2020 Recruiting Class Revisited Part 3

[tsweezy]

Now the fun stuff: Going over the top talent in 2020 and what they've done so far (up to the start of this season, I'm not looking up interface stats for all these people for the current year). My (247) 2020 rankings 1-20 and the top 3 at each position as high school croots.

 

#1 Overall - Nathan Hungalu - Balanced OT. 5 star, A overall, C+ potential, committed to BAMA.

Alabama scores a good one here from Carrollton, Georgia. He had the highest potential grade of any of the A overall players. An absolute stud of a signing. He is currently a senior who has played 2,836 snaps and recorded 14 pancakes with 8 sacks allowed. A bit high on the sack numbers, he has A+ run blocking and A pass blocking so could use a little more pass pro practice. 

#2 Overall - Matt Corbin - Zone Coverage CB. 5 star, B overall, A- potential. Committed to GT.

I decided the B overall high potential players were more enticing than the A overall lower potentials. Out of character for me I know. Anyways, Matt Corbin is part of the strongest CB class I've seen with great size at 5'11. He's from Atlanta and stayed there with Georgia Tech. He took a redshirt so only a RS JR with another year of ball left. Really the only left for him to improve is his catching as he is not much of a ballhawk. He doesn't get thrown at often, only recording 14 PDs and 4 INTs in 2237 snaps. He also has done pretty well as a return man. 

#3 overall - Taylor Allen - Vertical Threat TE. 5 star, B overall, A- potential. Committed to UCLA.

By far the best TE in this class and it isn't close. Absolutely dominant attribute sheet and looks like a total monster. Was a good pairing for a few years with Hiram, and now gets a year to break in the new QB before going pro. A big play threat he has over 2k receiving yards on a ~14 YPC average with 21 TDs. He's seen some work as a return man too and added a tackle on special teams. He's obviously a special talent in the receiving game and has mostly lived up to his billing. The only thing I would look for is better blocking as he's recorded just 2 pancakes in his 3 years. 

#4 overall - Jalen Jones - Speed Rusher DE. 5 star, B overall, A- potential. Committed to UNC.

Jalen Jones had people really excited back in 2020. He was an absolute athletic phenom with high potential. The "knock" was that he was very much a true pass rush specialist who wasn't phenomenal at run defense and that still mostly holds true. Entering his senior year he honestly hasn't really lived up to the hype. He's had plenty of playing time, 2100 snaps. But he only has 69 tackles, 18 TFL, and just 7 sacks to show for it. He hasn't been stuffing the stat sheet and given his reputation of just aiming for the QB he doesn't seem to have contributed to that great of overall team success either. A bit of a letdown from the lofty recruiting rank.

#5 overall - Rodney Ladler - Run Blocking OT. 5 star, A overall, C potential. Committed to New Mexico

While Nathan got the #1 slot, Rodney wasn't far behind. A bit undersized at 6'4 298, he made up for it with a vicious mean streak. A run blocker through and through he was very unpolished in pass pro (and has short arms) but could absolutely move people. He wound up committing to UNM who have used him well. Going into his senior season he's actually led the nation with 31 career pancakes!! Add that to only 4 sacks allowed and you can see why he's in the mix for a top-5 draft slot. Definitely deserved his top-5 rank.

#6 overall - Mitch Forrest - Zone Coverage CB. 5 star, A overall, C potential. Committed to Texas A&M

Our 2nd CB in the top-10, it was tough to differentiate the top trio at the position. In the end Mitch has been pretty solid at TAMU. Does not have good hands, definitely a pure zone cover guy, but he also has a paucity of stats. He saw the field the 8th most of any player the last 3 seasons and recorded a nice 159 tackles and 3 FF... but only 9 PDs and 4 INTs. Kinda odd to see a star corner get almost as many forced fumbles as INTs. I'd say his cover skills are good-great but not top-10 level. He's also shown great flashes in the return game though so that's a plus skill.

#7 overall - Bobby Gonzalez - Ball Hawk CB. 5 star, A overall, C potential. Committed to ODU.

And our third of the top-10 CBs, and the one that went to the smallest school: ODU. Bobby was a physical player known for getting to the ball. He is very athletic, good in run support, and equally good for zone or man schemes (although not S-tier in either). He's developed into almost inarguably the best corner for this NFL draft class and doesn't really have much to work on. He's been the top CB every year at ODU and racked up 129 tackles, 2 FF, 12 PD, and is 2nd in career INTs with 17(!) including a pick 6. Skills, reputation, and production. The man has basically everything you could ask for including return production. Likely in the mix to be the first defensive selection in the draft.

#8 overall - Oren Colon - Route Runner WR. 5 star, A overall, C potential. Committed to TCU.

