Offense:
Gilliam: The best QB recruit we've had since Goff and I would rate his production, size, athleticism and skill set ahead of everyone other than Riley and Longshore after AR left. Not a big arm but good (not great) accuracy and timing with his throws. Quick release and he can throw on the move both directions. Good feet in the pocket and a strong runner. Runs identical offense at his HS. Very productive, big time winner.
Viramontes: Would really like to know just how big he is. Looks huge in photos and on film. Very physical QB that can really run. Good arm strength albeit longer motion. Unclear how accurate he is. Like his pocket presence better than similarly built QBs we've had in the past (e.g. Kyle Boehm) and he's not just a runner. Tough kid, appears to be a big time competitive leader.
Clark: A little different RB stylistically than we've had in a while. Very slippery and will make defenders miss yet his biggest strength is his ability to shed tackles. Very powerful runner with good balance. Decent quickness with average to below average top end speed. Open field vision is very good. Can catch the ball. A more natural RB than Watson, Muhammed and Enwere coming out of HS even though he played a lot of QB.
Echols: Jitterbug WR/RB with phone box quickness, great change of direction cutting ability and excellent acceleration. Really short in stature but thickly and well built. Darren Sproles is a very good analog here. Solid hands, great in return game. Tailor made as a RB in a spread offense.
Stovall: Similar in stature to Echols, perhaps a bit taller and a bit skinnier but it's close. Very explosive quickness and elusiveness. Good top end speed for a smaller player, perhaps a touch faster than Echols. A very natural pass receiver, comfortable in the slot and outside with soft hands. Tough, physical runner who can break tackles and is hard to bring down. Could see him playing on coverage STs
Duncan: Bigger, physical receiver. Good not great athlete. Can run well for a thicker and taller WR but not a burner. Has some slipperiness to his game that helps him create space on routes and make defenders miss after the catch. Willing blocker and will out strength defenders for jump balls. Reminds me a bit of Dameane Douglas with his size, strength and good feet.
Veasy: Another big, physical receiver. Sneaky fast with good deep threat ability as he uses size and speed to get by you. Not as tall but reminds me a bit of Sean Dawkins with his first step and ability to build speed vertically. Not as good in the open field as Duncan but looks to be a slightly more explosive athlete. ESPN has him rated correctly as a high 3 star IMO.
Gamble: Stupid tall and lanky. Shockingly quick for his height. Really surprised he doesn't play high level basketball as he can jump as well. Rail thin right now. His defensive highlights as a pass rusher are scary good. Really good off the dime burst and lateral quickness. Subpar top end speed. Tough for a skinny kid. Give this guy 20-25lbs and he could be a crazy good TE/WR red zone target or a pass rushing DE
Laris: Another big WR. Tough, competitive with solid hands. Best asset is quick feet that allow him to get in and out of cuts well. Not fast, not a big leaper. Strong and willing blocker. Could easily grow into the H position.
Kobayashi: Long and lean outside receiver. Very reminiscent in build and athleticism to Trevor Davis, although Kobayashi may be taller and faster. Can really run, big time speed. Not a super productive senior year as he got hurt. Strength, toughness, route running are all question marks but you can't argue with his size and athleticism
Williams: Big kid with ballerina's feet. Really light and nimble for an OL. Looks flexible and agile especially for an interior OL. Will need some work on his body. Not nearly strong enough and his natural build is more Rigsbee than Uluave.
Juarez: Really big and strong kid. Built like he's already in college. Mauler mentality who plays with a mean streak. Not a stiff but not as naturally athletic as Williams. Has frame and long arms for a tackle. Looks really well coached in terms of technique for a HS kid.
Curhan: Massive kid, every bit 6'7" and 300+lbs. Moves really well for that size, like his upside at tackle. Not nearly as polished as Juarez but every bit as nasty. Will need to build up his body but has frame and structure to do it. He came on late in his senior season to be a hugely dominant run blocker.
Wallace: Wide and tall, his build reminds me of former Cal DT, Brandon Mebane. Short area road grader, he's got plus strength and power. Can really push the pile. Guessing he can step right in and play at a high level in the run game. Pass protection is a question mark. Definitely an OG not a tackle.
Defense:
Franklin: Good short space athlete with plus strength and physicality. Reminds me of Antoine Albert from last year although Marloshawn appears to have better hips and natural pass coverage ability. Not a burner, more quick than fast. Good technique, highly competitive player. Could easily play nickel or safety if his speed is an issue outside.
Edmonds: Reminds me of Darius White. Longer, fluid athlete with plus speed. Seems to react well to ball in the air, very good instincts and reaction. Ideal measurables for CB. Not super physical yet in the run game.
