{"id":7521,"date":"2015-01-30T07:57:28","date_gmt":"2015-01-30T12:57:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=7521"},"modified":"2015-01-30T14:45:22","modified_gmt":"2015-01-30T19:45:22","slug":"guest-post-a-fresh-start-to-recruiting-under-withers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=7521","title":{"rendered":"Guest Post: A Fresh Start to Recruiting Under Withers"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JMU-Recruiting-Picture.jpg\"><img data-attachment-id=\"7522\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?attachment_id=7522\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JMU-Recruiting-Picture.jpg?fit=571%2C402&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"571,402\" data-comments-opened=\"1\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;MichaelE&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1422498233&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"JMU Recruiting Picture\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-medium-file=\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JMU-Recruiting-Picture.jpg?fit=300%2C211&amp;ssl=1\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JMU-Recruiting-Picture.jpg?fit=571%2C402&amp;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-7522\" src=\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JMU-Recruiting-Picture.jpg?resize=571%2C402\" alt=\"JMU Recruiting Picture\" width=\"571\" height=\"402\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JMU-Recruiting-Picture.jpg?w=571&amp;ssl=1 571w, https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/01\/JMU-Recruiting-Picture.jpg?resize=300%2C211&amp;ssl=1 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 571px) 100vw, 571px\" data-recalc-dims=\"1\" \/><\/a>Hello all. \u00a0The guys at the JMU Sports Blog gave me the privilege of writing to everyone once again, and this time, I thought I\u2019d write about a certain event just around the corner\u2026National Signing Day. \u00a0Not just any national signing day but Everett Withers\u2019 first \u201ctrue\u201d recruiting class (given that he only had 2 months to recruit last year). \u00a0As we all have seen and heard, the old regime supposedly got a bit lazy on the recruiting trail, or they, quite frankly, were not as successful bringing in talent to Bridgeforth Stadium. \u00a0Since graduating from JMU in 2012, I would consider myself a \u201cdie-hard\u201d JMU football fan, and I have developed a bit of an obsession with the recruiting world that is considered the life-blood of college football. \u00a0To that end, I present you with 3 unique recruiting objectives or themes that I\u2019ve noticed from the new era in 2015:<!--more--><\/p>\n<p><strong>More Beef Up Front<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Yes, JMU Football is getting bigger, meaner and nastier. \u00a0As we all have seen, Mickey Matthew\u2019s staff put a lot of pride in providing us a fast, athletic defense to go along with a fairly nimble \u201cFCS\u201d offensive line. \u00a0While you can\u2019t really go wrong with the philosophy, Withers and staff are truly turning a new leaf in regard to the type of athlete that JMU recruits. \u00a0Assuming these verbal commitments stick, JMU currently has 5 recruits on board that are at least 270 pounds in addition to 3 others that are flirting around the 250-pound range. \u00a0After trying to fit circle pegs into square holes last season, Withers is looking for his own type of linemen. \u00a0Gone is the era of oversized tight ends playing tackle (anybody remember a 250-pound Matt Krout starting as a rFR versus VT?), oversized wide receivers as speed rushers or defensive ends playing inside like Sean O\u2019Neill and Tyler Snow. \u00a0With the implementation of the 3-4 defense and the new offensive philosophy that brings in a smash mouth running game, a la Ohio State, that compliments a vertical aerial attack; the JMU nation will be seeing a much different breed of \u2018lete on the offensive and defensive line.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Notable potential signees:\n<ol>\n<li>DT Jordan Brooks, 256 lbs. \u2013 quick, strong defensive lineman that played against top competition for the nationally-ranked Centreville HS squad. \u00a0He would fit right in at the DE position in the 3-4 while sliding inside on passing downs, he also had multiple FBS offers.<\/li>\n<li>DT Jahee Jackson, 295 lbs. \u2013 teammate of another JMU commit. While a highlight tape can only say so much, Jackson is the epitome of a \u201cslobber-knocking\u201d defensive lineman. \u00a0Prototypical NT unless he slides in at Guard. \u00a0Did I mention ODU offered\u2026?<\/li>\n<li>OL prospects Tyree Chavious, AJ Gray and Chase Brown \u2013 as mentioned above, these guys weren\u2019t tight ends or former quarterbacks\u2014they grew up in the trenches. \u00a0Since we are <i>still<\/i> an FCS team, you have to give the staff a hand in luring these young men, all at least 280 pounds, to the purple and gold\u2014 something we haven\u2019t seen in 5 years. \u00a0While still raw, some DHall, a college workout regime and some ass-kicking by Coach Davis would do them well.<\/li>\n<li>NT Austin Cannon \u2013 just watch the highlight tape; that is all.