocre underclassmen here but hey, they're FBs	1	Signed a 3 star B+ potential guy. I guess that's pretty solid for the future	C+
FS	B-	Bernard Wilson was a clutch signee last season as the (Fr) blue chip is now the unquestioned starter at B- overall. He's a rangy zone cover guy with a high IQ and bad hands. I still like him though as a 4 year plan. The backups are all whatever and a step down	1	Took a random walkon	-
ILB	C+	When mixed with the DTs I'm not sure if they'll need 1 or 2. The only 2 good starting options are B/B- senior cover guys Desir and Tepesch. Solid cover skills but a bit weak in run defense. Last year they redshirted a nice blue chip run stopper who probably slots in as the starter next season. He's still only a C+ overall though	2	Simpsion is a 3 star A potential field general which I kinda like. I don't think he'll be ready for next season and doesn't seem *elite* yet so maybe they'll look for another blue chipper this upcoming class but the room is good enough right now	C+
K	B	B+ junior kicker is a good 2 year plan, they also have a B- (So) kicker in the future	0	Didn't take one, probably want to grab a guy next cycle	-
OG	B	Sheldon Palepoi moves up to B+ overall and takes one starting position. The junior is going to have another year as well. On the other side I guess it's Arik Smith, the B balanced senior. Or we could see an upset with CJ Mo Pena who's the B- guy in line behind Smith. The underclassmen are nothing to write home about except Vannata (Fr) with an A+ potential.	2	Ernesto Rosales is a really good pickup and he could challenge for OG2 by next season. The B overall 4-star with B+ potential is a really solid long term starter for the Midshipmen. They also took Hamblin, a B+ potential 3 star so this is a good class	B/B+
OLB	B+	This is a better room than ILB that's for sure. Marcus Pena is your gold standard A overall senior coverage backer. Alongside him is a tough choice between Hoomanawanui and Neasmann, a pair of B- pass rusher / run stoppers. You also have last years blue chip signee Villegas trying to push to get a starting spot above either of those 2 whether this year or next. A couple random sophomores too	1	Only 1 signee: David Robles, an A potential 3-star. It wasn't a huge need so Robles will have development time	C+
OT	B+	Even better than the OG room. Jo-Jo Faulkner is a nice A overall (Jr) run blocker paired with a (Sr) run blocking B+ on the other side. Definitely build for the outside runs. Behind them are a trio of B- players including Gillies a (Fr) B- pass blocker who likely slides in at RT next year. Maybe they need a hair more depth for the future but a lot of good players in this room who can't all play	1	Mckinnon is a C overall B potential 3 star. Balanced player but he isn't going to be called on for at least a few more years	C
P	C-	a mid B- senior punter and last year they signed a 2 star who's now C overall. Pretty below average punting options	1	Ah someone who values upgrading punters. Eric Perry is a rare blue chipper from Maryland with B- potential. He should slide right in as the starter next season	B+
QB	B+	Kyung Hui might not be the best player in this room. (Sr) Searcy has a better arm and (Jr) Nelson has a higher overall. But he's damn sure the starter the staff wants to see. A rare true freshman starter last season, Hui is a B overall now and should take another step in production. PMS gets the headline but Hui is also matching him as the future of the AAC QB elites.	1	Hui is the starter. They took a random 3 star just for depth. Glaser shouldn't ever play.	C
RB	B	Jerod Guy is the guy, a high B+ balanced RB who's a queen of all trades, kings of none. Behind him is last years blue chip receiving back Kirk Ragland who is a B- overall and a really strong contender for all-conference honors when he becomes an upperclassmen	2	With Ragland last year they didn't need much this year and didn't get much .Vazquez is a B potential 3 star so good to have as an off-year signee	C
SS	A	Roko Souza is a STUD. The A overall Junior is one of the best SS in the country and was a huge recruiting coup in the first place. Dude sets the tone for the secondary and has 2 years left here.Bundy is his B+ backup so an injury isn't crippling.	1	Time to find his replacement though. Ray Burke is a good looking option. A B+ potential 4-star he gets to redshirt and have a year to learn before taking over as a (So) himself. Nice timing	B+
TE	C-	This room is pretty rough. Nobody over a C+, only 3 options total (all receivers). They need a shot in the arm or to wait a few years	1	Bowmen is definitely that. A 4-star Vertical threat with A- potential, he walks in as a possible starter and is definitely at minimum the #2 guy for his career here. Adds in some high end talent to the room	B
WR	B+/A-	This is a better WR room than I expected. Tevin Griffin III is the A overall senior leader of the room. Everyone else is coming back next year. Sam Jones is a B+ and then they have a couple B overalls and B- overalls. A good mix of route runners and possession receivers. They had a small class last year but Gwynn was a 3-star who jumped to B- overall during a redshirt year! that's great to see	3	This was a denser class with a pair of blue chips. Ed Milton is the B overall and Burrows is the C overall 4 star. Both are going to bolster the room and it looks like Hui will have a continuous stream of good targets.	B

