Class of 2014 WR K.J. Williams to East Mississippi CC

[tep624]

KJ is a Rvls 250 recruit. And in their top 150. We've never had a recruit rated in their 250. Rvls has been around for over 10 years, so yeah on paper the biggest blue chip we've landed in at least 12 years.

 

[anomander]

who's that?[/quotekl

looks like he is our top TE target

 

[supp]

6/8 of this recruiting class from NY/NJ/PA with two from the Midwest. Shute would have been a big pickup for us. Hard to find good linemen anywhere. LBers are a little easier. Hopefully Roberts makes up for that loss. But as always, it's SU's home territory that matters the most in recruiting. Go to FL and GA for speed and diamonds in the rough but focusing on the backyard is crucial to SU's success going forward in my opinion. BC, Pitt, WVU, PSU, and Rutgers are going to be tough competition. The B1G and ACC schools will start sniffing for more recruits up here too. Temple and UConn are not just going to bend over and take it from the above schools. Still, it will always be easier for SU to grab top talent in the 5-hour radius than elsewhere.

 

[CuseLegacy]

who's that?

http://syracusefan.com/threads/wr-jamal-custis-pa-offered.52887/page-2#post-679315

 

[Opus]

Awesome news! And here I thought I wouldn't crack open a beer today after celebrating our Independence the last 3 days. Oh well. Down the hatch.

 

[supp]

Uhoh. This might not be over. Check out Nate Mink's article. Apparently, they gave him a deadline to commit. He says he did so he wouldn't lose his spot but will continue to listen to other school's pitches.

 

[anomander]

leave it to Syr.com to sneak this in to temper the excitement

http://www.syracuse.com/orangefootball/index.ssf/2013/07/kj_williams_kept_his_recruitme.html

 

[anomander]

there is also a contradicting quote of the one in the article in another interview he did. there is more to it then that. .Com just wanted to try to squeeze out a few more articles views

 

[SUinNYC]

Uhoh. This might not be over. Check out Nate Mink's article. Apparently, they gave him a deadline to commit. He says he did so he wouldn't lose his spot but will continue to listen to other school's pitches.

I'm actually loving that our staff is giving ultimatums to 4* recruits.

 

[spo023]

Just got home from work, stellar announcement!

Super excited to have KJ in the fold. Time to take the next step and add some more playmakers. I'd also like to see us bring in a TE this class as well. They are a budding QBs best friend, and I want AJ to have every weapon known to man from the moment he sets foot on campus.

We have PJ Batten in the 2013 class at TE. He looks extremely talented and a matchup nightmare that could be AJ's safety valve. 6'5 with good speed. Check out his highlight video if you haven't yet.

 

[Whitey23]

Miami has 2 WR commits. I wonder if they offer him if they miss out on some of the bigger guys they are after.

 

[Libero2]

We have PJ Batten in the 2013 class at TE. He looks extremely talented and a matchup nightmare that could be AJ's safety valve. 6'5 with good speed. Check out his highlight video if you haven't yet.

I have indeed seen it. Batten certainly is t a bad guy to have, but part of me thinks if we bring in a TE, specifically one Long helps recruit (which anybody in this class, he will) will make the bond and trust so much stronger, that I can't help but see e connection on the field being stronger as well.

 

[anomander]

Miami has 2 WR commits. I wonder if they offer him if they miss out on some of the bigger guys they are after.

Either way it doesn't look like Miami has room for both KJ or Ishmael, and maybe not enough room for either . Hopefully we end up with both

 

[PhatOrange]

Maybe gave him a deadline because there are other wr prospects they must really like who maybe they can get, hence a deadline. I'm perfectly fine with it

 

[Ottoble]

CONGRATS KJ Welcome to the Cuse Family!!

 

[Libero2]

Maybe gave him a deadline because there are other wr prospects they must really like who maybe they can get, hence a deadline. I'm perfectly fine with it

I believe the article states that the SU staff told KJ they needed an answer by July 22. Isn't that the day of Blake's visit?

So I think this means they will only take one of Blake/Ishmael now that KJ is on board. So Ishmael best get up here ASAP because I prefer him to Blake,

 

[bnoro]

I believe the article states that the SU staff told KJ they needed an answer by July 22. Isn't that the day of Blake's visit?