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Size on the outside<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Similar to the philosophy that the staff is implementing to the line of scrimmage, JMU is getting much bigger in the receiving corp. \u00a0We put to rest the idea of taking option-based quarterbacks and forcing them to run precise routes against seasoned CAA defenses. \u00a0After Daniel Brown (and I\u2019ll even put Brandon Ravanel in the mix), our WR corp consisted of smallish, slot receiver-like pass catchers that often needed 2 or 3 year of experience before being key contributors (imagine if Deandre Smith had redshirted). \u00a0Even Everett Withers joked around saying that we had the worst WRs in the country and, sometimes, that was hard to argue against. \u00a0Similar to Georgia Tech\u2019s philosophy, JMU simply put really good athletes outside, and we prayed they ran past the secondary. \u00a0The new era is bringing in 6 freshmen pass catchers (2 tight ends, 4 wide receivers) with 4 over 6\u20193. \u00a0After watching their tape and doing some research, I would argue that the 4 receivers in this class all possess the ability to catch the ball at its highest point, evolve into true end-zone threats, as well as effectively block the bubble screen, which is a key component in our scheme. \u00a0Nothing against ours speedster and Charlottesville-bred Rashard Davis, but I\u2019d rather not see him get blown up in the outside anymore.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<ul>\n<li>Notable potential signees:\n<ol>\n<li>The Twin Towers, WRs Christian Harden and Riley Stapleton \u2013 both possess Daniel Brown size, both are former basketball players and both should win a number of jump balls for JMU.<\/li>\n<li>Dominique \u201cDomo\u201d Taylor \u2013 at 6\u20193 and 210 pounds, he is a big physical WR that, at times, looks like Dez Bryant on the field and seems to aspire to be just like him as well. \u00a0We haven\u2019t seen a prospect like him since Rockheed McCarter.<\/li>\n<li>James Brunson \u2013 an underrated WR prospect from the \u201cspeed\u201d state that came from the same HS that produced Sammy Watkins. \u00a0Withers has done well with Florida players at JMU *cough* Jimmy Moreland *cough*.<\/li>\n<li>Mack Cullen \u2013 while he does contradict everything I said above since he was a former triple option QB, he does have more potential at TE in this scheme than any of our current players at the position.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Knack for Finding Under-the-Radar Talent<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>After doing a bit of digging, I noticed a trend where Withers finds highly-touted, next-level type players that run into injury issues during their careers that ultimately affect their \u201cbrand\u201d in recruiting. \u00a0Notably 4 players \u2013 ATH Quan Welch, DE Trevor Brown, OLB\/DE Nyck Grayson and RB Trai Sharp \u2013 have gone through season-ending knee injuries, and each has verbally committed to play for the Dukes. \u00a0All 4 were considered up-and-coming players in their regions with all-purpose back, Quan Welch, leading the way with a reported 14 offers from FBS and FCS schools. \u00a0Trevor Brown is a very good-looking albatrossesque defensive line prospect who holds offers from both Marshall and ODU. \u00a0Nyck Grayson, who is primed to fill in the pass-rushing role of Sage Harold set a school-record 17.5, sacks his junior season and sat out his senior season due to a torn ACL. \u00a0Grayson also holds an offer from UMASS\u2026 yes, they still have a football team. \u00a0Lastly, our \u201cbig-time\u201d potential signee, Trai Sharp. \u00a0The 3-star North Carolina native who had reported offers from Purdue, Illinois, App State and was once an NC State commit had a season-ending knee injury in his junior season. \u00a0He was able to bounce back with a successful senior season for Carrboro High School. \u00a0I really hope that these players have a significant impact for the Dukes. \u00a0Their circumstances remind me of Delaware\u2019s All-Conference WR Michael Johnson who was once an SEC caliber recruit from Florida but fell in the rankings due to injury. \u00a0Not sure where Mickey was, but the Blue Hens scored big time.<\/p>\n<p>We are days away from National Signing Day which is the earliest day that high school prospects can sign their letters of intent to their school of choice. \u00a0There have been a number of major flipped commitments from much larger institutions, and we have seen similar changes on our level (remember when UMASS stole 3 prospects from us in 2012). \u00a0While anything can change, I can only hope that JMU can keep their current verbal commitments and hopefully bring on new ones in the coming days. \u00a0Twitter has truly changed our access into the world of recruiting, and we can see, first-hand, that the coaches are actively on the road, recruiting future Dukes.<\/p>\n<p>There was tremendous roster turnover when the new staff stepped in 1 year ago, and I am assuming that is part of the reason that we currently have such a big signing class coming onboard. \u00a0While I have not mentioned the likes of LB Dimitri Holloway, QB Cory Owen, DB Charles Tutt, DB Curtis Oliver, DB Robert Branch, LB Kirk Robinette and DB Rashad Robinson, it\u2019s hard not to notice that the staff is pursuing big-time high school prospects aggressively. \u00a0While we all are well aware of the saying that \u201cstars get you fired\u201d and there are many people out there that are still defensive on the type of players that Withers is bringing in. \u00a0Let\u2019s not forget that Mickey Matthews\u2019 2011 class consisted of 16 players that were ranked with 2 stars or more. \u00a0All respect to Dean Marlowe, that class, arguably, underachieved big time when you consider the expectations that were brought on to them. \u00a0The buzz is back at JMU, and the culture is changing significantly. \u00a0HS players want to sport the purple and gold, they want to win championships and they want to play in front of 25,000 fans screaming their hearts out for the Dukes. \u00a0When you beat out schools like Alabama for a kicker (thanks to Jonathan Barrett for the insight), I can sincerely say that I am excited for what\u2019s to come for the JMU Nation in 2015. \u00a0GO DUKES!<\/p>\n<p><em>This is the first is a series of recruiting-focused guest posts written by JMU amateur recruiting guru <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Michael_2Clutch\">@Michael_2Clutch<\/a><\/em>. Give him a follow on twitter for all the latest JMU recruiting news.