These 2021 offensive stars were underrated recruits

Any type of talent evaluation is a crap shoot and not anything close to resembling a science. If it were a science, no pro draft pick — in the NFL, NBA, MLB or the NHL — ever would be a bust (well, assuming no injury, of course). The same goes for college recruiting. How will a 17- or 18-year-old recruit handle the next level?  You can’t measure intangibles, and that usually is the No. 1 factor in an athlete’s development.

FBS schools sign about 2,800 football players each season. There generally are about 35 five-star prospects annually, meaning less than 1.5 percent of the players signed are five-star guys. Generally, there are about 350 or so four-star prospects annually, which means the great bulk of players who sign with colleges each season — about 85 percent — are two- or three-star guys.

Simple math tells you a lot of those two- and three-star guys become key players in college. Some even become stars. Today we’re going to spotlight 20 offensive players nationally who were not even consensus top 1,000 players as high school seniors — and some weren’t even top 2,000. Our criteria: The player had to have a legit chance to be a conference player of the year in a Group of 5 league or a first-team all-league pick in a Power 5 conference. Trust us: We still left guys off this list.

Regardless, take a gander at this group of all-underrated recruits; today, we’re looking at offensive players and we’ll do defenders Wednesday.

Memphis WR Calvin Austin III

The buzz: Austin was barely inside the national top 1300 in the 2017 recruiting class. He was a highly productive receiver and track athlete at Memphis’ Harding Academy, but he also was 5 feet 9 and not even 150 pounds as a high school senior and ended up walking on with the Tigers. He redshirted as a true freshman, barely played in 2018 (though he did take his one rushing attempt 83 yards for a TD), became a rotation player in 2019, then emerged as a force last season; Austin scored 12 TDs last fall and averaged 16.7 yards on his 63 receptions. He led the AAC in receiving yards (1,053) and receiving touchdowns (11) in 2020, and while Memphis will have a new starting quarterback, Austin (5-9, 165) should be a contender for All-American honors this fall.

Colorado RB Jarek Broussard

The buzz: Broussard (5-9, 185), who was a national top 1200 recruit as a wide receiver in the 2018 class, burst on the scene last season by rushing for 895 yards in six games. He led the Pac-12 in rushing and was third in the nation at 149.2 yards per game. Broussard — from Dallas Bishop Lynch — redshirted as a freshman, then missed the 2020 season with a knee injury.

Kent State QB Dustin Crum

The buzz: Crum was barely inside the national top 2200 in the 2017 recruiting class out of Grafton (Ohio) Midview; he heads into his fifth-year senior season as one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the nation. Crum (6-3, 202) threw for 3,803 yards, 32 TDs and four picks and rushed for 947 yards and 10 scores in 17 games the past two seasons (the Golden Flashes played just four times last fall). He also has completed 70.4 percent of his passes (299-of-425) in that span. Crum already has a degree in aerospace engineering.

Oregon State C Nathan Eldridge

The buzz: Because of two years missed because of injuries and the extra season given to players because of COVID, Eldridge (6-4, 292) is a seventh-year senior. He was barely outside the national top 1200 in the 2015 recruiting class out of Anthem (Ariz.) Boulder Creek, in the Phoenix suburbs. Eldridge signed with Arizona out of high school, redshirted as a true freshman and was a starter for the Wildcats in 2016 and ’17. He missed the 2018 season with a knee injury, then was a grad transfer to Oregon State before the 2019 season; Eldridge was still recovering from the injury during the ’19 season and played in only four games that fall before becoming the full-time starter last season. He might be the best center in the Pac-12.

Boston College WR Zay Flowers

The buzz: Flowers was ranked outside the national top 1200 at Fort Lauderdale (Fla.) University School in the 2019 recruiting class. Heck, he wasn’t in the top 150 in Florida or even the top 25 in his home county (Broward). But he has far outperformed his ranking. He has 78 receptions for 1,233 yards and 12 TDs in his first two seasons; Flowers (5-10, 177) led the ACC in TD receptions (nine) and was fourth in receiving yards (892) last season, when he was a first-team all-league selection.