Colon is our last of the 5 "A" overall recruits and the only non-OL/CB. The #1 ranked WR who was part of the star-studded TCU class, he was classified as a technician. A maestro at route running with crisp routes, shoulder wiggles and a repertoire of moves, he was open all the time, even if the catch / after catch was slightly weaker. He became Solano's favorite target, and blew everyone in the class away with production, 5000 yards in 3 seasons, plus 40 TDs, 1500 yards more than 2nd place. He's a prime example of on the field mattering more than an attribute card as he (as a senior) still only has A speed, A- strength, and most surprising of all, B+ catching. That shows in his just average return ability, but man when he's open all the time you take those weaknesses.

#9 overall - Travis Cravens - Run Stopper ILB. 5 star, B overall, B+ potential. Committed to TCU.

Another TCU player, Cravens was billed as an old school thumper MLB and TCU has used him A LOT. at 3802 snaps in 3 seasons he leads the entire class of 2020 in playing time. He's more of an instinctive player than top tier athlete which might cause a pause when evaluating at the next level, but he was dominant in college. Leading the class in tackles with 253, he added a tops 58 tackles for loss, plus 2 FF and 3 INTs. I mean he's everything you want at his position and delivered on the potential and hype.

#10 overall - Denver Litton - Balanced DT. 5 star, B overall, B+ potential. Committed to Wisconsin

The best interior D lineman, he committed to one of the legendary DL coaches at Wisconsin. A versatile player he has the size and skills to handle any offense. Basically amazing at everything except without running a 4.4 40. He was pretty dang productive too. 173 tackles, 44.5 TFL, 9 sacks. 5 star talent and should succeed at the next level.

#11 overall - Josh Gaudin - Red Zone Threat WR. 5 star, B overall, B+ potential. Committed to Notre Dame

Attributes wise, I think Gaudin was a bit overrated. He doesn't have elite athleticism, and Red Zone Threat guys are generally looked down on as the weakest archetype. He doesn't even have prototypical jump ball size being only 6'3 218. He did play great within scheme though, getting 2149 yards on frankly a pretty damn good catch percentage along with 21 touchdowns. He also had a cheeky 2 pancakes so if he ends up on a run first team it could actually pan out pretty well.

#12 overall - Drew Parsons - Pass Rush OLB. 4 star B overall, A+ potential. Committed to CMU.

Parsons wasn't the most polished high school player, but that A+ potential really enticed us into ranking him this high. Unfortunately he hasn't developed as quickly as expected and attributes aren't amazing yet. He struggled to get on the field early with only 400 snaps in his first 3 years, 23 tackles, 4 TFL, and 1 sack as an edge rusher isn't phenomenal. A disappointment so far.

#13 overall - Brian Ciuffo - Zone Coverage CB. 4 star B overall, A+ potential. Committed to Troy.

Like I said, an absolutely LOADED zone CB class. We trusted Ciuffo would grow into a star and by attributes, he really has. He's just as good as any of the 5 stars and still has more development before the draft. A little overlooked due to school, but Troy gave him 3478 snaps and made him a return man. 138 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 FF, 7 PDs, and 8 INTs. He's been pretty good, but not the tops so far, but his trajectory is still on the up and I believe he's put himself in discussion as a 1st round possible talent. 

#14 overall - A.J. Kanter - Balanced OG. 5 star B overall, B potential. Committed to Wisconsin.

Kanter took the reverse route of usual, going from Mississippi to Wisconsin. He was lauded as a top tier OG prospect, great at everything. He took a surprise red shirt so is only a (JR) this year, but started both of his eligible seasons. He's an athletic marvel and will test great in SPARQ stats. However technically he's *still* unpolished. Only an A- in pass/run blocking, he's a stereotypical jack of all trades which hurts his value. Production wise even with the RS year he hasn't amazed. Only 3 pancakes and 4 sacks allowed just isn't really notable.

#15 overall - Benardrick Goodwin - Pass Rush OLB. 5 star B overall, B potential. Committed to LSU.

Another Mississippi kid who stayed closer to home, Goodwin had prototypical OLB size at 6'3 232 and went to nearby LSU. His athletic profile is... different than expected, but it's paid off. He's seen the field 3333 snaps, and recorded more havoc than basic plays. 106 tackles, 27.5 TFL, 15.5 sacks, 2 FFs, and a pick 6. I think he's made a name for himself with some unorthodox skills.

#16 overall - Devonte Todd - Zone Coverage CB. 5 star B overall, B potential. Committed to UTSA.

Todd got a ton of snaps and is A+ at everything except strength (and horrible hands). UTSA let him roam and be a return man, but he ran himself out of a lot of plays. Only 97 tackles, 3 TFLs, 1 PD, and 1 INT doesn't scream "star player" to me. We'll see if he tests well at the combine. 

