catdaddyp

HS/JUCO TEs: 1) AKRON - Khalil Witherspoon HUDL FILM 2) BALL STATE - Jaxxon Warren HUDL FILM (JUCO) 3) NORTHERN ILLINOIS - Joseph Stein HUDL FILM 4) BOWLING GEEEN - Eli Jacon-Duffy HUDL FILM 5) OHIO - AJ Miller HUDL FILM Transfer TEs: 1) EASTERN MICHIGAN - Jonathan Odom 2) WESTERN MICHIGAN - Chris Toudle 3) AKRON - Max Whisner 4) NORTHERN ILLINOIS - Jake Appleget 5) CENTRAL MICHIGAN - Gavin Harris 2023 TEs and how they fared: 1) WESTERN MICHIGAN - Brennan Wooten = N/A but played in 6 games. 2) AKRON - Conner Cravack = N/A Redshirted. 3) CENTRAL MICHIGAN - Jesiah Stevens-Silva = N/A Redshirted and entered Portal. 4) WESTERN MICHIGAN - Jack Parker = N/A Redshirted 5) BOWLING GREEN - Jacob Harris = N/A Redshirted Who I may have missed on: NORTHERN ILLINOIS - Grayson Barnes = 23 Receptions, 422 Yards, 5 TDs. Barnes was a JUCO that signed after this list was put together last year. He plays the flex WR/TE spot for NIU and is currently listed as WR on their roster.

New Cornerbacks coach.

Already removed him from the list, but looks like Behm is officially in the portal. Good luck to him. I thought he was a bit out of his depth at this level.

It’s fair to say Carolina was working out the kinks all season. If they didn’t have the worst, it was definitely one of the worst OLs in P5. They should be much improved this year (and will need to be for a new QB). Their defensive line will be a load to handle. As far as competition level goes, they are about on par with Kentucky. You’re right, too many miscues last year. The team will need to not only be much better, but also need to outplay what will likely be a raucous environment.

I’m not going to say those aren’t winnable games, but the likelihood is low. For all of his faults, Beamer has yet to lose to a G5 program (or lower) during his tenure at SC. Plus, he’s had a strong offseason of recruiting. Carolina should be improved in all areas except QB. They go into the season with a huge question mark at QB and we all know how that can look. For anyone who hasn’t been to a game at Williams-Brice stadium and have a chance to go, it’s worth it. Every team in the SEC has their own unique experience and Carolina is right up there. Especially for night games. I don’t know much about Rutgers except they basically won all the games they should have won and lost all the games they were expected to lose last year. Talent wise, they are also better than us. Every MAC team we play (with the exception of Bowling Green) will be breaking in a new QB. Should make for an interesting year.

2024 Football Schedule has officially been announced.

Coach Brookhart offered WR Kenzy West out of Mississippi. Only a matter of time before P5 offers come rolling in. HUDL FILM

There is a wealth of talent at WR in the 2024 class. I am certain some deserving players are being left off. Of note about Lang and Bostic, they are both raw coming out of high school and I believe they are better fits at defensive back. That being said, I cannot ignore their athletic ability and upside. HS/JUCO WRs: 1) TOLEDO - Zy’Marion Lang HUDL FILM 2) TOLEDO - Tashi Braceful HUDL FILM 3) TOLEDO - Jay’Quan Bostic HUDL FILM 4) AKRON - Kyan Mason HUDL FILM 5) BOWLING GREEN - Caleb Goodloe HUDL FILM Transfer WRs: 1) EASTERN MICHIGAN - Porter Rooks 2) BOWLING GREEN - Malcolm Johnson 3) OHIO - Coleman Owen 4) NORTHERN ILLINOIS - Andrew McElroy 4) BOWLING GREEN - RJ Garcia 2023 WRs and how they fared: 1) OHIO - Chase Hendricks = 11 Receptions, 108 Yards. 2) EASTERN MICHIGAN - Joe Walker = 3 Receptions, 22 Yards. Redshirted. 3) BUFFALO - Jevell Ferguson = N/A Went JUCO. 4) AKRON - Paul Davis = N/A Redshirted. 5) WESTERN MICHIGAN - Logan Lester = N/A Redshirted. Who I may have missed on: AKRON - Adrian Norton = 9 Receptions, 71 Yards. I thought Norton was underrated coming out of high school. I also wasn’t sure how quickly he would develop as a collegiate wide receiver after spending his senior year at QB. After watching him this past season, there’s a legitimate chance he turns out to be the best of the bunch.

