Gorney's thoughts on Power Five commitments in past two weeks
Since March 10, there have been an abundance of commitments to Power Five schools as prospects take visits and make their choices. Here are some quick thoughts on the 27 pledges as of Friday morning.
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Jeremy Scott, Ole Miss: The Rebels beat Mississippi State, Arkansas and Vanderbilt for the Jackson (Miss.) Callaway three-star receiver who has size, length and speed. He will be another weapon in coach Lane Kiffin’s offense, although I’d like to see an increase in his stats next season.
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Ryan Jostes, Missouri: I love offensive tackles who were former tight ends because it means they can move and they have athletic ability. So many of those players end up being high NFL Draft picks, and Jostes could be one of them as he also has almost no bad weight.
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Whit Muschamp, Vanderbilt: A coach’s son - yes, Will Muschamp is his father - who has a big-time arm, can dodge pressure in the pocket and who knows the game well, Vanderbilt is getting a very competent quarterback with a lot of skills.
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Dion Stutts, Arkansas: In a three-man front for his high school, Stutts is playing outside, and while he’s not gap-shooting and living in the backfield, the three-star does have impressive speed and the ability to shed blocks. If there is any dancing or wasted movement by the ball carrier, Stutts is swallowing them up.
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Duke Watson, Georgia Tech: The Yellow Jackets need to win battles like this for in-state prospects who are overlooked by some other Southeast schools but who have incredible production and ability. The Forsyth (Ga.) Mary Persons three-star running back carried it 200 times for 1,669 yards and 14 touchdowns last season, and he has great vision.
Davhon Keys, LSU: It felt like Oklahoma had the early edge with Texas, TCU and others in the mix, but relationships were huge for the four-star linebacker and he developed the best ones at LSU. A late Alabama offer didn’t persuade the Aledo, Texas, standout to wait, either. I do wonder about his speed a little bit in the SEC, but he has an incredible knack to knock the ball out.
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TJ Lockhart, Mississippi State: Maybe Lockhart has been overlooked by other SEC teams because of his location in tiny Winona, Miss., but the big boy can play. At 6-foot-6 and 365 pounds, I do wonder if he moves inside in college and uses his brute force and size to handle interior defensive linemen. But with a head of steam, Lockhart can move and block at the second level, too.
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Daniel Kaelin, Missouri: The high three-star is not just firing bombs down the field but is throwing to sophisticated routes - and right on time. While Nebraska tries to land five-star Dylan Raiola, a really talented QB from its back yard is off to Missouri and coach Eli Drinkwitz has a really talented pocket passer to work with.
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Cedrick Bailey, NC State: Bailey was at OT7 Phoenix last weekend, and he’s incredibly tall and wiry. So, while he will be a big target for defensive ends coming off the edge, he also has the size to scan the whole field and deliver the ball. My concern might be a little ridiculous but he’s arguably throwing to better receivers now in five-stars Jeremiah Smith and Joshisa Trader than he will in Raleigh, and that’s no rip on the NC State offense.
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Noreel White, Arkansas: The Razorbacks scored a big win here because LSU was a dream school and the in-state schools carried a lot of weight, but White developed the best relationships at Arkansas and that’s why it won out. He’s a smooth route-runner with an extra gear. He caught 49 passes for 634 yards and eight touchdowns last season, but with an elite SEC quarterback White could do even more damage.
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Francis Brewu, Pitt: Brewu is sudden, aggressive, physical and relentless and that fits the Pittsburgh defensive tackle mold perfectly. He’s also a mid-level three-star and the Panthers have done extraordinarily well taking players who are a little undervalued and making them stars. He could be the next one.
Luca Puccinelli, Wake Forest: The three-star tight end can line up on the line or outside and I actually think he’s more effective split out where he can use his size and hands against smaller cornerbacks. He’s good either way, and while he’s not going to run 4.4 in the 40, Puccinelli also plays basketball, so the athletic ability there.
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Demello Jones, Georgia: This is the type of player Georgia coach Kirby Smart makes into a superstar. Smart made multiple trips to Swainsboro, Ga., to recruit Jones, who plays quarterback, receiver, cornerback and safety, and Jones is one of the most natural athletes in the class. He’s ranked No. 122 nationally right now, and that might be too low.
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Tionne Gray, Missouri: Minnesota, Oregon, Colorado, LSU and Missouri were the top five in early February, and then Oklahoma offered late to make it interesting, but the four-star defensive tackle picked the Tigers recently and it was another big recruiting win. At 6-foot-6, 305 pounds, Gray can move well, he has played a lot of defensive end and he has great athletic ability.
