Five must-get prospects for Midwest programs
Commitment season is upon us and the college football world is waiting for dominoes to fall. Many of the nation's best prospects have been recruited for years and the teams that have targeted certain players from an early age can't afford to miss out on players they worked this hard to sign.
Here are five players from the Midwest that are must-get prospects for certain teams this cycle.
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ILLINOIS: Malik Elzy
Coach Bret Bielema can make a huge statement in his second year at Illinois by landing one of the Midwest's best receivers in Malik Elzy. This will be a tough battle as Elzy's stock continues to rise and the ability to beat Notre Dame, Michigan and a handful of SEC teams for a top five in-state prospect has been something Illinois has struggled with in recent years.
Illinois has not signed a top 10 in-state prospect since 2019, and although that is not the fault of the new regime in Champaign it remains an uphill battle to keep the state's national recruits at home. The tides may be changing though. Bielema and his staff have made in-state recruiting a huge priority and you need to look no further than the recent commitment of four-star athlete recruit Kaden Feagin to see that their efforts are starting to pay dividends.
Elzy has a great relationship with Illinois wide receiver coach George McDonald and recent trips to campus have really opened his eyes to a potential future playing for the Illini. A few months ago I would have said there is no chance of this happening, but if the Illinois coaches can pull this one off it would be as big of a recruiting win as they have had since Bielema arrived on campus.
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NOTRE DAME: Charles Jagusah
Notre Dame has done an amazing job of recruiting since Marcus Freeman took over. The Irish's 2022 class was fantastic and 2023 is shaping up to be pretty impressive itself. The one position they have been a finalist for with top players only to lose out on their commitment day is the offensive line. Should Notre Dame land Charles Jagusah out of Illinois, his commitment would be an absolute slam dunk at a position that it has been close on but has not been able to close out.
Jagusah may be a little raw right now, but his upside is as high as any offensive lineman in the 2023 class. The race for his commitment appears to be down to three teams in Notre Dame, Michigan and Iowa. Should Notre Dame not suffer the same fate it has recently with offensive linemen who had the Irish in their group of finalists by receiving a commitment from Jagusah it would be a game changer for Freeman's first full recruiting class. Not only would his pledge help Notre Dame rise in the recruiting rankings, he would balance out and improve an already impressive 2023 class.
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NEBRASKA: Malachi Coleman
The state of Nebraska is known more for producing lineman than they are for producing elite-level skill prospects. Anytime you have a kid like Malachi Coleman in-state, he becomes a must get. In order for Nebraska to achieve maximum success, it needs to keep all of its top players home, especially the athlete/skill types, because the chances of them going to SEC country to steal a player like Coleman are just not in its favor.
Coleman has about as much upside as any recruit in the country. He possesses the perfect combination of size, speed, skill and versatility to be a program changer at a time when Nebraska needs one most. The fact that he can make an impact at multiple positions only increases his value.
While Nebraska has done a good job of keeping talent at home historically, Coleman's recruitment is turning out to be a little different. He was recently offered by the defending national champions in Georgia and has also added big offers from the likes of Oregon, Michigan, Penn State and Oklahoma. It won't be easy, but if the Huskers can land Coleman it would be one of their biggest recruiting wins in recent memory.
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MISSOURI: Miles McVay
Missouri's biggest problem over the years has been its lack of ability when it comes to keeping elite prospects from the area home. While the Tigers have done a solid job of signing kids from the St Louis area over the years they have also missed out on household names like Ezekial Elliot, Christian Kirksey and Jameson Williams that could have changed the trajectory of the entire program.
Eliah Drinkwitz and staff have made Missouri and the St. Louis area a major priority since his arrival. We really started to see it pay off this past year when they signed the nation's No. 1 receiver in Luther Burden. Signing Burden changed how many of the area prospects view Missouri as a program, and Burden also happens to be a friend and former high school teammate of Miles McVay.
Missouri can make a real statement by landing McVay. Not only would it further the recruiting progress the Tigers have made in St. Louis, McVay is the type of player that can make an impact at a position that they need. Chances are McVay ends up somewhere else in the SEC if his choice isn't Missouri, and that is the last thing the Tigers can afford to have happen.
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IOWA: Kadyn Proctor
The state of Iowa isn't exactly known for producing five-star talent, but the state has produced back to back five-star players in Xavier Nwankpa and Kadyn Proctor. The crazier part is that they are both from Southeast Polk High School and are good friends. Iowa has always done a good job recruiting outside the state and is known for developing lesser-known talent, but when you have a player of Proctor's caliber in your own back yard you have no choice but to land them in order for the program to reach its maximum potential.
Many thought it was a long shot for Iowa to sign Nwankpa because he could have gone to pretty much any school in the country, but he chose to stay at home. Proctor himself seemed to be a long shot for Iowa at one point, but the Hawkeyes landing his former teammate - who also appears to be loving his time in Iowa City thus far - only helps the Hawkeyes' cause.
Proctor has three official visits on the books to Alabama, Penn State and Oregon. That may be reason for Hawkeyes fans to worry, but he has been to Iowa plenty of times, his former teammate is there and an official visit to Iowa would merely be a formality at this point. The longer Proctor's recruitment lingers, the better Iowa's chances are of landing him, in my opinion. Iowa is going to churn out NFL offensive lineman with or without Proctor, but one can only imagine what the Hawkeyes would be able to do with a player of his caliber.