WATCH: When football’s offseason starts, where does NIL money go?
In college sports, there aren’t many strict rules regarding name, image, and likeness. A timeline is present. On December 4, the transfer portal opens and remains open for 30 days. For a team like West Virginia, which will not participate in the conference championship game on December 2 and can instead prepare for the portal, this means that the upcoming week is crucial.
Head coach Neal Brown of the Mountaineers said it hurt not to have the Country Roads Trust collective earlier because the team couldn’t defend against teams that had one and targeted his players. In addition, a more aggressive approach to NIL following an excessive amount of time spent in the “gray area” may occasionally work against WVU.
This is the start of a new phase for the Mountaineers, who kept some of their best players from the previous offseason and added others. They will give priority to players on their roster and target certain players on other rosters. We discussed the potential obstacles WVU and its trust may face a week ago; today, we’ll talk about the work they need to accomplish. Which players are the Mountaineers going to invest in order to guarantee their spot on the team come 2024?
As the regular season comes to an end, West Virginia hopes to elevate the head coach to even greater heights. For the fourth time since the Mountaineers’ 2012 Big 12 season debut, they can win eight games, and for the third time, they can win six conference games. Naturally, the Fresh Set anticipated all of this. There’s proof after! Before we get into the specifics, is anyone reading the remaining paragraphs here, or the one or two that might come after? Very unlikely!
Since we don’t know how long the Baylor head coach will be in office, let’s get started after two housekeeping items: (1) As you read this, listen to the podcast up above. The background music is excellent. (2) Game Day Texts are still active and available. Perhaps you could change that if you haven’t participated previously or if you know people who haven’t? We’ve been playing this game for so long—so long, in fact—that I can guarantee it will bring out the best and worst in everyone.
This serves as your friendly reminder of what’s to come: Ten significant observations about the participants and the matchup are included in First-and-10. A longer, more comprehensive look at another pertinent topic is provided by second-and-long. A quick take that you can tuck in your pocket is the third-and-short. A final reminder of what needs to happen for WVU to win is provided by fourth-and-goal.
With less than a month until the early signing period, the 2024 recruiting cycle is getting hotter as some of the nation’s best high school football players reveal their college choices.
Twenty players, comprising ten prospects in the 2024 class and ten underclassmen, committed to a Power Five college football program during the week of November 17–23. Athletes ranked in the top 100 lead the group.
Arizona, Arizona State, BYU (2), Cincinnati (2), Colorado, Georgia Tech, Louisville, Miami, Missouri, Notre Dame, TCU, Tennessee, Texas Tech (2), USC, Utah, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, and West Virginia are the Power Five schools that secured at least one commitment this week. The list is arranged alphabetically.
In light of this, scroll down to see the prospects who, beginning with the 2024 prospects and ending with the underclassmen, committed to a Power Five program during the course of the previous week.
Synopsis of recruitment: Chandler, an offensive lineman from Nevada (Mo.) High who stands 6 feet 3 1/2 and weighs 292 pounds, switched his commitment from Colorado, where he had been committed since February 3, to Missouri. Only a few days have passed since he visited the campus and received a scholarship offer from the in-state Tigers.
Chandler is now Eli Drinkwitz and company’s fifteenth recruit for the 2024 recruiting cycle. Brandon Jones, the offensive line coach at Missouri, led the recruiting effort.
Synopsis of recruitment: Five days after receiving his first Power Five offer from the program, 6-foot-1, 175-pound safety Leach from Fort Worth, Texas’s Chisholm Trail, committed to the Cougars. In addition, he had offers from Utah State, Miami (Ohio), and Louisiana.
The lead recruiter for BYU was Jay Hill, the defensive coordinator and safeties coach; Jernaro Gilford, the coach of the cornerbacks, also helped with the recruitment process. Leach joins the Cougars as their fourteenth recruit for the 2024 class.
According to MaxPreps, he was credited with 17 tackles (six for loss) and two forced fumbles in nine games as a senior.
Synopsis of recruitment: A 6-foot-3, 195-pound athlete from Temecula, California, Lowe committed to the Cougars on his official campus visit. In the 2024 recruiting cycle, he became commit No. 15 for Kalani Sitake and company. He turned down offers from Boise State, Arizona, Washington State, and other schools in favor of BYU. His primary recruiter was Justin Ena, the linebackers coach at BYU, with additional assistance from the previously mentioned Hill.