Utah C Nick Ford

The buzz: Ford was ranked inside the national top 1500 (barely) out of San Pedro (Calif.) High in the 2017 recruiting class; at one point, he was committed to Nevada. Ford redshirted as a freshman and now is headed into his fourth season as a starter. He has started at least once at every position on the line, and seems likely to again start at center this season. Ford (6-5, 317) was a first-team All-Pac-12 selection last season.

Minnesota RB Mohamed Ibrahim

The buzz: Ibrahim, a junior, was ranked in the 1100s as a senior at Olney (Md.) Good Counsel, when he was listed at 5-9 and 178 pounds; he now is 5-10 and 210. He will be in his fourth season as the starter this fall and is ninth in school history in rushing yards (2,840) and sixth in rushing TDs (31). The third 1,000-yard season of his career would put him in the top four in rushing yards, and 1,200 yards would put him third. Five more rushing TDs would put him second in that category and 10 more would put him atop the leaderboard; he rushed for 15 scores last season.

Boston College OT Zion Johnson

The buzz: Johnson was an unranked recruit out of Upper Marlboro (Md.) Riverdale Baptist in the 2017 recruiting class and signed with FCS member Davidson. He was a two-year starter for the Wildcats, then transferred to BC. He started at left guard in 2019, then moved to left tackle last season and graded out as BC’s top o-lineman. While guard will be his best position at the next level, he is expected to start at tackle again this season. Johnson, who is 6-3, has gained 50 pounds since his high school days and now weighs in at 315.

Iowa State TE Charlie Kolar

The buzz: Kolar, from Norman (Okla.) North, might be the best tight end in the nation. That’s not bad for a guy who was just outside the national top 1200 in the 2017 recruiting class. Kolar was a 6-6, 227-pounder as a high school senior and now is listed at 6-6 and 260. He has 106 career receptions and has a shot to finish in the top five in school history in that category (he needs 51 catches to move into fifth). He also has 17 career TD receptions, already fourth-most in school history. Ten more would put him second.

Boston College C Alec Lindstrom

The buzz: As with BC teammate Zion Johnson, Lindstrom was in the 2017 signing class. He was ranked in the 2300s nationally out of Dudley (Mass.) Shepherd Hill Regional and his only other FBS offer was from UMass. Lindstrom was a 240-pounder in high school and now is 6-3 and 300. He will be a three-year starter and is expected to contend for All-America honors. His dad, Chris Sr., played three seasons in the NFL and was his high school coach. His brother, Chris Jr., was a first-round pick by Atlanta in 2019 NFL Draft out of BC.

Notre Dame G Cain Madden

The buzz: Madden (6-3, 313), a sixth-year senior, was one of the most coveted transfers in the portal when he left Marshall and chose the Irish. He was a three-year starter at Marshall and earned some All-America mention last season; he will get more attention this fall. Madden walked-on at Marshall out of Minford (Ohio) High and was an unranked high school recruit in the 2016 class.

Missouri C Michael Maietti

The buzz: Maietti, a sixth-year senior from powerhouse Ramsey (N.J.) Don Bosco Prep, will be one of the best centers in the SEC this fall. He began his career at Rutgers before transferring and starting 10 games for Mizzou last season. Maietti (6-1, 290) was ranked in the 2600s nationally as a prep senior.

Coastal Carolina QB Grayson McCall

The buzz: McCall (6-3, 210) was ranked in the high 2800s nationally in the 2019 class out of Indian Trail (N.C.) Porter Ridge, in the Charlotte suburbs. (Porter Ridge’s big rival is Sun Valley High in suburban Monroe — the alma mater of Sam Howell. Howell and Sun Valley beat McCall and Porter Ridge when both were seniors.) McCall redshirted in 2019, then burst on the scene last season, when he was named the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Year and a first-team Freshman All-American. He accounted for 33 TDs and averaged 277.9 yards of total offense per game in leading the Chanticleers to an 11-1 record and a ranking of No. 12 in the final CFP rankings.

