Welcome to 2023. You made it. Your team may have suffered brutal losses to arch rivals or injuries that changed the entire season projectory, but in this new year the only thing that exists is possibility.
Wild would be an understatement when we talk about the Early Signing Period. And that was just the start. We’ve got one more signing day coming up in February so hold on for an even better finish.
In the meantime, let’s grab a cup of coffee and get you caught up on the latest in commitments, decommitments, and flips since signing day and who closed going into the new year.
Raymond Cottrell Flips to Texas A&M from Georgia (2023 4 Star – #148 Overall, #24 Wide Receiver)
Raymond Cottrell hails out of Milton, Florida. The 6’2, 200 pound senior projects as an outside the numbers WR1 with decent track speed.
Cottrell flipped from Georgia to A&M in the new year and Aggies know they’re getting a good one.
Did this do enough to ease the anxiety in the A&M fanbase over Jimbo?
Jury’s still out.
Of all the reactions Georgia fans could have had here, they went with “over recruited” and “we didn’t need him anyways”.
Demond Williams, Jr. Commits to the Sip (2024 4 Star – #228 overall, #18 Quarterback)
Mr. Williams is from Chandler, Arizona and picked Ole Miss over local schools ASU and U of A. Demond is on the smaller side at 5’11, 160 but he has a strong arm and elite ability to extend plays with his feet.
Let the Kyler Murray comparisons begin.
Lane should have some fun with this kind of athlete at the helm, but there’s a not so small portion of the fans down in Oxford who aren’t sold on a smaller quarterback.
Deion Lands Two D-Linemen
Deion continues to excite the Colorado faithful and he did so again with two commitments during the winter holiday season.
Omar White (2024 4 Star – #108 overall, #13 Defensive Line)
Omar is the first recruit Deion was able to snag. He’s from Leesburg, Georgia and don’t let the 6’3, 310 pound frame fool you. White is a top level basketball recruit as well so the big man has some athleticism at his size.
White picked the Buffaloes over Alabama, Auburn, Clemson, and Oklahoma among others.
Eric Brantley, Jr. (2024 3 Star – #395 overall, #37 Defensive Line)
The second of his commits is Eric Brantley. Brantley is also out of Georgia and is a late riser in the recruiting ranks.
It’s pretty clear Colorado fans are fully bought in on Prime Time.
Spartans Land Jaylen Thompson (2024 4 Star – #258 overall, #23 Cornerback)
From Murfreesboro, TN, Thompson is a lengthy corner. Jaylen had offers from some other big programs like Auburn, Nebraska, and Arkansas but chose Mel Tucker’s squad.
Although not everyone in East Lansing is sold on the future yet. Too much hurt in 2022 I guess.
DayDay Farmer is a Pitt Panther (2024 4 Star – #163 Overall, #26 Wide Receiver)
Ric’Darious Farmer, better known by his nickname DayDay, immediately joins the all-name squad for the recruiting class of 2024.
From Cocoa, Florida, Farmer picked the Panthers on Christmas Day over other options Florida State, Arizona State, and Penn State.
If you’ve never had the privilege to peruse a Pitt Panther message board, let me just tell you, the pessimism runs DEEP.
DeAndre Moore Flips to Texas from Louisville (2023 4 Star – #95 overall, #17 Wide Receiver)
Louisville seemed to lose a whole heck of a lot of recruits over the last month or so and the latest was DeAndre Moore. A longtime commit out of St. John Bosco in California, Moore will instead be playing for the Longhorns come September.
Moore was predicted to sign on Signing Day and then waited. There was anxiety and overreactions to say the least on the boards.
Eventually, the Longhorns secured the commitment.
Once on campus he’ll bring some top end speed the Longhorns have been needing.
LaNorris Sellers Chooses the Gamecocks (2023 4 Star – #396 Overall, #26 Quarterback)
Sellers had originally been committed to play for Dino Babers and the Syracuse Orange but is instead staying home in the Palmetto State.
LaNorris had more than 4,000 all purpose yards with a 45:2 TD:INT ratio. Gamecocks fans aren’t holding back on this one.
Shane Beamer is building something down there in Columbia.
Saban Gets Another One in Desmond Ricks (2023 5 Star – #23 Overall, #2 Cornerback)
Alabama had already secured the number one class on signing day and then decided to get even better adding Desmond Ricks.
Ricks is an elite corner out of IMG Academy in Florida and chose the Tide over LSU and Florida.
Speaking of, LSU fans any comments?
Gators, care to chime in?
NIL has changed quite a few things about recruiting but what it’s really been helpful for is making excuses.
Peyton Bowen Finally Picks, Chooses Oklahoma (2023 4 Star – #167 Overall, #8 Running Back)
You knew we had to cover this one. Notre Dame. Oregon. Oklahoma. Parents and girlfriends. NIL bags. What didn’t this recruitment have?
I don’t feel like I can properly characterize this one so let’s just leave it up to the boards.
Notre Dame, you’re up first.
Oregon?
And for Oklahoma, let’s keep it simple.
Before?
And after…
Leave a Reply