Five-Star Checkup: Standouts that barely made five-star cut
MORE: Saturday's Shine, Shame | Five weird things from Week 7 in college football
Mondays during the college football season, we will check in on former five-stars to see how they are panning at out the next level and beyond. This week, we look at the five-stars who barely made the cut as the last man in over the last five years. Some are thriving, while others are still working to live up to their expectations as prospects.
As a recruit: Hurd elected to stay home and committed to Tennessee during his junior year of high school. He chose the Vols over Alabama, Ohio State and others.
What he did this week: Hurd was the first major recruit of the Butch Jones era and was featured as such during his time in Knoxville as he rushed for 2,635 yards and 20 touchdowns in 33 career games before transferring midway through the 2016 season. Hurd landed at Baylor, where he announced he was switching positions to wide receiver in order to pursue and NFL career.
After sitting out 2017, Hurd has become the Bears' best player in 2018, and in Saturday’s loss to Texas, he caught five passes for 72 yards while rushing six times for 13 yards and a score. On the year, Hurd leads the Bears in receptions (47), receiving yards (622) and is second on the team in rushing touchdowns (3). He certainly looks to have an NFL future at his new position.
As a recruit: Sweat let his recruitment play out all the way through his senior season, which was cut short due to a serious knee injury. He ended up landing at Florida State, picking the Seminoles over Virginia Tech, Georgia and Ohio State.
What he did this week: Sweat’s injury scared many, but it didn’t take him long to recover and make an immediate impact in Tallahassee. He spent three seasons playing for the 'Noles, recording 138 total tackles and 14.5 sacks. He left early and was selected by the Philadelphia Eagles in the fourth round of the 2018 NFL Draft. He has worked his way into the lineup as a backup for the Eagles this season and he played 11 snaps in the Eagles win over New York on Thursday but didn’t record a statistic. He’s yet to record his first NFL tackle.
As a recruit: Hayes had an eventful high school career that included an early commitment to USC, followed by a move to California. That didn’t last long and he moved back to Michigan and looked at the Wolverines, Ohio State and Notre Dame before committing to the Irish following the conclusion of his senior season.
What he did this week: After arriving in South Bend, Hayes was moved to defensive end and by the time 2017 rolled around he was a starter for the Irish. In Saturday’s closer-than-expected win against Pitt, Hayes didn’t record a statistic while playing 14 snaps. It was the least action he’s seen this season, but he has been struggling with nagging injuries. On the year, he has nine tackles along with 10 quarterback hurries He hasn’t lived up to his five-star billing, but has been a productive player for the Irish.
As a recruit: The hulking defensive tackle made his commitment to LSU nearly two years before Signing Day 2017 and the Tigers survived late pushes from Nebraska and Alabama to land his signature.
What he did this week: Shelvin’s career is off to a slow start in Baton Rouge as he redshirted in 2017 and has yet to make much of an impact in 2018. He didn’t play in the Tigers win over Georgia on Saturday and to date his only career stats came in the team’s win over Southeast Louisiana, when he played 20 snaps and recorded one tackle. It remains to be seen how Shelvin will be used going forward, but he still has three and half years left in his college career.
As a recruit: Cox initially shocked many when he committed to Ohio State over Georgia prior to his senior season. But the Bulldogs didn’t give up and continued to recruit him and that work paid off when they landed his signature on the first day of the early signing period in Dec. 2017
What he did this week: The last five-star in for the class of 2018, the true freshman is already seeing valuable time for Georgia. He was in the rotation for the Dawgs in this week’s loss to LSU, recording one tackle. On the season, Cox has nine total tackles and looks to be a big part of the team’s future as he continues to develop.