Beck: SQT is a good analog. Smaller guy with excellent short area quickness and tough as nails. Very competitive. Explosive athlete albeit lacks great top end speed. Will play the run really well and likes to hit people. Smart, instinctive player
Bynum: Now a taller, lankier corner. Not super explosive athletically. Great technician, some of the best CB coverage film I've seen from a HS player. Good hips, smart reads, very competitive and plays with an edge. Quicker than fast.
Drayden: Skinny and average height. Very good speed and good quickness. Hips look a little stiff, not as fluid laterally as some of the other DB recruits. Not afraid to play the run and hit people. Feels more zone than man to man at this point in terms of fit.
Goode: Lanky, broad shouldered LB with excellent speed and quickness. Great first step and very good closing speed. Slight of build but plays like he's bigger when taking on blockers and runners. Reminds me a lot of Mikey Mohammed in height and build coming out of HS and both could run. Shocked at how under recruited he was based on film, explosive athleticism and the high level of competition he played. Will need 20lbs to play in Pac 12
Becker: I see him as depth at both SDE and inside at DT. High motor, decent quickness, good length. Production was good yet unknown level of competition. More run stopper than pass rusher
Paul: Taller DT with high motor. Decent quickness and movement speed, not a space filler though he has the frame to play at 300lbs. Tough kid, who has a relentless physical style to him. Akin to Bynum, he may be a better football player than raw athlete.
Yaghi: Almost identical build to Paul. A better athlete IMO with more suddenness. Rough and tumble type with a high motor. His length is going to make him a factor in the pass rush from the inside. Could be 300lbs in 2 years easily. Needs to work on bend.
Weaver: Highly productive two way player with a very mature body. Moves really well with plus top end speed. Powerful and strong, he lived in opponents backfields in HS. Can play right away given body type. He's one to two inches in height and arm length away from being a 5 star recruit. Reminds me a bit of Brannan Scarlett in terms of power and speed combo.
Udeogu: Ideal combination of length, long arms and top end speed. Thickly built though not all of it is good weight. Not as quick as ideal for a DE and very raw in using his hands and with pass rush moves. Needs better bend. Longer term upside prospect.
Conclusions: We certainly got a lot taller with bigger framed players especially on the line of scrimmage. The dual threat QBs are a nice addition, great to see three offensive game breaker types in Echols, Stovall and Kobayashi. Bets on big frames with good athleticism abound in this class. Not as much athleticism on defense as would be ideal. Feels like 6-7 players have immediate impact potential - Weaver, Franklin, Wallace, Veasy, Stovall and Echols come to mind.
Gilliam: The best QB recruit we've had since Goff and I would rate his production, size, athleticism and skill set ahead of everyone other than Riley and Longshore after AR left. Not a big arm but good (not great) accuracy and timing with his throws. Quick release and he can throw on the move both directions. Good feet in the pocket and a strong runner. Runs identical offense at his HS. Very productive, big time winner.
Viramontes: Would really like to know just how big he is. Looks huge in photos and on film. Very physical QB that can really run. Good arm strength albeit longer motion. Unclear how accurate he is. Like his pocket presence better than similarly built QBs we've had in the past (e.g. Kyle Boehm) and he's not just a runner. Tough kid, appears to be a big time competitive leader.
Clark: A little different RB stylistically than we've had in a while. Very slippery and will make defenders miss yet his biggest strength is his ability to shed tackles. Very powerful runner with good balance. Decent quickness with average to below average top end speed. Open field vision is very good. Can catch the ball. A more natural RB than Watson, Muhammed and Enwere coming out of HS even though he played a lot of QB.
Echols: Jitterbug WR/RB with phone box quickness, great change of direction cutting ability and excellent acceleration. Really short in stature but thickly and well built. Darren Sproles is a very good analog here. Solid hands, great in return game. Tailor made as a RB in a spread offense.
Stovall: Similar in stature to Echols, perhaps a bit taller and a bit skinnier but it's close. Very explosive quickness and elusiveness. Good top end speed for a smaller player, perhaps a touch faster than Echols. A very natural pass receiver, comfortable in the slot and outside with soft hands. Tough, physical runner who can break tackles and is hard to bring down. Could see him playing on coverage STs
Duncan: Bigger, physical receiver. Good not great athlete. Can run well for a thicker and taller WR but not a burner. Has some slipperiness to his game that helps him create space on routes and make defenders miss after the catch. Willing blocker and will out strength defenders for jump balls. Reminds me a bit of Dameane Douglas with his size, strength and good feet.
Veasy: Another big, physical receiver. Sneaky fast with good deep threat ability as he uses size and speed to get by you. Not as tall but reminds me a bit of Sean Dawkins with his first step and ability to build speed vertically. Not as good in the open field as Duncan but looks to be a slightly more explosive athlete. ESPN has him rated correctly as a high 3 star IMO.