So I think this means they will only take one of Blake/Ishmael now that KJ is on board. So Ishmael best get up here ASAP because I prefer him to Blake,

We'd take all 3

 

[Libero2]

We'd take all 3

If I was running the show, I would as well. But why give KJ such an early deadline (I mean lets be honest, 7/22 is about 8 months early) unless we were capping ourselves at a pretty low WR number?

Well that's going to be a worry for another day, just going to bask in the excitement for the rest of the night.

 

[texascpa]

My theory is that they gave him a deadline to help with some of the other highly touted recruits. This was the one recruit they thought they could get on board and, if they could, then maybe it would show other guys that the team has some top-end players coming in. Give him a deadline, hope to heck he commits, then go to the others and say "look what we're building and who we have coming in to help. We want you with them."

 

[tep624]

If I was running the show, I would as well. But why give KJ such an early deadline (I mean lets be honest, 7/22 is about 8 months early) unless we were capping ourselves at a pretty low WR number?

Well that's going to be a worry for another day, just going to bask in the excitement for the rest of the night.

I'm thinking the cap is a hard 3 at max. We took 3 last class, and Cooper will likely be reflected in the 2014 class by the recruiting sites (although he could be a jan enrollee after the fall semester at prep and count back against the 2013 class).

Either way, any more than 6 kids at one position over 2 years is really pushing it, unless the staff really feels that the quality on the roster is sorely lacking. If we take 2 more this year, it would put us at 12 WR's on the roster next season.

After the 2013 season, here's the WR eligibility:

Graduating: Flemming, Clark

1 year left - West RSR, Kobena SR

2 years left - Funderburk JR, Hale JR (could be 3 with medical RS)

3 years left - Lewis RSO, Cornelius RSO, Estime SO (assuming no redshirt), Winfield SO (assuming no redshirt)

4 years left - Avant (assuming redshirt), Cooper FR*, KJ Williams FR*, TBD FR?, TBD FR?

 

[ImperialOrange]

My theory is that they gave him a deadline to help with some of the other highly touted recruits. This was the one recruit they thought they could get on board and, if they could, then maybe it would show other guys that the team has some top-end players coming in. Give him a deadline, hope to heck he commits, then go to the others and say "look what we're building and who we have coming in to help. We want you with them."

Could be. I just assumed it was because we want AJ Long to move on and start working on some other big time recruits.

 

[tep624]

KJ's latest tweet:


"Can't wait to play up in that dome, tryin to make some noise up in there!! #Cusenation #Orangemen"

Doesn't sound like someone who isn't confident in their decision.

 

[SUFan44]

I'm thinking the cap is a hard 3 at max. We took 3 last class, and Cooper will likely be reflected in the 2014 class by the recruiting sites (although he could be a jan enrollee after the fall semester at prep and count back against the 2013 class).

Either way, any more than 6 kids at one position over 2 years is really pushing it, unless the staff really feels that the quality on the roster is sorely lacking. If we take 2 more this year, it would put us at 12 WR's on the roster next season.

After the 2013 season, here's the WR eligibility:

Graduating: Flemming, Clark

1 year left - West RSR, Kobena SR

2 years left - Funderburk JR, Hale JR (could be 3 with medical RS)

3 years left - Lewis RSO, Cornelius RSO, Estime SO (assuming no redshirt), Winfield SO (assuming no redshirt)

4 years left - Cooper FR*, KJ Williams FR*, TBD FR?, TBD FR?

Get the best athletes and let everything else sort itself out.

In years past, most of the top skill position-type athletes that could have played either sides of the ball have been moved to the defensive side. Started with Doug Hogue, to Dyshawn Davis to Durell Eskridge to Brandon Reddish. That was part of Marrone's philosophy - get a fast defense, and slowly build up team speed on offense.

I think we may see more 50/50 players shift to offense now and get faster on that side.

 

[Trueblue25]

KJ Williams beard will become a new fashion statement amongst the Orange faithful.

I will not shave for the next year and a half in honor of his commitment.

 

[tep624]

Get the best athletes and let everything else sort itself out.

In years past, most of the top skill position-type athletes that could have played either sides of the ball have been moved to the defensive side. Started with Doug Hogue, to Dyshawn Davis to Durell Eskridge to Brandon Reddish. That was part of Marrone's philosophy - get a fast defense, and slowly build up team speed on offense.

I think we may see more 50/50 players shift to offense now and get faster on that side.

I don't disagree with you in theory but if you've got 12 WR's on the roster that really don't translate to other positions, and you're still adding more, then you're doing it to the detriment of depth at other positions. At some point you have to say enough is enough and address needs.