Commit Update:
Commit LS Drew Little has received a ratings upgrade on 24/7 and Scout.  He is now the #2 Long Snapper in the country (still a 2*) recruit.

Rising O-Line Prospect:
3* OT Jeremy James (North Forsyth HS – Georgia).  6’5″, 305.  Impressed a lot of people at The Opening Combine in late March.  We were his first offer and we are in great position for him right now.  When it is all said and done, I fully expect him to be a 4* recruit.

New Offers:

Tykee Smith (3* S/CB ) – Imhotep Charter School – Philadelphia, PA. Rated as high as the #31 Safety.

Renardo Green (3* S/CB/WR) – Wekiva HS – Apopka, FL

Tyrique Stevenson (4* CB/WR) – South Dade HS – Homestead, FL. Rated as high as the #8 Cornerback.

Kalani Norris (3* WR) – Columbus HS – Miami, FL. Rated as high as the #72 Wide Receiver.

New Emerging Prospects:

Keep an eye on QB Brian Maurer to potentially get an offer when he visits Raleigh for the Spring Game.  He currently does not have an offer, but he is rated as high as the #14 Pro-Style QB in the country by Rivals and 24/7 sports/Scout.  Maurer is from Ocala, Florida, and is 6’4″, 195.  Sam Johnson would be another QB to keep an eye on because he has us in his top 5, but we have not offered a scholarship to him yet.

Keep an eye on O-Linemen Reece McIntyre and Carter Colquitt.  Both attend Buford HS in Georgia and both might be coming for the Spring Game.  We have looked good for Colquitt for a while and we are picking up a lot of momentum for McIntyre lately.  Both are solid 3* prospects on all services and are playing on an absolutely loaded O-Line (maybe the country’s best HS O-Line overall in fall 2018).

Keep an eye on 4* CB DJ Turner from South Gwinnett HS (GA).  We are suddenly surging for him also.  I look for us to pick up more prospects from Georgia than in previous years because we have added Roof to the coaching staff and he has a huge amount of connections in Georgia.  Also, I think Henry is a very underrated recruiter and we will take advantage of his youth and recruiting prowess to boost our secondary recruiting starting with the 2019 cycle.

Position of Need Breakdown: Wide Reciever  

Probably take 1-2 WRs in this year’s class.

Committed:

Chris Toudle from Wilmington Hoggard HS (NC). A 3* on all sites.  He might grow into a H-Back/TE Hybrid type player.

Other targets:

Keyon Lesane – Matthews Butler HS – Matthews, NC – 6’0, 190.  NR on 24/7 sports and Scout,
Junior Stats: 3 catches for 29 yards with 1 Touchdown.

Analysis:  Our coaches really, really like Lesane.  Given our current history of recruiting at Mallard Creek, I think we have a good chance to land Lesane.  After watching his film, I am very, very impressed.  He is very elusive and quick in the open field.  He would be a matchup nightmare because he is a threat to take it to the house on every play.  He lined up all over the place for Mallard Creek on film from kick returner to slot to outside receiver.  We were his first offer, and with him being in the Charlotte area nd at Mallard Creek with Eddie Faulkner being his main recruiter, I think we have a great chance to land him.

CJ Johnson – DH Conley HS – Greenville, NC – 6’2″, 200.  4.5 40 reported. Rated the #128 WR in the country (3*) by 24/7 sports and Scout, the #72 WR in the country (3*) by Rivals, NR on ESPN.
Junior Stats:  68 catches for 1,547 yards with 31 Touchdowns.

Analysis:  More than likely headed to ECU to join up with his prep QB (Holton Ahlers).  He had tremendous productivity his junior season, but all the while it should be interesting to see what Conley’s offense will do without Ahlers at the helm this season.  I think he is a backup option at this point in time because we are after quite a few other WRs at his size who I think project better as ACC level players.

Kalani Norris – Columbus HS – Miami, FL  – 5’11”, 165.  4.5 40. Rated the #73 WR in the country (3*) on 24/7 sports and Scout, the #45 WR in the country (3*) by Rivals, NR by ESPN.
Junior Stats: 6 catches for 133 yards and 1 Touchdown (it appears an injury kept him out of most games last season).

