Firstly, there’s no way to know, only time will tell how the kids turn out.
Secondly, there are always unforeseen factors, mainly injury, that can change the trajectory of a player’s career.
On paper, we have a very good class, but development is key, some kids will thrive & excel, some may take a long time to reach their potential & some may bust, that’s the reality.
As far as the players are concerned, obviously Leonard Taylor has the most NFL potential, my comparison for him is Javon Kinlaw, does that mean he will be as good or will be 1st rounder? No it doesn’t, that’s just the player type that I see him as based on his upside, but like with every single recruit ever, it will all depend on how he’s developed.
James Williams fits the mold of the new era huge athletic Safeties like Isaiah Simmons, Derwin James, Hamsah Nasirildeen, Jayron Kearse etc, that are multi-purpose players that can moved all over the Defense & play snaps at multiple positions. Will he be as good as those guys? Maybe, maybe not, like I said earlier it all depends on how he’s developed. The talent is there but it remains to be seen how he will be coached up during his time at Miami, we shall see.
Elijah Arroyo on offense is the most polished offensive prospect we’ve recruited here in a long time, IMO he will be better than Brevin Jordan & has 1st round upside. His combination of size, speed, hands, & advanced level sophisticated route running is what separates him, especially if he plays in a conducive offensive system for the majority of his career he should be highly productive player at Miami & be the next TEU star. My comparison for him since last year is Noah Fant.
The WR’s Brinson, George & Smith are good pickups, I don’t think any of them will play much as TF’s, so we’ll see how they develop over the years, but they’re all pretty good IMO. I think Brinson & George have the best upside, but Smith can be a productive Slot-back type in the future. Brinson reminds me Ahmmon Richards, but I don’t think he’ll have the True Freshman impact that Ahmmon had. I’m still skeptical the staff will actually play any of the younger WR’s over the upperclassmen, but we’ll see.
Thad Franklin I’m probably higher on than most on the board, maybe me & D$ are the only ones who really like him. I think most people can’t see past his speed or lack thereof, but being a good RB requires a lot more than just pure track speed, he’s a shifty down hill runner with very good physicality, strong contact balance & has athletic Basketball player footwork, no he’ll never kill you with his 40 time, but he’s the kind of back you can give him the rock 25-30 times a game & he’ll end up with 140yds+. My comparison for him is Kareem Hunt, strong power runner who’s laterally quicker than pure straight line fast. He’ll be a good short yardage change of pace back that can hammer the defense late in games when you have a lead & are taking the air out of the ball. He’s a tough runner that will get extra yards just off effort alone. He’s not the flashy back people are usually enamored with, but he’s a workhorse.
I like Ryan Rodriguez a lot, he reminds me of Chris Myers, I see him as the future starter at Center in a few years, he’s a naturally strong kid with very good hands technique & has a nasty streak to’em. Smart & consistent is what you need at C, he fits that to a T.
Malik Curtis is one of my favorite recruits we signed this class, I was the first person to ever post on him & way back in January of 2020 I called him Travis Benjamin 2.0, I still feel that. Obviously, he’s starting out at CB & maybe he’s a naturally gifted athlete a lot like Phillip Buchanon who can smoothly transition from HS WR to CB, we’ll see how it goes. Regardless of whether he sticks at CB or eventually becomes a WR his natural speed & quick twitch ability standout, he should be a day 1 impact player on Special Teams as a Punt Returner. And the fact he’s an EE is a huge plus for him. Patke’s #1 job this Spring/Summer/Fall should be to keep this kid healthy & get him developed to be our primary Return man. We need a PR’er bad & he’s perfect for it as an explosive dynamic game changer with ball in his hands. Really excited to see him develop.
Chase Smith is another naturally gifted athlete that could be a future all-American at either WR or LB, he’s cut from good athletic stock & plays with explosiveness on both sides of the ball. He’ll be another one that it will be interesting to see how he’s developed, as he’s starting out at Striker, but is physically more so built like a Strong Side backer (which is essentially what the STR position replaced in the 4-2-5), but he’s not really a Hybrid Safety like most of the other Strikers we have, IMO he’s more in the mold of a natural LB. But his athletic ability will make him another Swiss Army knife to have on Defense, the Coaches have to do their fckin job & turn these kids into valuable assets.
Kamren Kinchens is my dawg & I know what he’s made of competitively. His upside is probably the most slept on in the class, he’s purebred, whenever he gets his opportunity he will excel. Elite Ballhawk with high Football IQ & good speed, the only thing is he’s walking into a crowded Safety room with a staff that doesn’t really play young guys at Safety, so he’ll be someone that maybe it will take a while for him to get on the field, IDK, I guess it will depend on how open the competitions are & whether or not Manny actually allows for players like him an opportunity.
Allan Haye is another I posted on a whole year before he even got his offer. Really nice upside, is still a raw prospect as he’s only played football for about 3 years now, was a Basketball player, but is naturally strong & has violent active hands. Built in the same mold as a Corey Liguet type, will be a developmental player that will shine down the line after some years in the S&C.
Jabari Ishmael is a kid with very good physical upside as well, with his dad being a long time strength coach at Miami I think he’ll be a kid that thrives in the S&C program. He fits the prototype of the style of Miami DE’s we’ve been recruiting since 2016, the long lean athletic types who grow into their body & have Basketball player wingspans. He won’t be called upon to play too early so he’ll have time to develop, we’ll see if he has the extra internal drive to be great, but the ability is there.
Kahlil Brantley will be a locker room leader in the future, he’s a juice guy in the locker room, meaning he gets his guys fired up & will take on that leadership role as showing guys how to do things the right way. Smart, hungry, tenacious & driven, he’s the kind of kid that gets counted out but will make you pay for it. Hard nosed competitor who gives maximum effort every rep, can be a H-Back type that you can move around, not a big prototype TE but will be more than serviceable. Won’t have to play day 1 due to depth, but will thrive in the weight room. Has some Delanie Walker to his game.
Overall, as far as how they stack up nationally, again there’s no way of knowing that, everything is based on development & exactly how driven all these players are & how well they are coached & how healthy they are & what system they play in during their time at Miami. Only time will tell, but on paper, pretty good class with some good prospects.
Now the next step is for the coaches to translate their talent to on field productivity.