I’m not going to post every offer like I have the past two years, but will update occasionally. Here are two recent QB offers made by our new QB coach. Chris Denson (FL) HUDL FILM Charlie Johnston (AL) HUDL FILM

Here’s how I view the 2024 RBs: HS/JUCO RBs 1) BOWLING GREEN - Nakai Amachree HUDL FILM 2) AKRON - Sean Patrick HUDL FILM 3) MIAMI - D’Shawntae Jones HUDL FILM 4) MIAMI - Tito Glass HUDL FILM 5) EASTERN MICHIGAN - JT Bronaugh HUDL FILM TRANSFER RBs 1) MIAMI - Dylan Downing 2) OHIO - Anthony Tyus 3) AKRON - Jordon Simmons 4) EASTERN MICHIGAN - Delbert Mimms 5) AKRON - Marquese Williams 2023 RBs and how they fared: 1) EASTERN MICHIGAN - Deion Brown = N/A Redshirted. 2) OHIO - Rickey Hunt = 23 Attempts, 134 Yards, 4 TDs. Redshirted (majority of stats amassed in bowl game) Redshirted. 3) BUFFALO - Jamari Ford = N/A No longer on team. 4) BUFFALO - Lamar Sperling = 4 Attempts, 17 Yards. Redshirted. 5) WESTERN MICHIGAN - Tre Hartwell = N/A Redshirted. Notable Post Spring Additions: BUFFALO - Jacques Barksdale (JUCO)= 52 Attempts, 248 Yards, 2 TDs.

Offer out to OL from NC Central.

Right before spring ball kicks off too. Seems like an odd move. Wonder if he’s expecting something to open up there soon.

I don’t know if UMASS will ever get back to their glory days in MBB, but they should be solid as long as Frank Martin is there. Frank is excellent at developing talent (especially big men), assuming he is able to retain his players. He struggled at times recruiting at Carolina, which is no surprise as Carolina is bottom third in the SEC when it comes to investing in MBB (although that will soon change). Frank typically targeted (and this a generalization) athletes with length over skill and then developed those players. In his later years at Carolina he started targeting more pure wing shooters through the portal. His coaching style does not sit well with some people, but he is as genuine a person as there is and is not afraid to speak his mind to anyone in any position. Don Brown has his work cut out for him with football, but has the program headed in the right direction. His first recruiting class at UMASS was not good and that’s putting it kindly. He hit the portal hard in the second class and is attempting to turn over the roster as quickly as possible. The 3rd class is a blend similar to ours in the terms of transfers/juco/hs allocation. High school football in the northeast is rapidly improving and UMASS is starting to tap into that. They also hit the state of Florida hard. There is already plenty of overlap in recruiting between MAC schools and UMASS. So in that regard, it’s a natural fit. I know there is a lot of focus on how bad UMASS has been in football and their recent lack of success in basketball, yet that could quickly change with the right staff in place. And it seems that’s happening. I’m not someone who cares about the name across the front of the jersey or previous records. I look at recruiting and when the talent level increases and is eventually developed, good things happen. My only concern for UMASS is how much longer will Frank and Don continue to coach?

How so?

I’d guess UMASS’ intention, at least at this stage, is to be here for a while. Being independent in football did them no favors. Seeing speculation on social media Western Kentucky may be next to join, but I don’t know if there’s any validity to it.

A decade ago I would have agreed with the same confidence. Now with the landscape changing at a rapid pace, it’s impossible to know how the pieces will fall. Just recently the PAC12 stuck their nose up at what ESPN offered. Now they are almost defunct and likely will be soon. Maybe the last two members work some magic? If FSU manages to leave the ACC, that will cause more dominoes to fall and who knows what happens to the bottom tier of that league. Some may eventually make their way to G5s. I honestly don’t know, just pointing out nothing is certain.

