clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

Boise State Recruiting: The road to Signing Day

There is a little over a week left until Signing Day, but it's going to be a loooong week.

By Casey Joplin
Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Wow, what a difference a week makes, huh? The article I wrote last week was pretty off, if you ask me. Regarding the QB position, I said this:

"There are no other QBs on the list, which makes sense since we have our guy and the relationship seems solid despite the loss of Drink."

Whoops. I couldn't have been more wrong, but how could I have really known? Micah Wilson had JUST been on an official visit, which just seemed to further cement his commitment to the Broncos. Yeah nope. I COMPLETELY forgot that he was a Missouri legacy kid, that is, his parents both went there. If there was an offer that could sway him, that was it. And, lo and behold, he got it!

Best of luck to Micah in the SEC. Unfortunate that we lost him, but I'll get to that a little later. Wilson's departure seemingly sealed the fate for one other heralded recruit: Damarea Crockett. Last week, I said this regarding the RB position:

"At RB, we don't have any spots to fill, but if something happens, we have one other offer out there."

Again, big miss there, but I could not have forseen Crockett, who seemed to be our biggest recruiter, jumping ship. His relationship with Wilson was much stronger than anyone anticipated and yesterday, this happened:

Best of luck to Damarea in the SEC as well. Hopefully he can assert himself atop the glut of running backs they have at Mizzou and win the starting job next fall.

So the sky has to be falling in Boise, right? Well, not exactly. It's actually REALLY sunny right now. While I would LOVE a couple feet of snow right now, a little sunshine never hurt anyone. Oh, and right after Crockett decommited, literally right after, we got the coveted "GO BRONCOS!" from Coach Harsin. Who could it be?? It was a very well timed commitment from Camarillo QB Jake Constantine. He fills a much needed role for the Broncos.

Oh, and let's not forget about TE John Bates flipping from Oregon State to the Broncos! Speaking of recruits, let's recap the 2016 class and I'll give you the skinny on any new info we've heard this week.

Cedrick Wilson, WR, 6'3 190lbs

Joel Velaquez, K, 6'0 220lbs

Derriyon Shaw, DE, 6'3 220lbs

Ali'i Niumatalolo (2018 class), ILB, 6'1.5 230lbs

Nick Crabtree, TE, 6'6 247lbs

Tyson Maeva, ILB, 6'0 230lbs

Desmond Williams, S, 6'0 190lbs

Reid Harrison-Ducros, CB, 5'10 165lbs

Ezra Cleveland, OT, 6'6 270lbs

Julian Carter, WR, 6'2 175lbs

Robert Mahone, RB, 5'11 190lbs

Kole Bailey, OT, 6'4.5 285lbs

Robert Lewis, CB, 5'10 170lbs

Chase Hatada, DT, 6'2.5 255lbs

Daniel Auelua, DT, 6'2 285lbs

Deandre Pierce, DB, 5'10 170lbs

John Bates, TE, 6'6 210lbs

Jake Constantine, QB, 6'2 190lbs

That's a pretty solid class right there. Even with the shake-ups, we are still in great shape. As far as numbers go, this is what we are looking at:

1 QB, 1 RB, 2 WR, 1 K, 2CB, 2 S/N, 2 DT, 1 DE, 2 OT, 2 LB, and 2 TE

That brings our current total to 18. I have read we can take as many as 25 players. (Most of my info is coming from Mike Wittman @RivalsMikeW. Give him a follow if you aren't already.) That leaves 7 spots left. I believe the coaches will take one more WR, 2 more DL, 1 DB, and one more OL. Keep in mind that we technically still have 2 silent commits. One of them could potentially be Emmanuel Fesili, but who the other is, we don't know.