#17 overall - Brandon Ioannidis - Run Stopper SS. 5 star, B overall, B- potential. Committed to FSU.

Part of a top 2020 class with FSU, Ioannidis brought some swagger and laid the wood at camps. Even as a senior he's not particularly good at coverage and not incredibly smart, but playing as basically a LB he did pretty well. 3000 snaps, 195 tackles, 4 TFLs, 1 PD, and a surprising 4 INTs. We don't have a metric for hard hits, but overall it seems like he kept his status as one of the top SS in his class.

#18 overall - Omarius Beasley - Speed Rusher DE. 5 star. B overall, B- potential. Committed to Oklahoma.

A bit underweight for a DE at 6'4 234, Beasley attributes are as expected: twitchy as hell but a little soft against the run. I don't particularly respect the OU AI coach, and he missed a season of playing time with only 2327 snaps. When he was allowed on the field though he's been a monster. 92 tackles, 35 TFL, and 15.5 sacks has him solidified as a top-tier pass rusher. 

#19 overall - Daniel Hester - Red Zone Threat WR. 5 star, B overall, B- potential. Committed to Auburn.

Forming a close bond with Moncrief, Hester was the 2nd leading receiver in this class. 3457 yards, a good catch ratio, and 28 TDs, he overcame his lack of breakaway speed (only B+ speed as a senior). 

#20 overall - Victor Selsky - Run Blocking OT. 5 star, B overall, B- potential. Committed to Boise State.

Another run focused OL among the 5 stars. Selsky went up to Boise State and took a redshirt. Strong as shit and amazing at pushing people, but with a current B in pass pro he is definitely not a versatile player. In his 2 years starting he has 13 pancakes and 2 sacks allowed. So after 2024 and 2025 he may be the first OL drafted to a run heavy team.

 

Now that we've run through the top-20 overall prospects, here's some short-hand information for who 247 identified as the top-3 prospects at each position:

QB:

#1 - Scott Romero - Pocket - Ball State

#2 - Michael Oliveros - Scrambler - Kentucky

#3 - Travis Kingery - Balanced - Bowling Green

RB:

#1 - Richaun Alsadek - Balanced - Nebraska

#2 - Tremaine Craig - Power - Marshall

#3 - Jonathon Perez - Balanced - Army

WR:

#1 - Oren Colon - Route Runner - TCU

#2 - Daniel hester - Red Zone Threat - Auburn

#3 - Josh Gaudin - Red Zone Threat - Notre Dame

TE:

#1 - Taylor Allen - Vertical Threat - UCLA

#2 - Torrey Barbato - Receiving - Notre Dame

#3 - Eric Braverman - Receiving - Michigan

OT:

#1 - Nathan Hungalu - Balanced - Alabama

#2 - Rodney Ladler - Run Blocking - New Mexico

#3 - Victor Selsky - Run Blocking - Boise State

OG:

#1 - AJ Kanter - Balanced - Wisconsin

#2 - Casey Hatcher - Balanced - Western Kentucky

#3 - John Sanchez - Run Blocking - Colorado

😄

#1 - Garrett Witherspoon - Run Blocking - UNLV

#2 - Shawn Ogbuehi - Run Blocking - Colorado

#3 - Julio Robinson - Pass Blocking - Ole Miss

DE:

#1 - Jalen Jones - Speed Rusher - UNC

#2 - Omarius Beasley - Speed Rusher - Oklahoma

#3 - Preston Snodgress - Run Stopper - Memphis

DT:

#1 - Denver Litton - Balanced - Wisconsin

#2 - Caleb Reiter - Balanced - Oklahoma State

#3 - Mickey Oxspring - Nose Tackle - Memphis

OLB:

#1 - Drew Parsons - Pass Rush - CMU

#2 - Benardrick Goodwin - Pass Rush - LSU

#3 - Joshua Bacon - Coverage - Missouri

ILB:

#1 - Travis Cravens - Run Stopper - TCU

#2 - Robertson Moore - Speed - WMU

#3 - Weston Shackelford - Speed - Alabama

CB:

#1 - Matt Corbin - Zone Coverage - GT

#2 - Mitch Forrest - Zone Coverage - TAMU

#3 - Bobby Gonzalez - Ball hawk - ODU

FS:

#1 - Devonte Todd - Zone Coverage - UTSA

#2 - Phillip Rogers - Run Stopper - Iowa State

#3 - Steven Aguilar - Ball Hawk - Oklahoma

SS:

#1 - Brandon Ioannidis - Run Stopper - FSU

#2 - Ryan Blacknall - Run Stopper - BYU

#3 - John David - Ball Hawk - UMass

 

Edited June 9 by tsweezy

[DarthJarJar]

Good article. Rodney Ladler should be going #1 overall.