Michigan, Tennessee, Alabama signees highlight best program fits

Programs across the country have almost entirely secured their recruiting classes, with just a few recruits holding out their decisions for the final day of the Early Signing Period.

The majority of those players likely won’t move into starting roles as true freshmen, but many are expected to contribute significantly. With that in mind, On3 Director of Scouting Charles Power and National Scout Cody Bellaire are breaking down which signees should be a seamless fit with their college programs.

4-star DL Jide Abasiri – USC

Power’s Take: “USC is looking to remake their defense and in sore need of defensive linemen like Jide Abasiri. The one-time Minnesota commit made very encouraging strides as a senior. At 6-foot-6, 270 pounds with a 6-foot-11 wing-span, Abasiri is a big-framed, flexible athlete capable of playing multiple roles on the defensive front. He’s both explosive and physical. Abasiri is nowhere near his ceiling and has the look of an ascending prospect. There simply is not many defensive linemen like this on the West Coast. I see this as a good fit for both sides on the field when you look at the need at USC and how Abasiri would be used in new defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn’s scheme.”

4-star EDGE Lugard Edokpayi – Michigan

Power’s Take: “Michigan has made a living in signing and developing high upside prospects along the defensive front and Lugard Edokpayi looks to be the next in line. At over 6-foot-6 and around 220 pounds with plus length, the Maryland native has a big frame that should really fill out after time in Michigan’s strength program. He’s a twitchy athlete off the edge, drawing on his basketball background. Edokpayi burst on the scene as a senior after entering the fall as a relative unknown. Given his rapid ascent and strong play this fall, it appears as though he’s just scratching the surface of immense potential. With Michigan’s track record of developing these types of prospects, I’m willing to bet Edokpayi becomes a difference-maker for the Wolverines.”

4-star WR Braylon Staley – Tennessee

Power’s Take: “The last time Tennessee went into South Carolina and landed a blue-chip wide receiver who was a track star was in 2020 when the Vols signed Jalin Hyatt. There are some similarities between Braylon Staley’s game and Tennessee’s Biletnikoff winner. He’s won a bunch of state titles in track as a triple jumper and sprinter and that athleticism shows up on the field. Staley is an explosive target on the outside. He’s capable of taking the top off as a deep threat and is also dangerous I the quick game. The route tree he’s run in high school is very similar to what he’ll be asked to do in Knoxville. We’ve also liked what we’ve seen from Staley’s ball skills and ability to come down with tough grabs. He’s a prospect who has maybe not received a ton of national buzz throughout the cycle, but is a great fit in Josh Heupel’s offense.”

4-star WR Dillon Gresham – Oregon

Power’s Take: “Dillon Gresham is a great overall football player who fits in really well with what Oregon and offensive coordinator Will Stein like to do on offense. Much of Oregon’s offense this past season was built around yards after the catch. Dillon Gresham is dynamic in that regard and is great with the ball in his hands. He’s proven to be productive as a playmaker in a bunch of different facets at the high school level. He went for over 2,000 receiving yards as a junior and played all over the field as as senior – carrying the ball and working on defense. Gresham is a guy who can move all over the formation and make plays in a number of ways. He’s an explosive athlete. It’s not hard to see him fitting in very well with the offense in Eugene.”

Five-Star Plus+ QB Julian Sayin – Alabama

Power’s Take: “Julian Sayin is the type of quarterback that Alabama has had a ton of success with under Nick Saban. He’s highly accurate and is a strong decision maker. Sayin can fit the ball into small windows over the middle of the field. He operates with an advanced timing. We consider Julian Sayin to be the most accurate quarterback in the 2024 cycle and that’s similar to how past Alabama greats like Tua Tagovailoa and Bryce Young were viewed as high school prospects. When you look at Alabama’s offense and the type of skill players they have in Tuscaloosa, I think Julian Sayin fits in really well and projects as an excellent distributor.”

4-star QB Demond Williams – Arizona

Bellaire’s Take: “When looking at Demond Williams Jr. and his fit at Arizona it is almost impossible to not see similarities to Noah Fifita. Both have less than ideal size for the quarterback position but their play styles are dynamic and force you to keep your eyes locked on the screen every time they take a snap. Their escapability from the pocket and ability to create with their legs allows them to keep plays alive and make magic happen while on the move. Both also have compact releases that allow them to get the ball up and out to their targets to make up for their lack of ideal zip on the football. The physical traits may not be prominent in their game, but their ability to make splash plays and turn the seemingly impossible, quite possible… makes them a weapon at the collegiate level.”

4-star RB Kedren Young – Notre Dame

Bellaire’s Take: “Kedren Young from a physical standpoint is an Audric Estime clone. Both of them played around 220 pounds as seniors in high school with rocked up upper bodies and dense lowers. Both of these players are physical, between-the-tackles runners who are violent when working uphill and are not afraid to lower their shoulder when met in the hole with a defender. Estime combined for nearly 2,500 yards rushing in his final two seasons at Notre Dame. That is obviously extremely impressive production, but I believe Kedren Young could produce at a similar, if not, an even higher level than that of Audric Estime.”