 

 

This was a slightly smaller class with only 18 signees, but they definitely had high quality. They clearly focused on staggering priorities, with the rooms having a great young player getting depth signees, and the rooms with no young stars got a nice infusion of good talent. It might not be the "sexiest" signing class but I think it was highly effective and is a long term sustainable approach to building a strong overall team

 

Class Grade: B+

 

 

 

University of West Virginia

Big 12 Conference

2023: 3-9 (1-8)
 

Recruiting Class Basics:

WVU signed 6 4-stars, 9 3-stars, and 8 2-stars. They signed 9 players with B or better potentials and 3 B overalls. Rankings below:

ESPN: 59th
Rivals: 28th
247: 25th

Composite: 24th

 

Signees below:

School	Name	Stars	Ovr	Pot	Pos	Archetype	City	State
WVU	Thomas Esteves	3	C+	B	C	Pass Blocking	San Antonio	TX
WVU	Emiliano Garcia	3	C	A	CB	Zone Coverage	Benton	LA
WVU	Robert Horne	3	C	C+	CB	Zone Coverage	Oviedo	FL
WVU	Ruben Rodriguez	2	D	B-	DE	Run Stopper	Metter	GA
WVU	Robert Kaylor	2	D	C+	DE	Balanced	Powell	OH
WVU	Dennis English	3	C	B	DT	Nose Tackle	Indianapolis	IN
WVU	Donald Matthew	0	D	F	DT	Nose Tackle	Clarksburg	WV
WVU	Bradley Stradley	0	C+	A	FB	Blocking	Keyser	WV
WVU	Jose Arostegui	4	C+	C	ILB	Field General	Fairfield	TX
WVU	Jimmy Clark	2	D	A	ILB	Speed	Moon Township	PA
WVU	Harry Hacker	3	C	B+	K	Power	Big Harry Island	SC
WVU	Shaun Obin	4	B-	B	OG	Pass Blocking	Clairton	PA
WVU	Rocco Knepper	2	C	C	OG	Run Blocking	Strongsville	OH
WVU	Timothy Wilson	4	C+	C+	OLB	Pass Rush	Brooksville	FL
WVU	Bryan Burch	2	D	B	OLB	Pass Rush	Steubenville	OH
WVU	Oscar Ray	4	B-	B-	OT	Balanced	Edgard	LA
WVU	Donald Dunlap	3	C+	C	OT	Run Blocking	Groveland	FL
WVU	Heriberto Vidaurri	2	C	B-	OT	Balanced	Brunswick	MD
WVU	Hunter Potter	3	C	C+	QB	Pocket	South Wayne	WI
WVU	Rodney Lasko	2	D	D+	QB	Pocket	Reading	PA
WVU	Johnny Arreola	3	C	C	RB	Receiving	Immokalee	FL
WVU	Donald Commins	3	C+	C+	SS	Zone Coverage	Baxley	GA
WVU	Derek Bryan	4	C+	B+	TE	Vertical Threat	Charleston	WV
WVU	Anthony Wright	2	D	B-	TE	Receiving	Columbus	OH
WVU	Mathew Bundick	4	B-	C	WR	Speed	Monroe	LA