Analysis:  We just offered him a scholarship recently.  Our current mold of WR recruiting is to go after taller receivers, so our coaches must be really impressed by Norris’s package of skills. After watching his film, I am very impressed with his athleticism and his ability to make plays.  He is not the biggest receiver we are recruiting, but his athleticism is off the charts. He could make an immediate impact on special teams and could be a star returner for us.  His return ability reminds me of a hybrid between Rashard Smith and Bra’lon Cherry.  Looks like Tennessee is one of our main competitors to land him.

Jacoby Pinckney – Dorman HS – Roebuck, SC – 6’3″, 192. 4.6 40. Rated the #58 WR in the country (3*) by 24/7 sports and Scout, NR (3*) on Rivals, the #32 WR in the country (4*) by ESPN.
Junior Stats:  65 catches for 1,075 yards and 6 Touchdowns.

Analysis: He has some very impressive film.  Runs great routes.  Needs to improve his overall top end speed, but I like his film a lot.  Some of the quick hitting routes and vertical routes in his film reminded me a lot of a Stephen Louis/Kelvin Harmon hybrid type of player.  His recruitment is exploding this spring.  If we can get him on campus, I like our chances, especially given how much playing time we will have available for a bigger receiver in 2019 with Louis graduating.

Donavon Greene – Mt. Airy HS – Mt. Airy, NC – 6’2″, 183. 4.4 reported 40 (I think it’s more like 4.6). Rated the #33 WR in the country (4*) on 24/7 sports and Scout, the #54 WR in the country (3*) by Rivals, NR on ESPN.
Junior Stats:  46 catches for 1,138 yards with 16 Touchdowns.

Analysis: I think his recruitment is far from over.  No knock on his overall ability or ranking, but Mt. Airy is not exactly a hotspot of football activity or competition in North Carolina.  He might very well show something in college which reflects his 4* rating from several services, but I think he is a solid 3* player who uses his size to outplay his competition.  He excels with quick hitch type routes, which we run a lot.  I think we still stand a good chance to land him if he decides to rescind on his commitment to Duke, but I think we are definitely recruiting other quality players with good size if he decides to stick with his commitment to Duke.

Ramel Keyton – Marietta HS – Marietta, GA – 6’3″, 186.  Rated the #27 WR in the country (4*) on 24/7 sports and Scout, the #35 WR in the country (4*) on Rivals, the #24 WR in the country (4*) on ESPN.
Junior Stats: 59 catches for 1,294 yards and 16 Touchdowns.

Analysis: Very good frame, very athletic for his size.  High points the ball well downfield.  Needs to work on his route running some, but very impressive receiver who is putting up huge numbers in a talent rich part of Georgia. He was very impressed by an offer from Clemson which he received in mid-February.  Top three schools are now Clemson, Auburn, and Tennessee.  Look for him to stay in the SEC for his final college destination.

Traveon Kenion – Monroe HS – Monroe, NC – 6’4″, 205.  Rated the #32 WR in the country (4*) by 24/7 sport and Scout, the #8 Tight End in the country (4*) by Rivals, the #2 TE/H-Back in the country (4*) on ESPN.

Junior Stats – Not available.  Evidently Kenion suffered some kind of injury his junior season which greatly limited his playing time and accrual of stats.

Highlights:

Analysis: A homerun threat every time he touches the ball.  His HS film reminds me a lot of Thad Moss because of his ability to make plays downfield. Could be another player in the mold of Zonovan Knight, but quite a bit bigger. Question mark to me is what the injury was, and how quickly he will heal from it.  He was very interested in UNC until Gunter Brewer left, now it appears that he has expanded his options.

** Donavon Greene is currently committed to Duke, but I think his recruitment is far from over.

Position of Need Breakdown: Tight End

Probably will take 1-2 in this year’s class.

Targets:

Luke Deal – Emerald HS – Greenwood, SC – 6’5″, 237. Rated the #13 TE in the country (4*) on 24/7 sports and Scout, the #24 TE in the country (3*) on Rivals, and NR on ESPN.

Junior Stats: Stats were difficult to find for him.  According to MaxPreps, he had 2 catches for 38 yards and 5 carries for 11 yards.  Based upon the highlight video, I don’t think these are correct stats.

Analysis: A very versatile tight end.  Dynamic blocker in the running game.  He reminds me a lot of Cole Cook with his ability to block down.  His HS runs a lot of power I type plays and does not use him a huge amount in the passing game, but when he is used in the passing game, he finds open spaces in zones and high points the ball well.  He has adequate speed but will need to get stronger and add some better top end speed.  Very impressive prospect.  We will have to fight off Notre Dame, Clemson, Michigan, Ohio State, and Virginia Tech for him. We are hosting him on official visit starting this Friday.  Deal is making his college decision by May 25th.

