2015 Recruiting (mainly talking about the OL and DL (long))

[TheStateUofMS]

The way I see it, the 2015 class is going to be Dan's best class so far and by a wide margin. We got some excellent prospects committed right now and some excellent ties with some big time prospects. Fletcher Adams is a dominant DL and with his brother already on the team, it's only a matter of time till he pulls the trigger. If we can add more dominant linemen like we have done the past two classes, we will continue to compete with the big boys. Chris Jones is a prime example. Nelson Adams(fr) is going to be really good. Quay(so) and Nick(so) can get it together if they wake up, which I think they will, and be great players. Ryan Brown(so), and AJ Jefferson(fr) also young very talented guys. I didn't list any of our Juniors but Preston Smith, PJ Jones, and Eulls are very talented and all have potential to break out their senior year, and even Virges is not a bad player. We really have no bad D-linemen. Chris Jones is obviously a freak and there's guys on this team that are only FR and SO that have unbelievable potential. There's other guys redshirting who we are yet to see as well.

On the OL, we got really talented young guys like Clayborne (fr), Malone (so), and couple quality rising SRs in Day and Claussell. The 2013 FR class we had was solid as well with Jake Thomas (4star w/ multiple SEC offers) and Kent Flowers (3star w/ OM offer). The 2014 class currently has 2 JUCOs (3stars) and Jordan Harris (3star w/ multiple BCS offers including FSU). From the 2012 class we were able to red shirt Cole Carter (3star that would have had other offers but he committed early and shut things down) and Devon Desper (3star that I saw play personally and was very impressed and has a real nasty streak in him). I think our OL depth is solid, we're young, and could use some work, but I'm definitely not disappointed with what we have and what's coming in. The two JUCOs will be huge. They both have multiple BCS and SEC offers. Next year will be the best OL we've had in recent years in my opinion.

Few big time 2015 DL Commits/Targets:
T.D. Moton (4star) from Louisiana and current commit for 2015 is going to be hard to hold on to (LSU will be primary threat), but I'd rather have him committed than not committed at this point. He's one of the best DL in the country. 6-4 310lbs as a junior! Offers from all over the country.

Fletcher Adams (4star) from Brandon is basically a commit and said he would want nothing more than to play with his brother in college. 6-3 260lbs as a Junior currently.

Tim Washington (4star) from Yazoo City and current commit for 2015 is a 6-3 185lbs LB in HS, but I hear we want to beef him up and put his hand on the ground. Either way he'll be a freak of a LB if he stays there.

There are some other guys we are on, but these are guys who got ties to MSU or are really high on us early.



On the Offensive Line

Javon Patterson (4 star) Petal offensive guard and best friends with current 4star WR commit for 2013 Jesse Jackson should be ours. 6-4 300lbs as a junior. Knows how to play winning football and looks to be a monster prospect. Offers from everyone in the SEC. Yancy spins this guy like he's an Ole Miss lock, but I don't think that's the case at all.


Other good recruits of note:

Jay Johnson (3star but likely bumped to a 4) is a hard lean for us right now and may commit before the year is over. Currently 6-4 200lbs but is being recruited as a WR or Safety.

Alec Murphy (3star) RB. Don't know much about him, but he's really high on us out of MO. Has family from MS and is originally from MS. Loves the atmosphere, cowbells, etc. Ran for 1,800 yards as a JR. Clocked at under 4.5 at Big Dawg Camp. Offers from all over.

Donald Gray (4star) Slot WR. current commit. Signed out of HS in the 2013 class, sent him to Co-Lin and he said he'll sign with us again for the class of 2015. 5-9 185lbs. Had offers from TENN, ARK, Ole Miss, UK, NEB, and others out of HS. From Memphis, TN.

J'Mar Smith (4star) QB out of Meridan, MS.

Jamal Peters (4star) OL out of Bassfield. Probably going to Ole Miss but we should be in the battle.

My main point here is we got a chance at some really good DL and OL that we have ties to or really like us early as well as some highly touted skill guys. I just mentioned a few that I think we get, not everyone and their mama. We can get all the highly rated DBs and WRs we want, but getting great men in the trenches will be key for us, especially since Mullen wants to run the ball with power when he's got the personnel he wants. There's a bunch of other guys who like us that are big time prospects and if we're ever going to sign a great class under Mullen, it's gotta be next year. We got a lot of momentum this year starting with the Bama game and it's carried over. Have a good year on the field next year, and could set up for a special class. Not saying top 5, but a great shot at a top 15 and legitimate shot at a top 10 class. Mullen may actually be building a good program. I'm a Hud guy, but we've invested a lot into Mullen (Stadium, facilities, fan support, etc.) and he has earned the right to finish it out. It's win (on the field and in recruiting) or bust next year for Mullen. He's earned the right to prove it. If he does these things, I'm back on the Mullen train. He's got one more year. If the way his team keeps playing the way it has been playing the past several weeks, then I think he can do it. Sorry for the long post, but I think if we're ever to take the next step, this is our best shot right now. We're going to finish strong in recruiting this year. We'll finish in the top 25 I think or right around there. He's averaged 25.6 in recruiting the past 5 years (according to 247) and that's plenty of talent to win. Pull in a top 15 or 10 class for 2015, and I think we're ready to take the next step. Keep recruiting on the LOS like we have been the past couple years and for 2015 and mix in some other talented skill guys like he has recently (F.Ross, Redmond, Shumpert, D. Wilson, C. Jones, etc) and we should be in good shape. There's some really talented skill guys in this upcoming class and some guys I think we are going to add late. We're in good shape. I think Mullen can recruit. 2015 is when he needs and must take the next step in recruiting if we're going to break outta a mid tier SEC program under him.