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+	Jack Day is not very good, but at least he has another year to captain the line and improve. Definitely a weak spot in the OL with only one other player in the room	1	Esteves is certainly an improvement with B potential, but he probably isn't going to leapfrog Day so you're looking at 2 years and then he probably gets the job ahead of Feaster.	C+
CB	B+	Actually a really good setup here (if you ignore the archetypes). Andre Bell is a true A overall talent and gets another year left of sticking on a WR1 before he gets drafted pretty high. Behind him are a pair of B overall signees from last years class. Wheeler and Francis: a zone corner and ball hawk respectively. The only question here is whether they make Bell play out of his natural type or everyone else.	2	Looks like they're going down the zone corner route. Garcia is a great pickup with A potential and can wait a while. Horne is just an average guy. Still, with last years class there's not much room for anyone else to start for a few years anyways	C+
DE	B	Just ok this year, but with room to grow. Gonzalez and Cabral are going to bookend it, but it may be hard to keep Hubbard out of a starting spot for two more years. That trio of (Jr) - (Fr) are going to be problems, although there's not much else in the room	2	Signed a pair of 2 star D overalls. They should never start and I expect this to be a priority position for the next cycle	C-
DT	B/B+	Riley Jennings is very good and as an A- already will have 3 years of great production. I assume Givens Williams will take duties next to him until he graduates. Surprisingly they signed no DTs last year	2	Hm, Dennis English is ok, but not spectacular. I think this next cycle they'll definitely need to get back on the trail and get a future good starter.	C
FB	B	good senior blocking FB, ok sophomore one. Good enough	1	Got lucky with a high end blocking walkon here. C+ overall, A potential makes him next years starter (if they need one)	-
FS	B+	Ryan Davis definitely looks good as an A- this year, but is mostly run support. The future of the position here is last years signee Justin Hesse who is a (Fr) 4-star B- overall and will need to jump Gurley if he wants to start by next year. They have a couple other B/B- players in the room too so it's quite busy	0	Like I said, pretty crowded already and they passed on signing another	-
ILB	C+	Just ok here. I guess they're running a 4-3 but a B overall still isn't the best thing to have manning the middle. Castillo is perfectly capable of stopping the run but not a whlole lot else. Pretty mid prospects in the pipeline too	2	Arostegui is definitely better than a mid prospect, but it's up in the air if he'll surpass Condo by next season or have to wait an extra year. Still puts ILB firmly in the "safe" territory though when looking at the roster	B-
K	C	A pair of B- senior options and then a 2 star C overall from last cycle. Pretty average at this spot	1	Harry Hacker has a dope name, B+ potential, and almost certainly gets the nod next year through whenever he graduates	B-/B
OG	B-/B	It's relatively weak for this season, but they lose nobody after the year so it projects well here. A bunch of pass blockers including B+ (Jr) Gosewisch and B (Fr) Hattenbach as the presumed starters. Hattenbach in particular is a long term guy who will get his 4 years here. Only 1 other player in the room so a bit injury susceptible.	2	Shaun Obin is a STRONG pickup as a B overall, B potential guy. I don't think he can pass the 2 starters who are locked in this year and next so I assume he'll slide in when he's a (So) and will be pretty seamless. Also a 2 star for injury concerns	B/B+
OLB	B	Chris Cecil is an A- coverage guy who should be pretty dangerous. On the other side they have a bunch of pass rushing options. (So) Mike Johnson is the best of the bunch with a B overall and gets a few years of starts. Once Cecil leaves the position is kind of up for grabs though	2	Timothy Wilson might be a candidate to take over next year. The 4 star pass rusher is right in the thick of the rest of the pack. Kareem Sierra might out-touch him, we'll see but Wilson is a good bet as a long term starter. Bryan Burch is whatever	B-/B
