SEC Spotlight: How 2019 recruiting is shaping up for each team
We are two months into the class of 2019 recruiting cycle and with official visits already starting, it’s time to take a look at how things are shaking out in the recruiting rankings. In this week’s SEC spotlight, we take a look at where each team currently stands as well as which uncommitted players are at the top of their list.
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1. OLE MISS
Total commits: 15
Highest-ranked commitment: Diwun Black
Top uncommitted target: Nakobe Dean
What a weekend it was for Ole Miss. The Rebels added three commits, including Black, the top commit on their list. Then they added another on Monday, giving them four in a three-day span. Ole Miss is the only SEC team to have double-digit commits at this time. Matt Luke and his staff are still working hard to keep the best at home, then dipping into Alabama, Texas and surrounding states to pull some top talent this cycle.
2. GEORGIA
Total commits: 7
Highest-ranked commitment: Jadon Haselwood
Top uncommitted target: Zacch Pickens
Georgia lost longtime commit Luke Griffin over the weekend, but that was expected. The Bulldogs only have seven commits, but six are four-stars and one is a five-star. Kirby Smart signed the top class in the country in 2018 and it will likely challenge for that spot again in 2019. The final number will not be 26, but he is aiming for a very strong group of 22-23 in this class.
3. ALABAMA
Total commits: 6
Highest-ranked commitment: Pierce Quick
Top uncommitted target: Clay Webb
Alabama is taking a little different approach this cycle and is being aggressive. The Tide are pushing prospects to commit instead of taking the slower approach like in years past. They added two commits on April 5 and could be close to adding a few more in the coming weeks. They are really targeting Alabama, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi hard this cycle.
4. TEXAS A&M
Total commits: 8
Highest-ranked commit: Brian Williams
Top uncommitted target: Theo Wease
Texas A&M is off to a pretty good start under Jimbo Fisher on the recruiting trail, currently sitting inside the top 10 nationally despite being ranked fourth in the SEC. Landing Williams was a big haul and the Aggies have their sights set on five-star receiver Wease, as well as fellow five-star Texas native Arjei Henderson. Depending on how things fall going forward, the Aggies could be looking at a pretty impressive class.
5. LSU
Total commits: 8
Highest-ranked commitment: Kardell Thomas
Top uncommitted target: Derek Stingley Jr.
LSU will have an elite class if it can just keep the elite guys at home. It starts with five-stars Stingley and Ishmael Sopsher. Both are very close to the LSU campus and both are elite talents who have LSU at the top or very high on their lists. The Tigers currently have commitments from two of the top 10 in-state prospects, so if they can clean up in their home-state, they will have a top class in the end.
6. SOUTH CAROLINA
Total commits: 9
Highest-ranked commit: Mark Fox
Top uncommitted target: Zacch Pickens
South Carolina has taken a more national recruiting approach so far with the class of 2019 and it’s already paying dividends. Quarterback commit Tyler Hilinski, a California native, recently made his pledge to the Gamecocks and has a chance to be the first California prospect to sign with the school in the Rivals.com era. He joins players from four other states among the nine commitments in the class. Despite the school’s expanded recruiting footprint, Pickens, a five-star defensive lineman from Anderson, S.C., remains a major priority going forward.
7. FLORIDA
Total commits: 7
Highest-ranked commit: Jammal Abrams
Top uncommitted target: Trey Sanders
Florida has taken a new recruiting approach under Dan Mullen and continues to feel its way out when it comes to the 2019 class. Currently all seven of the Gators' commits are three-stars, including recent quarterback pledge Jalon Jones, who originally committed to Mullen while he was at Mississippi State. The school has plenty highly-ranked targets it’s currently pursuing, including five-star running back Sanders. The IMG Academy star is a Florida native and has already been to Gainesville.
8. TENNESSEE
Total commits: 5
Highest-ranked commit: Jackson Lampley
Top uncommitted target: Quavarius Crouch
Once again the Vols are swinging for the fences with some of the nation’s top prospects and several have already been on campus in Knoxville during 2018. The class got off to a solid start with the addition in in-state prospect Lampley and the most recent additions were out-of-state prospects Jackson Lowe, a three-star tight end from Georgia, and LeDarrius Cox, a three-star defensive lineman from Alabama. If Tennessee can reel in Crouch or fellow five-star prospect Darnell Wright, it will surely rocket up this list in the future.
9. MISSISSIPPI STATE
Total commits: 4
Highest-ranked commitment: Charles Moore
Top uncommitted target: Nakobe Dean
Joe Moorhead and the Mississippi State Bulldogs are not off to a fast start like in-state rival Ole Miss, but they have positioned themselves well with numerous in-state prospects. When one commits, there could be a flurry of Mississippi athletes to join the 2019 Bulldog class. This class comes down to in-state success. It is in the top two to three for many of the top 20-25 prospects in the state. This class could really surprise some with its final ranking because the state of Mississippi is very strong this cycle.
10. AUBURN
Total commits: 2
Highest-ranked commitment: Bo Nix
Top uncommitted target: Owen Pappoe
Do not be fooled with Auburn having just two commits here in the second week of April. The Tigers are doing a lot of good things behind the scenes and they could have a huge spring and summer if things fall into place. They are really working the state of Georgia hard this cycle and it could pay off in the near future. A big month of May could be in store for Gus Malzahn.
11. KENTUCKY
Total commits: 3
Highest ranked commit: Moses Douglas
Top uncommitted target: Tanner Bowles
Kentucky is about to host a major recruiting weekend and if all goes according to plan, its commitment list could grow in numbers. If this article was published earlier in the month, Douglas would have been the top uncommitted target and landing the legacy recruit shows just how much potential the 2019 class has going forward. Bowles is an important target because of the number of programs already in the mix for the Kentucky native, including in-state rival Louisville. Landing his commitment would be a nice piece and continue the Wildcats' recent track record of landing quality offensive linemen.
12. MISSOURI
Total commits: 2
Highest-ranked commitment: Shamar Nash
Top uncommitted target: Graham Mertz
Missouri finished with the league's No. 12 class in 2018 and it is in that same spot in the spring for the 2019 class. This class could come down to how the Tigers perform this fall. They finished the second half of the season strong in 2017, so if they can carry that into 2018, the recruiting could pick up late in the fall.
13. ARKANSAS
Total commits: 2
Highest-ranked commit: Beaux Limmer
Top uncommitted target: Stacy Wilkins
Arkansas is taking a bit of a slower approach to recruiting, at least in terms of taking commitments at this stage, compared with some of the other new staffs in the class. Two of the school’s three commits are from out-of-state and while the majority of the school’s top targets will come from other states, make no mistake, Wilkins is a top priority. The athletic left tackle prospect has a national list of offers and a chance to be the perfect piece in new coach Chad Morris’ class.
14. VANDERBILT
Total commits: 1
Highest-ranked commit: Joel DeCoursey
Top uncommitted target: Woodi Washington
As usual at this time of the year, the Commodores are running behind the rest of the conference on the recruiting trail. That’s because the coaching staff puts a big priority on in-person evaluations and usually sees a major uptick in commitments over the summer. Even though Vanderbilt recruits nationally to fit its unique combination of athletics and academic requirements, Washington is a national-level recruit right in the school’s backyard and getting him in the fold would be a major win on the trail over several other SEC programs.