4-star WR Elijah Moore – Florida State

Bellaire’s Take: “Elijah Moore is someone you can’t miss when looking around a wide receiver room. He’s a legit 6-foot-4.5, 200-plus pounds with a 6-foot-8 wingspan. He’s an absolute creature. Which is why he will fit in perfectly with what Florida State trots out there at receiver. Players like Johnny Wilson and Keon Coleman have thrived in this Florida State offense and Elijah Moore should be able step in and carve out a role for himself as soon as he arrives on campus. His ability to separate with his twitch and physicality off the line of scrimmage and his unbelievably strong hands allows him to dominate in the underneath and intermediate levels of the field including the red zone. He’s a bully of a receiver that will thrive at the next level.”

5-star OT Weston Davis – LSU

Bellaire’s Take: “Weston Davis is this rare blend of human with tremendous size and athleticism that simply screams NFL offensive lineman. Only so many people in the world look and move like him. And with the way LSU has struck gold in recruiting the offensive line the past couple of seasons, Davis should be another gem for the Tigers. In fact, he reminds us of a combination of Lance Heard and Emery Jones. With Lance Heard you had a raw developmental piece of clay with unlimited upside due to his stature and movement skills. In Emery Jones, you had a tenacious people mover who wanted nothing more than to bury his opponent, and he was willing to do it at any spot you were willing to play him. He is the blend of upside, violence and versatility. His length and movement skills are similar to Heard and scream tackle, but his rawness will need to be addressed early on in his development. Which is when the similarities to Emery Jones appear, if kicked inside his tenacity and fire will come out as a road grader along the interior. If he can reach his potential after some polishing, Davis has the potential to become a true versatile anchor along a dominant offensive line unit whose head coach and position coach have an old and new history, respectively, of churning out dominant players along the offensive front.”

4-star OT Guerby Lambert – Notre Dame

Bellaire’s Take: “Notre Dame’s run of churning out NFL draft picks along the offensive line is currently one of the best in college football and Guerby Lambert is someone who could be the next one to follow in those NFL footsteps. Joe Rudolph also has an excellent history of producing NFL draft picks of his own. Combining these two with the talent and upside of Lambert and you have a borderline surefire top 100 NFL draft pick coming in for the Fighting Irish. His unique blend of movement skills for his size makes him a special talent. His rawness resides in his technique, primarily in pass protection, which is where collegiate coaching specializes in teaching. He’s a prototypical ball of clay that any offensive line coach in America would want to get their hands on, but pairing him with the likes of Rudolph and Notre Dame’s resources? This is a perfect pairing.”

4-star DL D’antre Robinson – Texas

Bellaire’s Take: “Texas had a surge along the defensive line in the 2023 season with players like T’Vondre Sweat and Byron Murphy stepping up and playing pivotal roles along the Longhorns defensive front. Sweat will be moving on to the NFL draft and will not be returning in 2024 and Murphy accepted an invitation to the Reese’s Senior Bowl which means he will also not be returning in 2024. This allows for a player like D’antre Robinson to step in and play an integral role along a defensive line unit losing its top two players from 2023. Robinson stands in at 6-foot-3, 315 pounds and plays with a tremendously high motor and strength at the point of attack. With his size and power, Robinson could find himself for a pivotal run stopper role the moment he arrives on campus.”

5-star LB Sammy Brown – Clemson

Bellaire’s Take: “Sammy Brown is a freakazoid from a physical/athletic perspective when it comes to high school prospects. At nearly 6-foot-3, 225 pounds Brown is capable of running in the 10.7’s in the 100m, sub-22.0 in the 200m and over 23-feet in the long jump. All of those times are impressive for a high school prospect of any stature, let alone one with his size. Clemson has seen players with similar athletic profiles like this such as Trenton Simpson, Isaiah Simmons and Tanner Muse play significant snaps. All three of these players saw themselves selected within the top 100 picks of the NFL draft as linebackers and Sammy Brown could easily be the next one in line from the Tigers defense.”

4-star SAF Reggie Powers – Oklahoma

Bellaire’s Take: “Reggie Powers could be the thunder to Peyton Bowen‘s lightning. Powers is 6-foot and already over 200 pounds that loves to play violently. His demeanor and attitude when it comes to playing near the line of scrimmage is rare for a secondary player. Bowen covers so much grass and is able to play as a true center field safety in the secondary and he also plays a lot of man coverage in the slot. Having a player like Powers compliment him as a downhill weapon from the secondary that can take on a heavier box role could be one of the better pairings in college football.”

4-star DL Charleston Collins – Arkansas

Bellaire’s Take: “Charleston Collins is the perfect weapon for Arkansas defensive coordinator Travis Williams defense. Williams is all about causing chaos for opposing quarterbacks. He wnats players that can get after the passer and make plays in the backfield. Insert Collins who basically lived in the backfield his senior season. He totaled 115 tackles, 31 tackles for loss and 12 sacks in just 11 games. Those numbers are absurd and show just how big of a game wrecker Collins can be. Plus, with his size being nearly 6-foot-4, 265 pounds he has positional versatility. He can line up standing up off the edge, have his hand in the dirt or even kick inside to create pressure as an interior rusher. Wherever Collins lines up, just know that Williams will be using him like a queen in chess.”