Class of 2019 JUCO RB JJ Branham (OH / TX) COMMITTED TO SYRACUSE (7/10/23)

[RF2044]

• http://At their request, this netwo...-of-2019-Top-100-Safety-Daxton-Hill-107286291

2019 RB John Branham One Of Ohio's Best
One of the top 2019 runningbacks in Ohio is Columbus Northland's John Branham, and college coaches have taken notice of his skill set.
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Even though he only played five games last season for Columbus Northland following a transfer, John Branham established himself as one of the top 2019 runningback prospects in Ohio.

Branham has speed, power and the ability to catch the football, which has put him squarely on the recruiting radar.


"I only played five games as a sophomore because of the transfer rule, but I led my team in rushing and touchdowns," Branham stated. "I run the ball very hard and have good vision. I need to work on being a smarter runner, and raising my football IQ."

With four offers to his credit, Branham has caught the eye of college assistant coiaches, and more offers should be coming his way.

"I hold offers from Cincinnati, Ohio, Toledo and Kent State," he explained. "I was also at Notre Dame for the Irish Invasion, and I loved it there. It was a great experience."

"Notre Dame said they loved me and they're going to recruit me going forward," he added. "I want to go back to Notre Dame this fall. I'm also hearing from Pittsburgh, Tennessee, USC, Wisconsin, Penn State and Ohio State."

"Ohio State called my coach and asked about me, and I will be going to their Friday Night Lights camp in July," he continued.

Scout will continue to track Branham over the coming seasons, as we expect to see his offer list expand.

So, this sounds promising -- from his HS days:

With four offers to his credit, Branham has caught the eye of college assistant coiaches, and more offers should be coming his way.

"I hold offers from Cincinnati, Ohio, Toledo and Kent State," he explained. "I was also at Notre Dame for the Irish Invasion, and I loved it there. It was a great experience."

"Notre Dame said they loved me and they're going to recruit me going forward," he added. "I want to go back to Notre Dame this fall. I'm also hearing from Pittsburgh, Tennessee, USC, Wisconsin, Penn State and Ohio State."


Cinci offer out of HS, along with some MAC's -- but garnering interest from bigger programs. Ended up at Blinn CC, one of the top JUCO's in the nation, after a multi-year hiatus. Looks like he performed well there.

Coaches trying to catch lightning in a bottle, and may have done so.

 

[OrangeXtreme]

All your RB's are belong to me.

 

[CuseLegacy]

 

[OrangeXtreme]

"To be honest, I wasn't getting any attention or any love from many schools," Branham said. "Coaches would come for a game, give me a few words, turn their back on me and leave me. Syracuse stuck with me for the whole process, about three or four months. They kept up that relationship. They were pretty much the only one who kept it consistent with me. With me, I'm a loyalty guy. If you're loyal to me, I'm loyal to you. So I ended up committing to Syracuse."

The offer from Syracuse came a few months ago, Branham said.

"They've said a lot," Branham said. "Then again, what stood out to me was coming in and being a leader for the younger guys. Being an experienced guy and also coming in to do damage. I'm not saying I'm going to start, I'm not saying anything. I'm just coming to compete."

The primary point of contact with Syracuse was running backs coach Mike Lynch.

 

[MSOrange]

I would say no. This is insurance in case things don't go well though. No one knows for certain which way the wind is going to blow on this one. As the head of the program, he has to assume that things won't go our way. If they do, so much the better. If they don't, and you don't at least try and prepare for the worst, shame on you.

Agree. There have been a few times in the past across various sports, not just football, when our coaches haven't been as prepared for different scenarios as it seems like they could have been. So kudos to Dino and let's wait to see where this all ends up.

 

[RF2044]

Agree. There have been a few times in the past across various sports, not just football, when our coaches haven't been as prepared for different scenarios as it seems like they could have been. So kudos to Dino and let's wait to see where this all ends up.

Also interesting to read [from that article OX just posted] that we offered him 3-4 months ago. Perhaps this is less of an emergency move as it might at first appear.