According to MaxPreps, through the first ten games of his senior season, Lowe has registered 100 tackles, two interceptions (one pick-six), eight pass breakups, one forced fumble, and 22 receptions for 438 yards and seven touchdowns on offense.
Synopsis of recruitment: Following an official visit to Fort Worth, McMahan, a 6-foot-3, 225-pound linebacker from Tyler (Texas) Junior College, committed to the Horned Frogs. Less than a month has passed since he accepted Sonny Dykes’ program’s initial FBS offer.
Joe Gillespie, the linebackers coach and defensive coordinator at TCU, took the lead in recruiting the JUCO linebacker, who will join the Horned Frogs as their 19th commitment of the 2024 recruiting cycle. This season, McMahan has recorded 29 tackles (one for loss), one forced fumble, and one pass breakup in seven games. He will be able to play three years at TCU.
Synopsis of recruitment: Only a week after receiving his first Power Five offer from Nashville (Tenn.) Franklin Road Academy, 6-foot, 205-pound running back Clark made his commitment to the Demon Deacons. In addition, he had offers from Toledo, Miami (Ohio), Colorado State, and the Navy.
John Hunter, the running backs coach at Wake Forest, was the driving force behind Clark’s recruitment. He joins the Demon Deacons as their twenty-first recruit for 2024. Clark ran for 1,805 yards and 31 touchdowns on 209 carries and caught 18 passes for 271 yards and one touchdown in 13 games as a senior.
Synopsis of recruitment: The 6-foot-2, 195-pound wide receiver, Williams committed to the Utes over offers from several schools, including Arizona, Arizona State, Boston College, Florida State, Louisville, Pittsburgh, UCLA, Washington, and Washington State. Williams was a product of Gardena, California. The wide receiver, who becomes Kyle Whittingham’s program’s tenth recruit of the 2024 recruiting cycle, was primarily recruited by Utah wide receivers coach Alvis Whitted.
According to MaxPreps, Williams caught 51 passes for 943 yards and 13 touchdowns in 11 games as a senior. On special teams, he returned two kickoffs for touchdowns.
Synopsis of recruitment: Less than two weeks after decommitting from Memphis, 6-foot-1, 210-pound linebacker Curtis committed to the Commodores, making him commit No. 20 for Clark Lea and company in the 2024 recruiting cycle.
Prior to the Tigers reopening their recruitment on November 8, he had been committed to them for over three months. Nick Lezynski, the coordinator of Vanderbilt’s defensive run game and linebackers coach, was his main recruiter.
According to MaxPreps, Curtis was credited with 57 tackles (15 for loss), two sacks, eight quarterback hurries, one forced fumble, and two blocked punts through the first ten games of his senior season.
Dedicated to: Georgia Tech
3-star ranking, 85 rating, and 109th IOL on 247Sports
Synopsis of recruitment: Just one day after decommitting from Vanderbilt, 6-foot-4, 260-pound offensive lineman Moore from Southlake, Texas, committed to the Yellow Jackets. For over five months, he was committed to the Commodores before reopening recruitment on November 21.
He now joins quarterback commit Graham Knowles, a teammate from high school, as the 23rd recruit in Brent Key’s 2024 class. Moore was primarily recruited by Georgia Tech offensive line coach Geep Wade; offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Chris Weinke also helped.
Synopsis of recruitment: Mikell, a 6-foot-1, 181-pound athlete from Statesboro High School in Georgia, chose the Buffaloes over Texas A&M, Georgia, South Carolina, and Tennessee as his other finalist schools. He becomes Deion Sanders and company’s tenth recruit for the 2024 recruiting cycle. Nick Williams, the defensive ends coach at Colorado, was the driving force behind his recruitment.
Condensed scouting report: “An athletic two-way player with exceptional speed markers.” At the 2023 National Combine, he set a personal best of 10.50 in the 40-yard dash and qualified for the state championship three times in the 100-meter event. As a sophomore, he finished third in Georgia’s 6A meet. Although he has performed well in his roles as a running back, wide receiver, and quarterback on Friday nights, many colleges see him as a defensive back at the next level. — Andrew Ivins, director of scouting at 247Sports
