Stanford, West Virginia and the 5 others with big recruiting wins Wednesday
Signing Day is less than a week away, but dozens of recruits made their decisions Wednesday.
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David Shaw picked up Wednesday’s top commitment, landing four-star San Diego cornerback Frank Buncom IV. The 6’2, 190-pound Buncom held offers from Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Nebraska and UCLA, among others, but the prospect had narrowed his list down to Stanford, Cal, Vanderbilt and Notre Dame. Taking away a highly coveted prospect from their rivals in Berkeley is always nice for the Cardinal, but especially so on defense -- the Bears need the help, while Stanford continues to build one of the nation’s top units on that side of the ball. Rule of Tree reached out to a recruiting expert for more on the prospect:
He’s very instinctual as a run defender and takes efficient angles to the ball. Also, he’s disciplined and sets a hard edge, funneling runs back inside when playing the cornerback position. At safety, he fills the alleys aggressively. Has plus level closing burst and can re-direct his momentum in traffic to track ball carriers.
West Virginia Mountaineers
Dana Holgorsen added an important piece to his 2015 class, as Miami wide receiver/safety Shaquery Wilson pledged to West Virginia Wednesday. A three-star prospect, Wilson had previously committed to Georgia, visiting the Mountaineers last weekend and committing after an in-home visit. The three-star Coral Gables Senior (Fla.) prospect previously had a visit to Florida scheduled for this weekend, but has since canceled.
Minnesota Golden Gophers
Minnesota added another piece to their defensive backfield Wednesday, gaining a commitment from composite three-star Southfield (Mich.) prospect Dior Johnson. Johnson had pledged to Wake Forest earlier in the month (for the second time, he first committed back in August), but an official visit to the Twin Cities and an in-home visit from head coach Jerry Kill helped sway his decision. Minnesota fans at The Daily Gopher are excited -- Johnson is the first Rivals four-star defensive prospect to commit to the team in the Kill era.
Dior could easily develop into a complete safety prospect for Coach Sawvel, one who is physical enough to fill run fits in the alleys and the box, or turn and run with tight ends/slot receivers. He can play center field, though he's at his best moving forward. The length and speed combo may also allow the staff to use Johnson in the role Cedric Thompson played this season, which was more coverage and match-up based. In reality, Dior's versatility against both the run and the pass gives him perhaps the highest ceiling of any defensive back they've brought in to date -- especially at safety.
Louisville Cardinals
Recruiting is weird. Recruiting is very, very weird. Three-star Miami defensive back Sheldrick Redwine first committed to Louisville in early January and then said he was ‘60 percent committed’ to the Cardinals. He decommitted from Louisville on Tuesday, and was widely expected to flip to Auburn (a new mid-January offer). Instead, Redwine committed to the Cardinals Wednesday, giving them a key secondary addition (again).
Redwine's decision to remain in Louisville's class, regardless of the reason, is a great boost at a position of need. With the loss of James Sample, Terell Floyd, Gerod Holliman, and Charles Gaines, Louisville badly needs to sign several defensive backs that can contribute right away. Redwine should have plenty of opportunities to see the field in 2015.
Houston Cougars
Any time a non-power conference school can steal a prospect away from power conference school suitors, it’s a significant win. New Houston head coach Tom Herman accomplished just that Wednesday, snagging a commitment from three-star Louisiana offensive guard Kameron Eloph. The 6’3, 277 pound Parkway High prospect chose the Cougars over offers from Georgia Tech, Louisville and Wake Forest, among others, and was previously committed to Louisiana Tech. He’s rated as the second-best player in Houston’s recruiting class, behind three-star running back Tyreik Gray (offers from Notre Dame, Georgia, Oklahoma and Baylor, among many others).
Texas Tech Red Raiders
Texas Tech needs big receivers for their system to function at its best, and they added another Wednesday. Ennis (Texas) prospect Donta Thompson, reportedly standing at 6’6 and 210 pounds, committed to the Red Raiders over offers from Illinois, Colorado and Purdue, among others. Thompson had an incredibly productive senior year, catching 77 passes for 1,453 yards and 16 touchdowns, and Texas Tech fans at Viva the Matadors like what they see:
Thompson has better than average agility. Most of his catches aren’t necessarily acrobatic, although there are plenty where he has to lay out to make a catch and a few times that he has to go up and get the ball, but I think that’s due to his height more than anything else, not agility. I do very much like his body control, his hands and his ability to focus on the ball. It seems like Thompson always has a defender on him, which means that he has to have terrific hands, the ability to focus and enough body control to keep the defender away from the ball.
Wyoming Cowboys
Yes, Wyoming. While these other schools made the list by grabbing an important prospect away from tough competition, Craig Bohl’s Cowboys squad makes the cut through sheer quantity. Wyoming picked up four commitments Wednesday -- Washington wide receiver James Price, Wyoming wide receiver Logan Wilson, Wyoming outside linebacker Josh Harshman and Oklahoma running back Jaylon Watson. None of the prospects report other FBS offers (Price was offered by Eastern Washington and Portland State, among other FCS schools), but it helps fill out a class currently ranked fifth in the Mountain West Conference.
