JUCO: Big-name prospects primed for new FBS opportunity

CLASS OF 2019 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | State | Position | Team

CLASS OF 2020 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | State | Position

Junior college serves as a second chance for hundreds of players every year, and 2019 is no exception. The 2019 college football season will be flooded with familiar names in new places, as juco bouncebacks populate rosters of FBS teams.

Below, Rivals.com details five signed junior college prospects you might recall from their previous college stop.

MORE: 2019 JUCO RANKINGS | Who are the instant impact players? | Five programs that could make noise in 2020 | Coaches in need of bounceback recruiting class

As a high school prospect, Walker flipped from Ohio State to Michigan and was celebrated as a massive recruiting victory for Jim Harbaugh. He never found his groove in Ann Arbor, however, and left the program after a rocky ride that included him missing the entire 2016 season due to academic issues.

The former Wolverine played last year at Fort Scott (Kan.) Community College and signed with Mississippi State this cycle. Walker does not lack for size and strength, and could resurface as a star in the SEC if he takes care of business in the classroom.

Henry was a four-star prospect in the class of 2016, eventually signing with Florida State. The California-based quarterback’s FSU career didn’t last long, however, as he parted ways with the school before playing in a single game.

Henry eventually landed at Independence (Kan.) Community College, where he spent two seasons and became one of the featured players on season three of the Netflix show Last Chance U.

He will have two years to play two seasons at Nevada, where head coach Jay Norvell will attempt to harness that talent that led to Henry’s lofty high school ranking. If the former Rivals100 prospect can avoid conflict and re-dedicate himself to high-level football, he has the arm talent to serve the Wolfpack well.

Blades chose Nebraska out of high school but fought academic issues that landed him at Arizona Western College instead of UNL. The top-rated cornerback in the Rivals.com 2019 juco rankings, Blades spent the majority of the season committed to Oregon but had a change of heart late in the process and ended up signing with Texas A&M in December.

Blades was a Rivals100 prospect out of high school and still has the traits that made him one of the top players in America back then. He should be able to help a quickly improving Texas A&M program from the start of his first season at the school.

Mills led Georgia Tech in rushing in 2016, but was dismissed from the team the next season after violating team rules. The once-touted tailback then landed at Garden City (Kan.) Community College.

Nobody has ever doubted Mills’ talent and the fact that he’s already proven his skill set translates to the FBS level is huge for Nebraska, which is looking for an influx of talent after a disappointing 2018 season. Mills will have a chance to make an impact right away for the Huskers, so it’s likely his name will be back in the FBS headlines this year.

Carriere-Williams played early and often for Wisconsin as a redshirt freshman but left the program anyway. That’s good news for Vandy fans, as the defensive back has proven he has the skill set to play major college football. After leaving the Badgers this fall, the Florida-born cornerback landed at Independence (Kan.) Community College, where he was a major part of the defense.

He’ll have two years to play two seasons at Vanderbilt, with which he signed over offers from Kansas, Minnesota and others. Carriere-Williams played in 12 games in his one active season as a Badger, recording 30 tackles and an interception.