ACC: Breaking down the five-stars of the past four recruiting cycles
The third part of a weeklong series, Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell and National Recruiting Analyst Adam Gorney break down five-stars by conference over the last four full recruiting cycles, from 2015 to 2018. Today we continue with the ACC.
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OVERVIEW
Only three schools in the entire conference have signed five-star prospects over the last four recruiting cycles, and only Florida State and Clemson have inked those recruits in three of the four years. Miami's two five-star signees came in 2018. Other than that minor interruption from the Hurricanes last cycle, the Tigers and the Seminoles have completely dominated high-end recruiting in the conference, with Clemson beating Florida State 15-11 for five-star signees.
CLEMSON - 15 SIGNEES
Signees: Deon Cain, Christian Wilkins, Ray-Ray McCloud, Dexter Lawrence, Rahshaun Smith, Tre Lamar, A.J. Terrell, Tee Higgins, Hunter Johnson, Trevor Lawrence, Xavier Thomas, Justyn Ross, Jackson Carman, K.J. Henry, Derion Kendrick
Breakdown: Not only does Clemson dominate five-star recruiting in the ACC but coach Dabo Swinney and his staff have done a phenomenal job developing those players and maximizing their abilities on the field. Lawrence, the top-rated prospect in the 2018 class, took over the starting job this season and led the Tigers to a national championship. His favorite targets were Ross and Higgins. Wilkins and Lawrence were keys to arguably the best defensive line in college football. Thomas is unquestionably a future star at defensive end. Lamar is a top linebacker. Terrell had a pick-six for the first score in a blowout win over Alabama in the national title game. The list of success stories goes on and on. The only real miss was Johnson, who lost the starting quarterback battle and decided to transfer to Northwestern.
Farrell’s take: Clemson has been recruiting on a level with Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia and a rare few others when it comes to five-stars, as evidenced by the two national titles. Swinney is one of the best recruiters in the country and I would expect this number will either stay the same or increase over the next few cycles. The Tigers are in a class by themselves in the ACC because most of their five-stars develop.
FLORIDA STATE - 11 SIGNEES
Signees: Derwin James, Tarvarus McFadden, Jacques Patrick, George Campbell, Josh Sweat, Levonta Taylor, Marvin Wilson, Cam Akers, Josh Kaindoh, Khalan Laborn, Jaiden Woodbey
Breakdown: James has been the biggest success story so far out of Florida State’s group. Even after being sidelined with a knee injury during most of his sophomore season, he bounced back the following year and then was a first-round NFL Draft pick. But it’s also been a mixed bag for the Seminoles with recent five-stars. McFadden left Tallahassee a year early to go undrafted and he’s bounced around practice squads. Sweat was a fourth-round pick after leaving early, which certainly isn’t bad, as he filled in for Derek Barnett with the Philadelphia Eagles before getting hurt as well. Campbell has not had a big impact for FSU. Akers ended up having a decent season, but Patrick has been marginal for the Seminoles and both have limited behind weak offensive line play.
Farrell’s take: FSU has never had a problem attracting five-star talent, but the development of those players has been something to worry about. James became a star, but a few others have fallen short of expectations. This is one of the big reasons the Seminoles have fallen so far behind Clemson in the conference.
MIAMI - TWO SIGNEES
Signees: Lorenzo Lingard, Mark Pope
Breakdown: The real concern for the Hurricanes might not be the limited success of Lingard and Pope so far. After all, they were just freshmen, and Lingard missed half the season with a knee injury. Pope had one catch in nine games, certainly not a good start, but he’s a skilled player who could still contribute. What new coach Manny Diaz needs to turn around is landing more elite instate prospects. There have been 32 five-star prospects from the state of Florida in the last four recruiting cycles, and the Hurricanes have only landed two of them. In the 2015, 2016 and 2017 classes, Miami had no five-star pledges. To return to elite status that needs to change, especially in a conference where Clemson has become a national power.
Farrell’s take: Mark Richt is gone and Diaz needs to right the ship. Richt had a very good 2018 class with two five-stars, but as you can see, the Hurricanes are well behind Clemson and Florida State when it comes to luring elite talent. Can Diaz change that? Time will tell.