OT	B	Really deep here. Fields and Mikolas are the only B+ guys in the room and definitely get the starts, but they'll be graduating at the end of the year. They have a triplet of (Jr)/(So) B- players to succeed them. Last year they only took 1 3-star so kind of due for a few	3	A triple is a good amount. Vidaurri isn't very good, Dunlap is ok, but the real gem is Oscar Ray. A 4 star B overall, B- potential, I think he will steal one of those starting spots next year and lock it down for years.	B
P	C-	One guy on the roster, a C overall punter. Scarce	0	No injury backup is an interesting choice. Should probably take a flyer on a guy at the end of this cycle but I guess it's the second least important position	-
QB	A-	Craig Guzman is a very, very athletic guy without a good arm. I have a feeling he'll get flexed to RB/WR hybrid and make way for Dzanan Reid. Reid was part of the inaugural 2021 class and has a pretty damn strong arm with a B+ overall. He should have the job locked down for the next few years and look to push himself as one of the better QBs in his class	2	Potter and Lasko are not going to start here so I won't bother writing about them. Maybe this year or next they get Reid's future heir	C
RB	A-/A	With Guzman coming in it's a really scary group. Chad Dolis is an A overall (Sr) receiving back and dangerous in pretty much everyway. The two of them combined make for an extremely potent combination. You also have (So) March-Lillard coming up the pipeline as a B overall speed back. Good assemblage of talent here	1	Arreola is not really the same caliber as the current starting backs and it's probably time to find somebody who is	C
SS	B+	Another run stopper safety, Dante Smith is an A- overall and has another year left on the roster. I like him as a player, but the room overall is a bit thin as Rohan Williams from last year is the only other SS in the room. I guess they can always flex some FS over if they need to	1	Donald Commins gives them 3 in here, but a 3 star CC guy isn't lighting up the message boards. Just ok	C
TE	B-	Anthony Jackson and Juan Corral will be good in the future but as B- players right now they aren't quite there yet. While they are only a (Jr)/(Fr) now, they are also the only options so look for a few more players to flesh out the room	2	Derek Bryan is a great add. The rare WV blue chip, he has B+ potential and makes this room legit good for the future. Wright is just injury filler	B
WR	B	They have a good trio of seniors in Gilbert / Purcell / Nix, but all those guys have one hurrah and then leave. Behind that are a B- (So) and then a bunch of C+ underclassmen. None of them strike me as future gamebreakers	1	They have the numbers but not as much break out talent. This class has the talent but only 1 player so it's a good fit lol. Bundick is a track star blue chip B overall and may not crack the starting lineup this year but could be WR1b by next season. Great add, and they'll probably get a complement or 2 for him next cycle	B-/B

 

 

Honestly the roster has had an amazing turnaround from their generation as one of the weakest schools. I think they are competent to good just about everywhere and should see a huge uptick in performance and wins this season. As for the class, it's hard because last year had a lot of impact players in line for years of contributions and this class seemed a little weaker in comparison. They certainly have some good players but TE/WR might be the only positions where they'll see a big impact in the near future. Idk I would've liked to see either a similar class as last year or a heavy focus on potential but this seemed more like a waiting class before they hit some needs next year. Still good though and will keep them as a good team in the future

 

Class Grade: C+/B-

 

 

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
San Jose State	C	12
Utah State	B	12
Utah	B+	13
Navy	B+	13
West Virginia	C+/B-	13
Tennessee	A	Not Published Lmk if anyone wants to see

 

 

[smackemz]

Fair assessment of WVU's class.  We got pretty unlucky with some favored flips, so it really was a salvage class.