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Learning from past WR classes… when in doubt, speed out

bobbydigius said:
My fault on that, someone reputable mentioned that he was around 10.8 when he committed. My info was directly from that
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That’s what Duasso said, not me, for the record.

But Joker has gotten faster since his Sophomore/Junior year, but he’s not a pure blazer & never will be, his strong suit is route running & great hands. He’s more quick than fast, but what he lacks in raw speed he makes up for with precise route running & creating separation with his feet.
 
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I don’t think we will recruit any OOS WR’s, I believe we should but I would surprised if we did.

But if we do, Jaquaize Pettaway & Ryan Niblett both from Houston are 10.5 kids with terrific speed.

And Johntay Cook out of DeSoto is another speedster with very good route running ability & explosiveness.
 
Liberty City El said:
I don’t think we will recruit any OOS WR’s, I believe we should but I would surprised if we did.

But if we do, Jaquaize Pettaway & Ryan Niblett both from Houston are 10.5 kids with terrific speed.

And Johntay Cook out of DeSoto is another speedster with very good route running ability & explosiveness.
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Isn't Pettaway a poster on here's cousin? I feel like I remember seeing that. Kid is the goods.
 
Over the last three seasons, UM has had Jeff Thomas, Mike Harley and Mark Pope (all <4.4 times) Dee Wiggins and KJ Osborn (<4.5 ). The results have been mixed at best. Nobody wants slow receivers but saying we haven’t recruited speed guys is either ignorance or straight lying. Ironically our best receiver over the same time span was a dude who just ran 4.57 at the combine. Not once did I watch him in a game and say ****, Charleston Rambo sure does look slow out there while he’s breaking UM’s receiving records.
 
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Artist Formerly Known As said:
Didn’t one of the CIS staff guys (maybe Roman?) have a long piece that said the exact opposite? That 40 times for WR had a low correlation with success
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I remember that. Maybe by @Lance Roffers? While that may be true overall, it's a fact that multiple So FL speedsters have lit up college football lately and we either passed on them or were outrecruited for them. And at the programmatic level, a great offense needs a breakaway wide receiver to keep the defense on their heels. Dorsett did a lot more than catch the deep ball. He created gaps underneath that everyone else exploited.
 
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COCane4Life said:
Navigating the 2023 WR class is the biggest challenge we face in recruiting this year. It’s vital that we look beyond the stars in the WR class and find traits in guys that typically translates to success on the field

Let’s take a look at the instate class of 2018. Mark Pope, Kevin Austin, Brian Hightower, Anthony Schwartz, Elijah Moore, Warren Thomson, Xavier Williams , Tyquan Thornton and Tutu Atwell.

Here are some of the other lower ranked 4*’s nationally Rondale Moore, Seth Williams, rashod Bateman, Chris Olave(3star).

The remaining studs at the top were Amon Ra St. Brown, Derion Kendrick(converted cb), Jaylen Waddle, Jamar Chase, Justyn Ross, and Terrace Marshall.

2018 just like 2023 was an absolutely loaded WR class in state and nationally. 2018 we struck out. Just an epic level of failure. We can’t do the same this year.

So how do we decide? The one common trait almost all of the guys who had successful careers had was high level speed. The 40 times for some of these guys.

Ja’Mar Chase 6’1 200+ Lbs: 4.38
Kevin Austin 6’4 200+ lbs: 4.43
Schwartz 6’0 185lbs: 4.27
Elijah Moore 5’10 178lbs: 4.35
Ty Thornton: 6’2 182 4.27
Tutu Atwell: 5’9 165 4.32
Jaylen Waddle 5’10 182 4.37
Terrace Marshall 6’2 200: 4.38
Rondale Moore 5’7 181 4.29
Rashod Bateman 6’2 210 4.39
Chris Olave 6’1 187 4.39
Seth Williams 6’3 211 4.49
Amon Ra St 6’0 197 Brown: 4.51

Speed doesn’t lie. These guys are nightmares for a defense because they get separation on long routes and they beat angles on short/intermediate catches leading to ridiculous yac. In our 18 class pope had verified speed but he couldn’t put on the weight or add the strength necessary to compete at a high level. On top of that hands were questionable. One could make a strong argument he should’ve switched to CB like Derion Kendrick although weight would have still been an issue. Wiggins also had the speed but brick hands ultimately doomed him. He like pope probably should’ve been playing corner. Neither Hightower or Ezzard had the speed to compete at this level.

When in doubt go with the verified fast guys. By this formula Jalen Brown is an absolute must get. After him it gets tricky. Jean runs on Miami NW’s 4x100 but we don’t have great track times verified. Next guy who I think is a must get is Robby Washington. He’s dumb explosive and fits into the realm of verified fast guys. After him, Nathaniel Joseph. He’s undersized but is a guy that shows the explosiveness to make plays at the next level. The Top of the class nationally has gotta be Zach Branch. Verified 10.33 100m sure fire low 4.3 high 4.2 guy. Those guys don’t miss often.

I love Hykeem’s tape and he adds an element of size we don’t have. But is he Justyn Ross or is he Justin Shorter? Seymour seems to be getting better but does he possess the elite speed necessary for a guy his size to truly make an impact? As much as we love Florida WR’s are there any opportunities to grab a guy out of state. A guy that comes to mind is Karmello English.

The coaches have their work cut out for them. This is why Mario makes the big bucks. He recruited the monster WR class to Bama that changed their entire offense. Let’s hope he can do the same.
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While speed is important. I will take on field production with adequate measurables over just measurables and a ****** tape.

Speed matters but utilizing speed in a physical and aggressive manner to make plays on field matters more.
 
Kn[]_[]ckles3o5 said:
While speed is important. I will take on field production with adequate measurables over just measurables and a ****** tape.

Speed matters but utilizing speed in a physical and aggressive manner to make plays on field matters more.
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At the WR position, maybe more than any other position, HS production seems to be the best indicator of college production. People fall in love with height/weight/speed, but harder to quantify skills like route-running, catching ability, and toughness are just as important.

Of course we all want the fastest team possible, especially at WR. But if that speed is mostly resulting in 7 v. 7 success and not much production on the field during football games, that's a red flag (see, e.g., Mark Pope).
 
Kn[]_[]ckles3o5 said:
While speed is important. I will take on field production with adequate measurables over just measurables and a ****** tape.

Speed matters but utilizing speed in a physical and aggressive manner to make plays on field matters more.
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I’m right there with you in terms of production. The guy that comes to mind for me is Elijah Moore and in the last cycle Devaughn Mortimer. Guys that have elite burst and ball out every time they step on the field. We can’t pass on guys with top notch production and verified top notch track speed.
 
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Liberty City El said:
That’s what Duasso said, not me, for the record.

But Joker has gotten faster since his Sophomore/Junior year, but he’s not a pure blazer & never will be, his strong suit is route running & great hands. He’s more quick than fast, but what he lacks in raw speed he makes up for with precise route running & creating separation with his feet.
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Hey LCE could you please give your view on how he compares as a prospect to Romello Brinson?
 
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