 

[Seinfeld]

Good write-up, and I agree with your comments about the trenches. We've got a pretty fair amount of depth and young talent there. If Quay and James could somehow get things back on track, our 8-deep on the D line could be scary. That's a big "if", though... The other positive is that even though our secondary and receiving corp are sore spots right now, both of those areas are extremely young and should only improve with time.

All that said, there are two things that Mullen just HAS to improve.

1) Special Teams is an absolute embarrassment, and the current situation is inexcusable. When you have two kickers on scholarship and your alleged best option is someone who is 6-14 on the year, I just don't even know what to say. Unlike a lot of other positions, this is one in which you just don't have time to develop players because no other teams struggle to this extent. You have to be able to keep up with the rest of the league, and we're continuously shooting ourselves in the foot. Fix it, Dan

2) As much potential as I think Dak/Damian have, I'm still very nervous about the two of them being our only real options at QB next year aside from a couple more true freshmen. This has been beaten to death in previous threads so I won't say much, but Dan's inability to keep more than a couple legit QBs on the roster has been baffling. I really hope that 2014 will finally be the year when we build some depth there.

 

[kired]

How many teams have more than two legit, non-freshman, options at QB? I remember looking into this a few years ago and it was hard to find a team with 3 or 4 junior or senior QBs.

It's a position where the 3rd string guy rarely plays and often transfers. UM is in the same boat this year - they have a junior, senior, and two true freshmen. Next year they will have a senior backed up by two redshirt freshmen and a true freshman. There is no way those 3 freshmen are all QBs at UM in 2017.

 

[TheStateUofMS]

You absolutely right about STs and we're bringing in 2 QBs in the current class

Dan has to hire a ST coach. He needs to focus more on the offense. We have a solid kicker who's committed right now in Logan Cooke. People saying that if a kicker misses an XP or FG in HS shouldn't be awarded a scholly, haven't been to a HS game in a very long time or maybe ever. 50% of the time, kickers get a bad snap or hold and that makes it difficult to kick with consistency on the HS level. Also, if some people actually think there is quality ST coaches on the high school level, they are off their rocker as well. Kickers and punters are basically on their own in HS. I'm sure they can get a few pointers, but not like a college SHOULD have, which we do not right now.

As for our QBs committed...Fitzgerald (3star) signed his grant aid today, and will enroll in January which is always big for a QB. Prescott did the same thing. Fitz is 6-5 and very athletic. He runs the triple option like Georgia Tech, so his passing stats won't blow you away, but he threw for over 700yds and ran for over 1,500 and 20+ TDs this year. From everything I've read about him, he has a strong arm, is very coachable, and could be another "diamond in the rough." Staley, our other QB (3star), is 6-7 and athletic as well. He throws a nice ball, and has a very strong arm from the film I've watched. He didn't get along with his HS coach bc of play calling and was dismissed from his HS team this year, so senior stats won't be impressive. He'll enroll this summer. Both of our QBs are big, athletic guys that fit the mold of what Dan wants in a QB. I think we'll have depth at QB next year for the first time since Mullen has been here.

 

[KurtRambis4]

At this

point, I just don't see Quay or Nick ever learning. I hope I'm wrong, because they have a huge amount of potential. I guess people can change, though.

 

[Dan Dority]

point, I just don't see Quay or Nick ever learning. I hope I'm wrong, because they have a huge amount of potential. I guess people can change, though.

I hope you are wrong as well, I don't look for anything from either of them. I left the bama game at halftime and stopped to get gas in town and I'll be damned if I didn't walk right into Quay inside the store.

 

[treeddeep]

Great post. Thanks for posting

 

[57stratdawg]

I believe the 2015 class is make or break for Mullen. "Ins" usually swing back and forth between OM and MSU year to year, but 2015 we are in pretty good shape. We need to nail down several of the players you mentioned, because I don't think we're going to get into Jackson (Malik Dear) or the Bassfield Kid. That's two of the top 5 right there.

 

[TheStateUofMS]

Does Dear play basketball too or is that Newman or both?

I think Dear has said some good things about us, but luckily it'll be okay if we miss out on him. RB will be the most talented position on the team next year. I bet we only sign one RB for 2015. We need to load up on DL and OL and try to find a mismatch WR/TE type. Samuel looks pretty good, but we need a faster Malcolm Johnson type that's an inch or two taller as well.