<\/p>\n<iframe src=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/plugins\/like.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fjmusportsblog.com%2F%3Fp%3D7521&amp;layout=standard&amp;show_faces=true&amp;width=450&amp;action=like&amp;colorscheme=light&amp;height=80\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" style=\"border:none; overflow:hidden; width:450px; height:80px;\" allowTransparency=\"true\"><\/iframe>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Hello all. \u00a0The guys at the JMU Sports Blog gave me the privilege of writing to everyone once again, and this time, I thought I\u2019d write about a certain event just around the corner\u2026National Signing Day. \u00a0Not just any national signing day but Everett Withers\u2019 first \u201ctrue\u201d recruiting class (given that he only had 2 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":8296,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=8296","url_meta":{"origin":7521,"position":0},"title":"Withers Leaves for Texas St. Job","date":"January 7, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Well, that happened. After spending the last few days furiously tweeting about the future of JMU and #TheEdge2016, Coach Withers bailed on JMU in a matter of minutes to accept the Head Coaching position at Texas St. No word yet on whether Sinbad, Scott Bakula, or Kathy Ireland have any\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;News&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Image-1-2-300x286.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6747,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=6747","url_meta":{"origin":7521,"position":1},"title":"Guest Post: JMU Football Transfer Round-up","date":"June 2, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Guest blogger Sean Petrizzi is here to summarize an exciting transfer season for JMU football. Here he breaks down the\u00a0Dukes 3 big transfers from FBS programs. You can follow Sean on Twitter at @SeanPetrizzi. Everett Withers has been reaching into the FBS-to-FCS transfer pool big time since arriving in Harrisonburg.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"090113_Vad_Lee_JC1","src":"https:\/\/i1.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/01\/090113_Vad_Lee_JC1.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6365,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=6365","url_meta":{"origin":7521,"position":2},"title":"JMU Makes a GREAT Statement With Withers Hire","date":"December 22, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"If you've been following our schoolboy-giddy Tweets at all the last few days, you'll know that we are thrilled with JMU's hiring of Ohio St. Co-Defensive Coordinator\/Safeties Coach Everett Withers as the sixth head coach in Dukes history. Yes, there are always nits that can be picked if you work\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/withers-james-madison-300x200.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6489,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=6489","url_meta":{"origin":7521,"position":3},"title":"Everett Withers Signs 14 to His First JMU Recruiting Class","date":"February 5, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"Today is National Signing Day. It's an exciting day for college football fans, albeit one that often serves as evidence that they hype surrounding the game can sometimes overshadow the game itself. \u00a0With that being said, like most of you, we were very anxious to see what sort of recruits\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"EverettWithersJMU","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/02\/EverettWithersJMU.jpeg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":7529,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=7529","url_meta":{"origin":7521,"position":4},"title":"Today is National Signing Day, Here Is Our Advice","date":"February 4, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"It's National Signing Day, the day that high school seniors from the class of 2015 can officially commit themselves to play football for the NCAA institution of their choice. It's an exciting day and while the hype has escalated beyond reason, we'd by lying if we said we didn't get\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"Fax-Machine1","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/02\/Fax-Machine1-1024x577.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9424,"url":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/?p=9424","url_meta":{"origin":7521,"position":5},"title":"John Bowers Is Going, Going, Gone","date":"June 1, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"John Bowers has resigned from his position as JMU football special teams coordinator. And, well, we're actually pretty stoked for him. Yes, it's a big loss for the program. But Bowers is heading back to the West Coast to take a job and be closer to his family. His son\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;JMU Football&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"john-bowers-jmu","src":"https:\/\/i2.wp.com\/jmusportsblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/06\/john-bowers-jmu-1024x542.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7521"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7521"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7521\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7523,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7521\/revisions\/7523"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7521"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7521"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jmusportsblog.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7521"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}