Gamble: Stupid tall and lanky. Shockingly quick for his height. Really surprised he doesn't play high level basketball as he can jump as well. Rail thin right now. His defensive highlights as a pass rusher are scary good. Really good off the dime burst and lateral quickness. Subpar top end speed. Tough for a skinny kid. Give this guy 20-25lbs and he could be a crazy good TE/WR red zone target or a pass rushing DE
Laris: Another big WR. Tough, competitive with solid hands. Best asset is quick feet that allow him to get in and out of cuts well. Not fast, not a big leaper. Strong and willing blocker. Could easily grow into the H position.
Kobayashi: Long and lean outside receiver. Very reminiscent in build and athleticism to Trevor Davis, although Kobayashi may be taller and faster. Can really run, big time speed. Not a super productive senior year as he got hurt. Strength, toughness, route running are all question marks but you can't argue with his size and athleticism
Williams: Big kid with ballerina's feet. Really light and nimble for an OL. Looks flexible and agile especially for an interior OL. Will need some work on his body. Not nearly strong enough and his natural build is more Rigsbee than Uluave.
Juarez: Really big and strong kid. Built like he's already in college. Mauler mentality who plays with a mean streak. Not a stiff but not as naturally athletic as Williams. Has frame and long arms for a tackle. Looks really well coached in terms of technique for a HS kid.
Curhan: Massive kid, every bit 6'7" and 300+lbs. Moves really well for that size, like his upside at tackle. Not nearly as polished as Juarez but every bit as nasty. Will need to build up his body but has frame and structure to do it. He came on late in his senior season to be a hugely dominant run blocker.
Wallace: Wide and tall, his build reminds me of former Cal DT, Brandon Mebane. Short area road grader, he's got plus strength and power. Can really push the pile. Guessing he can step right in and play at a high level in the run game. Pass protection is a question mark. Definitely an OG not a tackle.
Defense:
Franklin: Good short space athlete with plus strength and physicality. Reminds me of Antoine Albert from last year although Marloshawn appears to have better hips and natural pass coverage ability. Not a burner, more quick than fast. Good technique, highly competitive player. Could easily play nickel or safety if his speed is an issue outside.
Edmonds: Reminds me of Darius White. Longer, fluid athlete with plus speed. Seems to react well to ball in the air, very good instincts and reaction. Ideal measurables for CB. Not super physical yet in the run game.
Beck: SQT is a good analog. Smaller guy with excellent short area quickness and tough as nails. Very competitive. Explosive athlete albeit lacks great top end speed. Will play the run really well and likes to hit people. Smart, instinctive player
Bynum: Now a taller, lankier corner. Not super explosive athletically. Great technician, some of the best CB coverage film I've seen from a HS player. Good hips, smart reads, very competitive and plays with an edge. Quicker than fast.
Drayden: Skinny and average height. Very good speed and good quickness. Hips look a little stiff, not as fluid laterally as some of the other DB recruits. Not afraid to play the run and hit people. Feels more zone than man to man at this point in terms of fit.
Goode: Lanky, broad shouldered LB with excellent speed and quickness. Great first step and very good closing speed. Slight of build but plays like he's bigger when taking on blockers and runners. Reminds me a lot of Mikey Mohammed in height and build coming out of HS and both could run. Shocked at how under recruited he was based on film, explosive athleticism and the high level of competition he played. Will need 20lbs to play in Pac 12
Becker: I see him as depth at both SDE and inside at DT. High motor, decent quickness, good length. Production was good yet unknown level of competition. More run stopper than pass rusher
Paul: Taller DT with high motor. Decent quickness and movement speed, not a space filler though he has the frame to play at 300lbs. Tough kid, who has a relentless physical style to him. Akin to Bynum, he may be a better football player than raw athlete.
Yaghi: Almost identical build to Paul. A better athlete IMO with more suddenness. Rough and tumble type with a high motor. His length is going to make him a factor in the pass rush from the inside. Could be 300lbs in 2 years easily. Needs to work on bend.
Weaver: Highly productive two way player with a very mature body. Moves really well with plus top end speed. Powerful and strong, he lived in opponents backfields in HS. Can play right away given body type. He's one to two inches in height and arm length away from being a 5 star recruit. Reminds me a bit of Brannan Scarlett in terms of power and speed combo.
Udeogu: Ideal combination of length, long arms and top end speed. Thickly built though not all of it is good weight. Not as quick as ideal for a DE and very raw in using his hands and with pass rush moves. Needs better bend. Longer term upside prospect.
Conclusions: We certainly got a lot taller with bigger framed players especially on the line of scrimmage. The dual threat QBs are a nice addition, great to see three offensive game breaker types in Echols, Stovall and Kobayashi. Bets on big frames with good athleticism abound in this class. Not as much athleticism on defense as would be ideal. Feels like 6-7 players have immediate impact potential - Weaver, Franklin, Wallace, Veasy, Stovall and Echols come to mind.
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