2025 Louisiana ATH Joshua Brantley has SEC potential

2025 ATH Joshua Brantley has Saturday potential, and that became exceedingly clear during a pair of in-person evaluations last fall.

Brantley just capped his first season as the full-time starter of the Ruston (La.) High Bearkats, a North Louisiana powerhouse that’s produced its fair share of household names over the past few years. As a junior, the 2025 ATH took over as quarterback for Ruston and led the storied program back to state — this time overcoming a talented Zachary program in a back-and-forth thriller.

The decisive scores came via none other than the 6-foot-4, 215-pound Brantley, who was not only effective throwing the rock but won the final game of the season with pivotal runs for touchdowns, a theme for much of the fall.

Brantley is not only well-put-together, but his testing as an underclassman is superb. He clocked a 4.56-second 40-yard dash and a 35-inch vertical. He’s currently running track as part of multiple relay squads.

Last season as a junior, Brantley totaled 2,000 yards of offense with 20 touchdowns, including 11 on the ground. He averaged north of 3 YPC seeing plenty of goal line work and showing his ability to burn around the edge, too.

Ruston has been a popular destination for college coaches this past spring and in years past. The Bearkats have inked players to LSU, Tulane, Mississippi State, Louisiana Tech and more, to name a few. Sonny Dykes and Louisiana Tech are primed to make a move on the local prospect when he visits next month for a junior day. Jon Sumrall‘s new staff at Tulane and Jeff Lebby’s new crew at Mississippi State may not be far behind either.

LSU is also taking a hard look at Brantley as a potential option at the safety spot as the new defensive staff continues to evaluate the in-state ATH.

On that subject … a longtime SEC coordinator believes “he’s an SEC free safety right now.”

Brantley throws the ball and runs with authority, and is an intriguing prospect on either side of the ball, in this analyst’s opinion. There’s a strong sense that Brantley is very open to playing wherever, a bit of an old-school approach to this recruitment.

Brantley is a part of a very deep and talented group of recruits in Louisiana for the 2025 class. He and Ruston will have another shot to continue to turn some heads with what should be a Superdome-worthy roster and a future Saturday star behind the wheel on offense.

2025 ATH Joshua Brantley, 6-foot-4, 213 pounds this spring. Orchestrated Ruston offense en route to a championship. Clocked 4.5 in the 40 as an underclassman, 35" vert, and currently running track relays. One longtime SEC coordinator views him as a future SEC safety

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— Sam Spiegelman (@samspiegs) February 24, 2024