Evaluating the 2011 recruiting class

Oct 29, 2013, 1:54 PM

This was our first truly elite recruiting class.

5* Players

Stephone Anthony - Living up to his billing, Anthony is one of the best ILB in the nation.

Mike Bellamy - Not sure what Mike is up to these days, but it's not running the ball or causing trouble in Tiger Town.

Tony Steward - Injuries have derailed one of the top players in the 2011 class. He will have every opportunity to move into the starting lineup next season and redeem, what has otherwise been a lackluster on the field career.

Sammy Watkins - Superstar, one of the best, if not the best, WR in the nation.

Overall - we are 50% in 5* players - 2 stars, 1 injury plagued career, and one guy who couldn't get his head together.

4* Players

Martavis Bryant - All the talent in the world, but it has yet to translate into a dependable weapon on the field. Word is that this is his last year. Overall he will probably be considered a disappointment if he leaves after this season.

Corey Crawford - Coming into his own this season. He is an excellent strong side defensive end. His lived up to his 4* billing.

Cortez Davis - Never panned out/ transferred, there is a Cortez Davis sized hole in the back half of our secondary.

Eric MacLain - Has to be considered a disappointment thus far, but will have a chance to redeem himself if he can make it on the field as an OL.

Charone Peake - Just when he was starting to come into his own, the dreaded non contact knee injury ended his season. Again, at this point, he has had a disappointing career, but will have 2 seasons to make his mark on Clemson.

Lateek Townsend - Looked the part, was a decent special teams player, but never caught on to the intricacy of College Football and left the team.

3* Highlights:

Grady Jarrett: High motor, pass rushing D-Tackle. He has far exceeded his 3* ranking

Ryan Norton: Starting center, still needs to add weight to move his game to the next level. Struggles with big nose guards.

Robert Smith: High School QB, transitioned to starting SS. He is a sure tackler, but has some physical limitations that teams with big WR can exploit.

Cole Stoudt: The favorite player on every team is the back up QB. Cole is in line to start next season, despite having 2 highly touted QB's (Kelly and Watson) on the roster.

Deshaun Williams: Big, run stuffing D-Tackle, doesn't show up much in the box score, but eats up blocks and keeps Anthony and Shuey clean to make tackles.

Stanton Steckinger: Tall WR converted to TE. Has shown flashes of excellence, and flashes of killing us in big games. He is young and talented, but isn't ever going to be much help in the run game. However, he could develop into a red zone monster if continues to progress.

3* Overall: Clemson picked up a few diamonds in the rough. Overall, more play makers in the 3* class than the 4* class (granted there were 13 3* players in the class, many of whom are either gone, or used only on special teams)

2* Highlights:

Adam Humphries: Has far exceeded his meager billing. Humphries is an excellent slot receiver, and has outplayed both Byrant and Peake so far in his career. His upside is limited but his production is unquestioned.

Overall:

Some big misses can be seen on the field today. We lack an explosive running back (Bellamy) and size in the secondary (Davis). The real weakness in the class can be seen in the failure to develop the 4* players. However, with that said this class still has 1 more season to prove why it was ranked highly. It might have to do so without Watkins (and possibly Bryant) but the potential is still their, but the clock is ticking.

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Evaluating the 2011 recruiting class

Bryant isn't going anywhere...

I agree, he shouldn't, but that's not the word on the street***

I'm sorry but what street? Haven't heard that anywhere. I

Do you even Tigernet Bro?

Drew... I know what you're referring to...

Remember Derrick Hamilton?***

Bryant is a physical freak

Needs to put on weight and work on routes...***

No argument here, still wouldn't be surprised to see him go

There is a reason for that

I just like seeing him with the ball in his hands

Capable may not be the right word

Re: No argument here, still wouldn't be surprised to see him go

I agree, almost every catch he makes

Imagine Bryant does go an gets taken in the 3rd or 4th

I was about to post this--he's reminding me of

I have 2 words for this.....

Nice summary. I would imagine every school in the country

Re: Evaluating the 2011 recruiting class- Townsend

Re: Evaluating the 2011 recruiting class

I think you see the dreaded 2 QB system

^^^ I agree***

Matt Cassell?

Re: Matt Cassell?

You description sounds like

If we don't recruit Tajh Boyd, then Cole Stoudt might be

I'm expecting Chad to win the starting job next season

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