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Josh Harrison, Wake Forest: The Arden (N.C.) Christ School defensive end did not have a Power Five offer sheet that would blow anyone away, but Harrison has length and speed to get outside, he can get inside on offensive tackles and then those long arms can reach to knock the ball out. The three-star lines up wide but gets to the backfield quickly and causes issues.
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Tayshaun Burney, Wake Forest: The Tampa (Fla.) Carrollwood Day three-star is never going to be the biggest corner but he’s one of those do-it-all mighty mite types who plays above his weight and is always around the ball. He’s a burner, too, so not many receivers in the ACC will run by him.
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Santana Alo-Tupuola, Georgia Tech: Playing center at Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy, Alo-Tupuola is a 6-foot-2, 300-pound interior offensive lineman who is going to battle. It’s not always going to be pretty, but the three-star is not afraid to mix it up and grind down defensive linemen over a game.
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Jordan Boyd, Georgia Tech: Listed as an outside linebacker now, it’s pretty certain Boyd will be an edge rusher in college just because of his physical size, and that’s where he mainly played in his junior season. While it doesn’t look like he has elite speed off the edge he sure does win against a lot of offensive tackles and he makes a ton of plays.
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Eric Ingwerson, Pitt: Also a basketball player, Ingwerson is all of 6-foot-7 and he has really soft hands and good concentration to bring down passes in a crowd. Plus, he’s a major red-zone threat because of his size. Ingwerson isn’t going to run away from a lot of people in the ACC but he’s going to be a big target to move the chains.
Jordan Marshall, Michigan: This was a massive recruiting win for Michigan over Ohio State and many others as the Wolverines went to Cincinnati Moeller for arguably the best running back in the 2024 class. Marshall has speed, patience, vision, cutback ability and the power to bounce off arm tackles. He’s special.
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Danny O’Neil, Colorado: The Indianapolis Cathedral three-star quarterback received Big Ten interest from mainly the lower-level schools, but this could be a major steal for coach Deion Sanders at Colorado. He’s not the biggest QB but he’s calculating in the pocket, throws a nice ball and plays with a little bit of swagger and confidence.
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Chase Farrell, Stanford: For so many years, Stanford wanted bigger, slower receivers to physically dominate outside, but there were not many deep threats. Farrell is a deep threat who has speed and great route-running ability. We just want to see more production out of him in his senior season.
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Zechariah Sample, Arizona State: Top 2025 receiver Andrew Marsh is ahead of him on the depth chart at Katy (Texas) Jordan, but Sample is a perfect fit in first-year coach Kenny Dillingham’s offense. He’s a speedy and dynamic slot receiver with great hands who gets open quickly and can also be used coming out of the backfield. Sometimes, fit is more important than high school stats, and ASU is a nice spot for him.
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Asaad Brown, NC State: This is a very nice pickup for NC State because Brown is not only a Rivals250 member but he had offers from across the country - and for good reason. The Fredericksburg (Va.) St. Michael four-star cornerback is aggressive, physical and tough at the line of scrimmage and very competitive late in routes. Sometimes a little too handsy, Brown will learn as he gets to the college level and I’ll take that never-back-down mentality all day.
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Corey Smith, Minnesota: The ball was spread around a lot at Brownsburg, Ind., but Smith still led the way with 40 catches for 811 yards and six touchdowns. He has speed, make-you-miss ability and sometimes the QB just throws it up and Smith goes to get it, which should give the Gophers another weapon in the passing game.
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Davi Belfort, Virginia Tech: Belfort comes from an athletic family. His father, Vitor, was a mixed martial arts champion and that competitive drive and hunger to be the best lives in the four-star quarterback as well. Belfort isn't a finished product and he’s never going to be the biggest QB, but he is a competitor and he has talent inside and outside the pocket.
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Nazaiah Caravallo, Arizona: Already up to 225 pounds, Caravallo has the frame to easily add at least another 10 pounds to be even more physical and impactful off the edge. I’m surprised more Pac-12 schools didn’t jump into his recruitment, and this looks like a steal for Arizona because he has great instincts and he’s sudden to get to the ball and make the tackle.
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Deric Dandy, Virginia Tech: To finish with 6.5 sacks as a junior is solid, but what really sticks out to me is that Dandy had 95 tackles this past season, which means he's constantly around the ball and making plays. Coming off the edge, the Mount Airy, N.C., prospect is active and athletic and he has good speed to shut down the ball carrier or track plays to the sideline. It's very surprising his only other offer came from Appalachian State.
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Chris Davis, Ole Miss: Davis played second fiddle to four-star Oregon running back signee Dante Dowdell at Picayune (Miss.), but he still had an incredible junior season with 1,078 yards and 15 touchdowns on only 122 carries. The four-star Ole Miss commit actually averaged more yards per touch than Dowdell and should be in line for an explosive senior season now that Dowdell is off to Eugene.