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Three-Point Stance: Big commits, Mack Brown and NFL Draft steals

CLASS OF 2020 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | State | Position | Team

Rivals.com National Recruiting Director Mike Farrell’s thought-provoking Three-Point Stance is here with his thoughts on some big recent commitments, comparing Mack Brown to Herm Edwards and five sleepers to watch when it comes to the NFL Draft.

MORE: Eight programs producing a ton of NFL talent

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1. Snapshot of some impact commitments over the past week

Kris Hutson
Kris Hutson (Nick Lucero/Rivals.com)

Commitments are coming in fast and heavy and here are a few that stood out to me over the last week.

DB Isaiah Young, Cal — Cal hasn’t been making much noise but landing Young was good despite his lack of size. He’s a gritty cover corner who will grow.

WR Makholven Sonn, Kansas State – A speedy slot receiver, Sonn will be a great fit in the Kansas State offense.

TE John Copenhaver, North Carolina – A flex tight end with wide receiver skills, Copenhaver will stretch the field.

DB Ryan Watts, Oklahoma – The Sooners are loading up on versatile players and Watts is a big kid who could be a huge corner or a safety at the next level.

OL Akinola Ogunbiyi, Georgia – The former Aggies commitment is an athletic guard and will be an excellent run blocker in Georgia’s offense.

DB Jalen Harrell, Florida State – Harrell is an important big name commitment for Florida State as they try to gain some momentum and a tall corner from South Florida.

OL Ja’Khi Green, Maryland – An athletic and nasty lineman from a winning program could play early in his college career.

WR Jermaine Burton, LSU – LSU continues to recruit well nationally and this is another nice grab from California.

WR Kris Hutson, Oregon – A big-time receiver commitment from a huge program in California shows the power of the Ducks recruiting these days.

ATH Brian Branch, Alabama – Branch can play cornerback or safety and loves to hit.

DE Josh Griffis, Florida State – A great motor and a prospect who can rush the passer and play the run, the former Florida commitment is a big one for Willie Taggart.

LB Josh White, LSU – The next great White at linebacker at LSU? He could be.

ATH Jaden Navarrette, Oregon – A jumbo athlete and another very good get from California, Oregon is on a roll.

LB Jordan Botelho, Notre Dame – A big, physical linebacker from Hawaii? Sounds familiar. Botelho isn’t as talented as Manti Te’o but he’s more physically ready for college at the same stage.

WR Jay Maclin, Missouri – An important in-state get at wide receiver, Maclin will impact early in the Mizzou offense.

TE Kendall Karr, North Carolina – Another talented receiver at the tight end position for UNC.

DB Darius Snow, Michigan State – Michigan State usually takes underrated defensive backs and turns them into stars, so this is a rare foray into Texas to steal a four-star.

DB Jalen Kimber, Georgia – UGA showing their national recruiting ability with another Texas commitment.

WR Mike Wyman, South Carolina – A big get at wide receiver for the Gamecocks here as Wyman was wanted by many schools.

OL Ethan Lane, NC State – The way NC State develops offensive linemen Lane could be the next great one with his athletic ability.

2. Herm Edwards surprised some folks, and Mack Brown is doing the same

Mack Brown
Mack Brown (AP)

Remember when we all made fun of Arizona State for hiring Herm Edwards as their next football coach last year? A guy years removed from football who was a TV analyst and many of us figured he was in over his head.

Well so far Edwards has proven us wrong. Recruiting, after a rough start, has been very solid at Arizona State as Edwards has made some shrewd hires. And on the field he led the team to a 7-6 record and a bowl game that included upset wins over Michigan State, USC and Utah.

So when I heard people scoffing at the UNC hire of Mack Brown, I held my tongue this time. Why? Edwards was part of the reason but Brown makes even more sense than Edwards when it comes to being a college coach. He had a great run at Texas, is known as a great recruiter and isn’t as removed from college football as Edwards was.

And what’s happening for North Carolina so far? The Tarheels have the No. 8 recruiting class in the country and are very hot on the recruiting trail. Brown has proven he can recruit on the college level again and if he leads UNC to a winning record somehow this year, a lot of people will be eating their words.

So what’s the lesson to learn here? These guys can coach and recruit and know football a lot better than their critics. And it doesn’t matter how removed from football they have been, it appears to be like riding a bike for them. ASU and UNC fans are happy with their hire after perhaps some initial questions and they should be.

3. Be alert to these NFL Draft sleepers

David Sills
David Sills (USA Today Sports Images)

Everyone is focused on the first-rounders but there are some players out there that will be drafted in the middle to late rounds that I think will be steals and very good NFL players. Here they are.

QB Brett Rypien, Boise State – I’m not saying he’s going to be a 12-year starter in the NFL or anything, but he’s a smart and accurate quarterback who had a very good college career who could start as a backup and bounce around as a starter if he gets hot.

OT Chuma Edoga, USC – Edoga isn’t the tallest tackle in the world and many automatically put him at guard in their head when they look at him. We had the same discussion when he came out of high school with some on our staff, insisting he was a tackle but most of us locking him in at guard. The one time five-star has very long arms and great feet and he could be the rare 6-3 tackle at the NFL level.

WR Jalen Hurd, Baylor – The former Tennessee running back and Rivals.com five-star has transitioned to wide receiver at Baylor and is a matchup problem at 6-4 and 220 pounds. He can also flex out as a tight end. Remember, this was a running back who was used more than Alvin Kamara at Tennessee, so the talent is there.

WR David Sills, West Virginia – Like Hurd, Sills started his career at a different position hoping to be a quarterback at the college level. However, he moved to wide receiver and had a great college career, but you don’t hear much about him when people talk about wide receivers. That leads me to believe he’s going to slip to the middle rounds and I just picture him as a guy who has a long and reliable career in the NFL.

OL Terronne Prescod, NC StateGarrett Bradbury gets the most attention and will be a first rounder, but Prescod is a steal if he falls to Saturday. He’s one of the best run blockers in the country and a massive, physical interior lineman who will wear down opponents. I look for both to have long NFL careers.

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