I know UCONN is holding out hope for a P5 bid, but I wonder if they eventually end up in the MAC as well.

Time to rank the top 5 HS/JUCO prospects at each position. Will also add transfers this year. Still too early to tell on many of the 2023 recruits, but a handful did have the opportunity to play significantly this past year. The late JUCO signees (like CJ Nunnally) I missed because they signed after spring ball. I’m sure a few will fall into that category again. HS/JUCO QBs 1) CENTRAL MICHIGAN - Jayden Glasser HUDL FILM 2) TOLEDO - Kalieb Osborne HUDL FILM 3) MIAMI - Thomas Gotkowski HUDL FILM 4) EASTERN MICHIGAN - Jace Stuckey HUDL FILM 5) AKRON - Brayden Roggow HUDL FILM TRANSER PORTAL QBs 1) AKRON - Ben Finley 2) CENTRAL MICHIGAN - Joe Labas 3) EASTERN MICHIGAN - Drew Viotto 4) NORTHERN ILLINOIS - Jalen Macon 5) KENT STATE - JD Sherrod Finley is the only transfer QB to have multiple spurts of legitimate success at the FBS level. Others on the list may have more physical ability or higher upside over the next few years, but they have little FBS production. 2023 QBs and how they fared: 1) AKRON - Steele Wasel = N/A Redshirted 2) CENTRAL MICHIGAN - Tyler Jefferson = N/A Redshirted 3) OHIO - Jacob Winters HUDL FILM = N/A Redshirted 4) EASTERN MICHIGAN - Ike Udengwu (JUCO) = Passing - 13 of 31, 100 yards, 0 TDs, 2 INTs. 5) TOLEDO - RJ Johnson HUDL FILM = N/A Redshirted Who I may have missed on: BALL STATE - Kaden Semonza = Passing - 50 of 82, 480 yards, 3 TDs, 5 INTs. Redshirted.

Pretty sure the QB coach is Michael Shuster, but he hasn’t been added to the website for whatever reason. Edit: I can’t get the link to work properly. Anyway, look him up on twitter and his profile should pop up.

I laugh, but out of frustration. I definitely believe we left some games on the table last year by limiting his touches. 7 carries against Temple, 9 against Buffalo, 10 against CMU. Also 7 against Morgan State, but we somehow pulled that one out.

Out - QB/OC (Fess) Out - WR (Gilbertson) Out - ST (Tucker) In - QB (Shuster) In - WR (Brookhart) In - ST (Matviko) All spots are filled except no OC listed. Maybe JoeMo is officially taking that back over? Also odd that Housewright does not have an active twitter account (unless I missed it). Edit: Maybe Housewright will be listed as a co-position coach and OC? From the outside looking in it doesn’t seem like this is happening.

I’m guessing #10 can be scratched off the list. All the position coaches seem to be filled. Not sure where Housewright would fit in at this point.

Some end up going JUCO and some go to lower levels of football. For a large portion, if they aren’t on a new team by summer, their football playing days are over.

Great article. Thanks for posting. Like someone in the article mentioned, I don’t think the competitive divide at the top of G5 is as great as the monetary divide. At least, not yet. Purely speaking to the instances of P5 players wanting more playing time, we have some instances of that ourselves - Anthony Whigan, Alex Adams, Daniel George, Lorenzo Lingard, Shockey Jacques-Louis, KJ Martin, Curtis Harper. There are others that have contributed, but 5 of the 7 listed went on to be All-MAC. I was just talking with someone the other day and mentioned this has been the oddest offseason I’ve ever seen. Between an incredibly lackluster National Signing Day in February (that might as well be scratched at this point) to several head coaches willingly leaving their posts for either coordinator or positional jobs at P5s. I’m guessing this is just the beginning of what will soon become the new norm.

You may be right. I know he spent much of his time there at Cornell. Could be a situation where he was labeled incorrectly like Judson Tallandier last year.