1. Taggart was overrated, like all the haters said.
2. Dan Mullen is a recruiting God.
3. Chip Kelly is UF's coach.
Spoiler:
Willie Taggart – A+ – It’s hard to put together a top 10 class in a transitional year and even harder to rise from the 70s all the way up to No. 10. Florida State closed very strong leading up to the traditional National Singing Day with prospects such as Malcolm Lamar, Anthony Grant, Tre'Shaun Harrison and others. We expected Taggart to be a good fit recruiting for FSU and he’s off to a great start.
Mario Cristobal – A – it was hit or miss on Signing Day for Oregon, but overall this is a class to be excited about. Losing out on Devon Williams hurt but landing Penei Sewell, Isaah Crocker, Jalen Hall and others really makes this a well-rounded and formidable class for Cristobal.
Scott Frost – A - We all know how hard it is to recruit to Nebraska because of geography, so watching Frost land players from Texas, Georgia, Florida, California and other key states was impressive. There is a good mix of developmental players and instant impact guys in this class that should add depth for years to come.
Jimbo Fisher – B+ – I expected Jimbo Fisher to close well during the traditional Signing Day and he did just that after a lackluster Early Signing Period. Bobby Brown, Jeremiah Martin, Leon O’Neal and many others made this a very solid transitional class and he would be in the A range had he pulled an upset for Jaylen Waddle.
Matt Luke – B+ – Signing Day wasn’t that exciting but the job Luke did putting this class together despite the NCAA sanctions is very impressive. Miles Battle, Elijah Moore, Demarcus Gregory and Matt Corral will improve the offense down the line and there is a lot of defensive help here as well.
Joe Moorhead – B – Mississippi State was busy on Signing Day, landing six players led by Aaron Brule, but what makes this a very good class was the work Moorhead did before that.
Jeremy Pruitt – B – Signing Day didn’t go that well, but this is a solid class with some instant impact players led by JJ Peterson, Greg Emerson and Alontae Taylor. I really like a lot of the defensive additions.
Dan Mullen – B – Signing Day was saved by huge commitments from Malik Langham and Jacob Copeland. Keeping Richard Gouraige was crucial for Florida. This class may ultimately judged by how quarterback Emory Jones pans out, but there are some other key additions here especially at the offensive skill positions.
Chip Kelly – B- – Kelly’s class might be ranked higher than many of the coaches ahead of him but it’s also much easier to recruit at UCLA than it is at many other programs. Adding Michael Ezeike was a big get down the stretch and quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson could be a star, but there were also some reaches in the class. It will be interesting to see if he can hang with USC in recruiting.
Herm Edwards – C+ – Edwards closed strong on this class during the traditional Signing Day landing players like Aashari Crosswell and Merlin Robertson. Frankly, Arizona State's top-40 ranking was higher than I expected, but a lot of the work was done by Antonio Pierce with his Southern Cal contacts. Can Edwards become a good recruiter at the college level? Time will tell and 2019 will be very telling.
Kevin Sumlin – C – A smaller class and a later start hurt Sumlin’s chances at a higher ranked class, but I still thought he’d be able to land some big names down the stretch and he didn’t. I still think he ends up recruiting better than Edwards by a large margin when he has a full year to put a class together, but his start hasn’t been great.
Chad Morris – C- – This isn’t a very sexy class for Arkansas fans with a lot of three-stars and very little star power overall. Morris has great ties to Texas, but can be pull some of the big names while keeping key players home?
Jonathan Smith – C- – Recruiting at Oregon State is the toughest job in the Pac-12 and Smith didn’t lure any massive names during his first go around. Time will tell if he’s a guy who can develop talent, which is key for the Beavers, and overcome the recruiting disadvantage.
Mario Cristobal – A – it was hit or miss on Signing Day for Oregon, but overall this is a class to be excited about. Losing out on Devon Williams hurt but landing Penei Sewell, Isaah Crocker, Jalen Hall and others really makes this a well-rounded and formidable class for Cristobal.
Scott Frost – A - We all know how hard it is to recruit to Nebraska because of geography, so watching Frost land players from Texas, Georgia, Florida, California and other key states was impressive. There is a good mix of developmental players and instant impact guys in this class that should add depth for years to come.
Jimbo Fisher – B+ – I expected Jimbo Fisher to close well during the traditional Signing Day and he did just that after a lackluster Early Signing Period. Bobby Brown, Jeremiah Martin, Leon O’Neal and many others made this a very solid transitional class and he would be in the A range had he pulled an upset for Jaylen Waddle.
Matt Luke – B+ – Signing Day wasn’t that exciting but the job Luke did putting this class together despite the NCAA sanctions is very impressive. Miles Battle, Elijah Moore, Demarcus Gregory and Matt Corral will improve the offense down the line and there is a lot of defensive help here as well.
Joe Moorhead – B – Mississippi State was busy on Signing Day, landing six players led by Aaron Brule, but what makes this a very good class was the work Moorhead did before that.
Jeremy Pruitt – B – Signing Day didn’t go that well, but this is a solid class with some instant impact players led by JJ Peterson, Greg Emerson and Alontae Taylor. I really like a lot of the defensive additions.
Dan Mullen – B – Signing Day was saved by huge commitments from Malik Langham and Jacob Copeland. Keeping Richard Gouraige was crucial for Florida. This class may ultimately judged by how quarterback Emory Jones pans out, but there are some other key additions here especially at the offensive skill positions.
Chip Kelly – B- – Kelly’s class might be ranked higher than many of the coaches ahead of him but it’s also much easier to recruit at UCLA than it is at many other programs. Adding Michael Ezeike was a big get down the stretch and quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson could be a star, but there were also some reaches in the class. It will be interesting to see if he can hang with USC in recruiting.
Herm Edwards – C+ – Edwards closed strong on this class during the traditional Signing Day landing players like Aashari Crosswell and Merlin Robertson. Frankly, Arizona State's top-40 ranking was higher than I expected, but a lot of the work was done by Antonio Pierce with his Southern Cal contacts. Can Edwards become a good recruiter at the college level? Time will tell and 2019 will be very telling.
Kevin Sumlin – C – A smaller class and a later start hurt Sumlin’s chances at a higher ranked class, but I still thought he’d be able to land some big names down the stretch and he didn’t. I still think he ends up recruiting better than Edwards by a large margin when he has a full year to put a class together, but his start hasn’t been great.
Chad Morris – C- – This isn’t a very sexy class for Arkansas fans with a lot of three-stars and very little star power overall. Morris has great ties to Texas, but can be pull some of the big names while keeping key players home?
Jonathan Smith – C- – Recruiting at Oregon State is the toughest job in the Pac-12 and Smith didn’t lure any massive names during his first go around. Time will tell if he’s a guy who can develop talent, which is key for the Beavers, and overcome the recruiting disadvantage.