Kyle Bilodeau – Woodberry Forest HS – Woodberry Forest, VA – 6’5, 238.  Rated the #33 TE in the country (3*) on 24/7 sports and Scout, NR (3*) on Rivals,

Junior Stats: 23 catches for 345 yards with 3 Touchdowns

Analysis:  He grew up a State fan.  He is very, very interested in coming to State.  However, with Deal visiting this weekend, Bilodeau looks like a backup plan at this point.  Bilodeau has some extreme athleticism for someone his size, he scored 112 points in the SPARQ combine at The Opening event in Virginia in 2017.  He finds holes in zones well and uses his size well to high point the ball.  Does not quite have the prowess that Deal has in the blocking aspect of the running game, and will need to add some strength to his frame once he gets to college.  He has hit quite a growth spurt over the last several years and very well could grow some more.

Sean Brown – Coosa HS – Rome, GA – 6’5″, 230. Rated the #34 TE in the country (3*) on 24/7 sports and Scout, NR (3*) on Rivals, NR on ESPN.
Junior Stats: 2 catches for 39 yards.

Analysis: Brown is used in a role a lot similar to Deal because his high school features a lot of power running type formations.  Brown is a fringe prospect for us and I honestly think he will wind up going to the SEC, with his destination being Auburn or Tennessee.  He definitely lacks top end speed (reported 4.9) and will need to get a lot faster in college.  He has great length and uses leverage effectively on blocks in the running game.  Deceptively gets open on play-action type plays and sneaks out to make big plays.  He also plays DE for his high school and could possibly switch to defense in college.

Garmon Rudolph – Jefferson HS – Jefferson, GA – 6’6″, 215.  Rated the #16 TE in the country (3*) on 24/7 sports and Scout, the #20 TE in the country (3*) on Rivals, NR on ESPN.

Junior Stats: 12 catches for 175 yards with 2 Touchdowns

Analysis: Similar to Brown, he might have a future at Defensive End due to his size and length.  High points the ball well.  He has very good size and is a matchup problem downfield due to his size.  Sneaky but not great overall top end speed.  He will need to add 30-40 pounds to his frame in college because he is extremely lanky now.  Flexes out to a Y position/hybrid slot type receiver some for his HS.  Looks very good on film against some good competition. He will be another prospect that we will have to fight off SEC schools for, if we miss on Deal and Bilodeau.

Visitors

Visiting QBs this weekend:

Sam Johnson, Brian Maurer, Jalon Jones, Ryan Hilinski are supposedly visiting this weekend.

I somehow doubt that Hilinski will visit, he visited a lot of schools last weekend and announced a top 7 which did not include State. His parents plan to move from this current home to the South to live near whichever school he decides to join.  Rumors have Hilinski committing to South Carolina as early as this weekend.

Worth noting that Jones and Hilinski already have offers and Johnson/Maurer do not.

I’m going to go out on a limb and predict that we will receive a QB commitment very soon.

No word on whether or not Sam Howell will be able to make it to the Spring Game this weekend or not.

Hilinski and Jones are both 3* QBs but rated in the top 10 in the country in their position (Jones is a dual-threat QB and Hilinski is a pro-style QB).

*** Update – Jalon Jones supposedly had a great visit to Raleigh and really meshed well with Drinkwitz.  He would be a terrific addition to this year’s class (he is rated the #10 Dual-Threat QB in the country by 24/7 Sports and Scout).

Other visitors expected this week or this weekend:

4* LB/DE Traveon Freshwater and 4* ATH/S JR Walker.  Both have State as their top school and we could potentially put away the competition for both of them and get a commitment this weekend.

4* DE Savion Jackson – He has supposedly already visited practice several times this spring.

4* DT CJ Clark.

4* S Khalid Martin. – We have made up a ton of ground for him and we are his leader now.

3* LB Drake Thomas.  – We could get a commitment from him also sometime very soon.

3* CB Shyheim Battle.

3* CB Jalen Frazier

3* WR Keyon Lesane

3* RB Jamious Griffin

3* OG Jamari Williams

3* OL Carter Colquitt

3* DE Christian Rorie

4* DT Joshua Harris

3* OT Zovon Lindsay

3* OT Jeremy James

3* QB Brian Maurer

3* CB Tykee Smith

3* QB Sam Johnson