UTSA RB Sincere McCormick

The buzz: McCormick was second in the nation in rushing yardage last season, with 1,467, and his 133.4 yards per game ranked sixth. He had seven 100-yard games, including five in which he topped 150 yards. That’s solid production from a guy who was outside the national top 1600 and wasn’t even a top-200 recruit in his home state at Converse (Texas) Judson in the 2019 class. After two seasons, he already is the leading rusher in school history with 2,450 yards, and he is second with 19 rushing TDs. McCormick (5-9, 205) heads into this season with a great chance to win Conference USA Offensive Player of the Year honors for the second season in a row.

Miami OT Zion Nelson

The buzz: Nelson heads into this season as a three-year starter and a potential first-round pick. That’s a far cry from his senior season at Sumer (S.C.) High in the class of 2019, when he was ranked in the 1400s and not even considered one of the top-100 tackles nationally; UM coaches flipped him from Appalachian State late in the recruiting process. He was overmatched as a freshman at UM that fall because of his lack of size. He was 6-5 and weighed 240 pounds as a prep senior, but has bulked up to 316 pounds and kept his quick feet. He’ll be the standout on a line that returns all five starters.

Iowa State C Colin Newell

The buzz: Newell was just outside the national top 1000 as a prep senior in the class of 2017 at Ames (Iowa) High, which is about a mile from Iowa State’s campus. He was a 6-5, 260-pound tackle as a high school senior, but moved inside to center when he redshirted as a freshman and is line to be a four-year starter (he suffered a knee injury in 2019 and missed most of the season). Newell, now a 310-pounder, was a first-team All-Big 12 selection last fall and will vie for All-America honors this season as the man in the middle on what is expected to be one of the nation’s best o-lines.

Wake Forest WR Jaquarii Roberson

The buzz: Wake Forest has to be able to find diamonds in the rough and polish them up, and Demon Deacons coaches deserve credit for finding and developing Roberson. He was barely a national top-1400 recruit out of Ahoskie (N.C.) Hertford County, in the extreme northeast part of the state. Roberson (6-1, 182) had a breakout season as a redshirt junior last fall, finishing with 62 receptions for 926 yards and eight TDs; those figures ranked third, third and second, respectively, in the ACC. Another big season looms.

Kentucky RB Chris Rodriguez Jr.

The buzz: Rodriguez ranked in the 1150s nationally out of McDonough (Ga.) Ola in the 2018 recruiting class; heck, he wasn’t even considered a top-100 player in Georgia. But he is one of the best returning backs in the SEC this season. Despite sharing time last season, Rodriguez (5-11, 224) ranked fifth in the league in rushing, and will be UK’s feature back this fall.

Oklahoma State G Josh Sills

The buzz: Sills, from Byesville (Ohio) Meadowbrook (the same prep alma mater as Dom Capers), signed with West Virginia as part of the 2016 recruiting class. He was ranked in the high 1100s nationally and was outside the top 50 in Ohio. Sills started for two years at guard WVU, then missed all but two games of the 2019 season after shoulder surgery. He left for Oklahoma State after that season, then started all 11 games for the Cowboys in 2020 (six games at left guard, one at left tackle and four at right tackle). Sills (6-6, 338) was a first-team All-Big 12 selection last season and a second-team pick at WVU in 2018.

Nevada QB Carson Strong

The buzz: Strong (6-4, 215), a junior, might have as much sheer arm talent as any quarterback in the nation. He is heading into his third season as the starter for the Wolf Pack, who signed him out of Vacaville (Calif.) Wood in the 2018 class. Strong was barely a the national top-2200 recruit as a prep senior, though his rating likely was hampered because he missed the season with an injury. He has gained 20 pounds since enrolling at Nevada and is the top contender for Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year honors.

A look at the other side: A by-the-numbers look at 5-star recruits in the past 10 classes

(Top photo of Mohamed Ibrahim: Scott W. Grau/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)