QB

We lost a QB and gained a QB. Honestly, I think we came out on top in this exchange. That's not to say that losing Wilson was a good thing, because it wasn't. He was a SOLID recruit with SOLID numbers. But looking at Jake's numbers, you'll see some similarities:

6'2 190lbs, 3,988 yards, 299/414 (72.2%) for 51 TDs and 6INTs to go along with 64 carries for 321 yards (5 ypc) and another 7 touchdowns. In 3 years starting for Camarillo, he had 7,269 yards on 590/861 (68.5%) 85 TDs and 16 INTs. That 5.3:1 TD to INT ratio. I'll take that. Not to mention, he's doing that against southern California teams, which are arguably better than the competition in Oklahoma. Again, I think we came out on top in this interchange. Here's Constantine's highlights for ya.

RB

So yeah, about that running back position. Calm down guys, calm down. Yup, we lost our coveted 4-star running back to an SEC school. Since when have we not had a kid flip to a bigger name school? Oddly, Crockett flipped to a school that already had 7 RBs on the roster AND a 4-star JC back committed. But, with his level of talent, he could very well rise to the top this fall, so best of luck to Damarea. Having said that, we need to fill his position. Robert Mahone is going to be a solid back for us and could very well play as a true freshman. He can line up behind center, catch out of the backfield, and block. He has all the tools. We only have 3 scholarship RBs on the roster in Demas, McNichols and Young. Wolpin may end up earning a scholly as he was solid down the stretch, but for now he's considered a walk-on. So we need some depth there. We have a couple options out there still.

Alexander Mattison, 5'10.5 200lbs, San Bernadino, CA

Mattison finished his senior season with 2,057 yards on 151 carries (13.6 ypc) and 22 TDs as well as 14 receptions for 296 yards (21.1 ypc) and another 3 TDs. For his career, he has 4,566 yards on 382 carries (11.9 ypc) and 53 TDs AND 41 receptions for 953 yards and 8 TDs. Lots of ands in there. He also He has great offer list, including the likes of Washington, Arizona State and Washington State. We could very well see a "GO BRONCOS!" this weekend as he scheduled a last minute visit for today. Mattison is definitely high on us and we now have the room.

Tyler Tutt, 5'11 205 lbs, Keller, TX

Tyler has been a varsity player for 3 years. His senior season was solid with 1,682 yards on 255 carries (6.6 ypc) and 21 TDs. He also had 7 receptions for 50 yards. He finished his career with 3,112 yards on 524 carries (5.9 ypc) and 36 TDs. Very solid numbers for a RB in Texas. He was visiting Air Force this weekend, but maybe we see him on campus next weekend.

WR

Bubba Ogbebor, 6'1 194lbs, Frisco, TX

John Okwoli, 6'2 190lbs, Phoenix, AZ

As I understand it, Ogbebor is the guy the coaches are after the hardest. It'll be an uphill battle, especially with the likes of Texas Tech, Kansas, and Oklahoma, who is having an in-home visit this week. A lot of recruiting analysts feel confident we can land Ogbebor, but Okwoli would be a great get as well. Since we really only have room for one more, they just have to hope they can get the guy they want. If not, hopefully get the second man up if they haven't already committed.We DID get a silent commit this week with one little giveaway. I'm not pointing it out to you, so look closely...

OL

Joe Kupcikevicius, 6'5 300lbs, Mt. San Antonio C.C.

Lawrence Edwards, 6'6 250lbs, Port Orange, FL

Donte Harrington, 6'1.5 275lbs, San Clemente, CA

Austin Dixon, 6'6 265bs, Tempe, AZ

Harrington has a visit scheduled for this upcoming weekend, but looking at his offer list, Boise State seems to be his best offer. Austin Dixon got an offer on January 7th. Dixon seemed pretty high on the Broncos. I have no clue where the rest of them stand. Kupcikevicius would certainly help fill the void quickly and could play immediately. All very large gentleman. Also, keep in mind that Will Adams transfered here from Auburn (yes, that Auburn) for his final season of eligibility and Kole Bailey is already on campus.

TE

The coaches surprised us, sort of, with flipping yet another TE from Oregon State. As you all remember from last season, they happened to flip Pistone from them late in the game as well. John Bates is a BIG target at 6'6 and 210lbs. He will be a GREAT target for Rypien and the other QBs in the years to come. What prompted the signing of another TE is this:

An unfortunate situation, but hopefully Lucero turns things around and gets everything right back on track. It certainly makes sense, though, why they would pick up another TE. Attrition is always going to be something we have to deal with. Crabtree has remained solid in his commitment and reaffirmed it again this week amongst all the bolting and such.