 

[Chip]

Also interesting to read [from that article OX just posted] that we offered him 3-4 months ago. Perhaps this is less of an emergency move as it might at first appear.

I think we needed another human in that RB room anyway, so I'm not surprised they were trying to find one who could potentially contribute right away.

 

[IthacaBarrel]

Also interesting to read [from that article OX just posted] that we offered him 3-4 months ago. Perhaps this is less of an emergency move as it might at first appear.

seems like a kid that has been through a lot, rooting for him. Don't think he will take this opportunity for granted.

 

[Jake]

Feels like someone who will not bail if LA returns and will be a nice option if he doesn’t. Feels like a smart insurance move by Dino.

 

[CbusCuse]

Interesting that his offer came a few months ago as that means they liked him enough to offer him a while back as an earlier option and are not just scrambling now.

Edit: Sorry RF2044. Just now saw your post stating the same.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

Is that because of skillset or the design of the offense? Tucker caught 8 as a freshman and 36 last year.

I suppose we don't know for sure.

 

[All4SU]

HCDB employing the wheat and chaff method.

 

[orangemass]

He will be right at home in the dome. Lots of silver in those bleachers

 

[RF2044]

Interesting that his offer came a few months ago as that means they liked him enough to offer him a while back as an earlier option and are not just scrambling now.

Edit: Sorry RF2044. Just now saw your post stating the same.

No worries!

 

[orangencpolice]

Always plan for the worst. Like it has already been stated, he was offered before the LA situation. This shows that Dino will start the best players available. This is a win win.

 

[OrangeinDC]

"To be honest, I wasn't getting any attention or any love from many schools," Branham said. "Coaches would come for a game, give me a few words, turn their back on me and leave me. Syracuse stuck with me for the whole process, about three or four months. They kept up that relationship. They were pretty much the only one who kept it consistent with me. With me, I'm a loyalty guy. If you're loyal to me, I'm loyal to you. So I ended up committing to Syracuse."

The offer from Syracuse came a few months ago, Branham said.

"They've said a lot," Branham said. "Then again, what stood out to me was coming in and being a leader for the younger guys. Being an experienced guy and also coming in to do damage. I'm not saying I'm going to start, I'm not saying anything. I'm just coming to compete."

The primary point of contact with Syracuse was running backs coach Mike Lynch.

Kid will be one of my favorites. How can you not root for him.

 

[sutomcat]

JJ is an interesting story to be sure.

He was first team all state in Ohio. He was rated the #14 player in the state in the class of 2018. But he ended up at Eastern Michigan.

Ohio's top 25 high school football players in the 2018 cleveland.com Big 101

Presenting the top 25 high school football players in Ohio, led by Olentangy Orange defensive end Zach Harrison.

www.cleveland.com

When this kind of thing happens, it is usually grade related.

I am thinking that one of the most important tweets JJ made recently was one where he proudly revealed he made the honor roll at Blinn.

Would not be surprised if SU offered him months ago but it was conditional based on him graduating from Blinn with a degree and with the grades needed to pass NCAA muster.

Maybe he lost that offer when we got the other big JUCO back. Maybe he got it back with the uncertainty with this key position. Who knows?

Really hope it works out for him. Love these kinds of stories. You want players on the team who are extremely motivated, hard working and grateful for the opportunity to help keep the whole team working hard and motivated in this age of massive entitlement.

His little brother is a terrific receiver who is currently at Kentucky. If JJ works out, would not be surprised to see another Branham at Syracuse down the road.

 

[cuseallday]

I have to say, that piece from Mike M. was eye-opening. That SU offered this young man months ago, maybe it wasn't an insurance policy for Allen...and he battled homelessness? Wow. Rooting for this young man so much.

 

[cusefan88]

Feels like this stabilizes the RB room hopefully and allows Daniels and Parkman to redshirt.

 

[kcsu]

JJ is an interesting story to be sure.

He was first team all state in Ohio. He was rated the #14 player in the state in the class of 2018. But he ended up at Eastern Michigan.