DT

Jarrod Hewitt, 6'2 290lbs, Venice, FL

Emmanuel Fesili, 6'2 280lbs, Long Beach, CA

I removed Tate from this list due to his commitment to Memphis this morning. Hewitt has a TON of offers, ranging from Western Kentucky and Florida International to Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech. He does not yet seem to be committed anywhere. While Fesili has more or less been tabbed as one of the silent commits, he took a visit to UNLV last weekend and Hawaii this weekend. Some of the recruiting sites list him as a recruit, so not exactly sure how "silent" that is. He has a robust list consisting of mostly MW schools.

DE

Jabari Watson, 6'3 255lbs, Fontana, CA

Fua Pututau, 6'3 231lbs, Salt Lake City, UT

Josh Allen, 6'2 255lbs, Long Beach CC, CA

Keith Sullivan, 6'7 245lbs, Houston TX

Curtis Weaver, 6'4 245lbs, Long Beach, CA

Kayode Rufai, 6'3 227lbs, Portland, OR

Josh Fatu, 6'3 285lbs, Long Beach CC, CA

Keanu Saleapaga, 6'6 265lbs, La Mirada, CA

Holy smokes there are some HUGE individuals on this list. Jabari Watson is our top guy here. A former Arizona commit, from everything I've heard, he is ours to lose at this point. Honestly all of these guys have formidable lists. It's pretty cool the see that we are right up there with some pretty big name schools. And Keith Sullivan at 6'7? Are you kidding me? In high school, I would have been considered a snack to him. F'reals.

LB

Tommy Jacobsson, 6'2 220lbs, Palm Desert, CA

Kevin Meitzenheimer, 6'1 220lbs, Moreno Valley, CA

Troy Cassidy, 6'3 215lbs, Carlsbad, CA

Kaelin Himphill, 6'2, 220lbs, Hillsboro, OR

We already have Tyson Maeva on campus, but the interesting thing here is Ali'i Niumatalolo will be going on a church mission, effectively making him a part of a different recruiting class. His spot, as I recall, would be taken up by returning missionary Kekoa Nawahine at S, but I could be a year ahead on that one. Regardless, we could potentially take one more LB to cover our standard of one outside and one interior or middle LB in each class. The guys on this list are all pretty much the same size. Himphill has offers from pretty much all MW programs and Oregon State to go along with a few other schools. Cassidy is in a similar situation, but with a few more P12 offers, including Washington, Washington State and Colorado. Meitzenheimer has a lot of MW offers as well as a Washington offer. And finally, Jacobsson has a lone offer from the Broncos. I'm not entirely sure we take another LB, but since Niumatalolo won't be joining us, we might.

S/N

The two players I had listed here last week weren't realistic targets, so I removed them. I don't have anyone in mind, nor have I heard of anyone, still being pursued for safety or nickel. But if you know of anyone, let me know!

CB

Terrell Burgess, 6' 178lbs, San Marcos, CA

Reid Harrison-Ducros and Robert Lewis are solid gets for this class. If we can hang on to them, Coach Ambrose will have some great young talent to work with. Burgess would be the guy if we take another DB. He has a big list himself, including offers from Wisconsin, Utah, Arizona and Cal to name a few. He visited this weekend and seemed to have a pretty good time. Hopefully, if Yates is indeed gone, that the allure of playing for a former All-Pro can bring him to the Blue.

K

We got our player in Joel Velazquez. No other players on the list in this respect, but I would anticipate a walk-on or two as generally kickers or long snappers are not offered scholarships, at least not out of high school.

I think that covers the majority of the names still floating around there. I'd like to, again, thank Mike for setting up the list here so that I could glean from it. Hopefully you found this helpful for the remaining few weeks of the 2016 recruiting season before LOI day. And quickly after that, Spring camp will take place, then summer training and fall camp. Before you know it, we'll be watching the Broncos on the Blue again. Go Broncos!