Ohio's top 25 high school football players in the 2018 cleveland.com Big 101

Presenting the top 25 high school football players in Ohio, led by Olentangy Orange defensive end Zach Harrison.

www.cleveland.com

When this kind of thing happens, it is usually grade related.

I am thinking that one of the most important tweets JJ made recently was one where he proudly revealed he made the honor roll at Blinn.

Would not be surprised if SU offered him months ago but it was conditional based on him graduating from Blinn with a degree and with the grades needed to pass NCAA muster.

Maybe he lost that offer when we got the other big JUCO back. Maybe he got it back with the uncertainty with this key position. Who knows?

Really hope it works out for him. Love these kinds of stories. You want players on the team who are extremely motivated, hard working and grateful for the opportunity to help keep the whole team working hard and motivated in this age of massive entitlement.

His little brother is a terrific receiver who is currently at Kentucky. If JJ works out, would not be surprised to see another Branham at Syracuse down the road.

I think we just found a diamond in the rough. Or in Toms case a brand new once hit titlist

 

[CbusCuse]

JJ is an interesting story to be sure.

He was first team all state in Ohio. He was rated the #14 player in the state in the class of 2018. But he ended up at Eastern Michigan.

Ohio's top 25 high school football players in the 2018 cleveland.com Big 101

Presenting the top 25 high school football players in Ohio, led by Olentangy Orange defensive end Zach Harrison.

www.cleveland.com

When this kind of thing happens, it is usually grade related.

I am thinking that one of the most important tweets JJ made recently was one where he proudly revealed he made the honor roll at Blinn.

Would not be surprised if SU offered him months ago but it was conditional based on him graduating from Blinn with a degree and with the grades needed to pass NCAA muster.

Maybe he lost that offer when we got the other big JUCO back. Maybe he got it back with the uncertainty with this key position. Who knows?

Really hope it works out for him. Love these kinds of stories. You want players on the team who are extremely motivated, hard working and grateful for the opportunity to help keep the whole team working hard and motivated in this age of massive entitlement.

His little brother is a terrific receiver who is currently at Kentucky. If JJ works out, would not be surprised to see another Branham at Syracuse down the road.

Looks like his brother Kailil Branham might have been a 4 star at one point who originally committed to Michigan. Ended up rated an 87 on 247. He was a 2020 kid and left Kentucky January of 2021. So he would have 3 years left of eligibility. But I don't see that he has played anywhere else in 2021 or 2022.

 

[sutomcat]

Looks like his brother Kailil Branham might have been a 4 star at one point who originally committed to Michigan. Ended up rated an 87 on 247. He was a 2020 kid and left Kentucky January of 2021. So he would have 3 years left of eligibility. But I don't see that he has played anywhere else in 2021 or 2022.

That is unfortunate. He was rated the #10 player in Ohio coming out of HS. Hope he also finds his way back to college soon.

 

[CbusCuse]

That is unfortunate. He was rated the #10 player in Ohio coming out of HS. Hope he also finds his way back to college soon.

Yeah maybe his brother inspires him to do something similar like going to a Juco in 2023 where he can excel and earn a scholarship to Syracuse in 2024 and 2025 to play with his brother.

 

[texascpa]

"To be honest, I wasn't getting any attention or any love from many schools," Branham said. "Coaches would come for a game, give me a few words, turn their back on me and leave me. Syracuse stuck with me for the whole process, about three or four months. They kept up that relationship. They were pretty much the only one who kept it consistent with me. With me, I'm a loyalty guy. If you're loyal to me, I'm loyal to you. So I ended up committing to Syracuse."

The offer from Syracuse came a few months ago, Branham said.

"They've said a lot," Branham said. "Then again, what stood out to me was coming in and being a leader for the younger guys. Being an experienced guy and also coming in to do damage. I'm not saying I'm going to start, I'm not saying anything. I'm just coming to compete."

The primary point of contact with Syracuse was running backs coach Mike Lynch.

Man, I love this attitude. I wouldn't be put off if he said "I'm coming to start", but he seems to be very humble and understands his role.

 

[Trueblue25]

Mike Lynch can land rb’s man