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BYU Recruiting: Grading BYU’s Class By Position

By Jeff Hansen

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BYU’s 2015 recruiting class is signed, sealed and delivered. The class was successful. There were some surprises and some misses. Overall, the class turned out to be a very good BYU class. Was it a top 10 recruiting class? No, absolutely not. But it was a very good BYU class. The four major recruiting sites each had similar grades for where BYU’s class ended up. ESPN.com ranked BYU as the 50th best class, 247Sports.com had BYU at 60, Scout at 61 and Rivals at 66.

BYU has certain limitations when it comes to recruiting. They deal with things like the Honor Code that nobody else in the country deals with. They don’t have Ivy League standards for academics, but Bronco Mendenhall does have certain GPA requirements before he will let someone sign. It’s a difficult job and, I believe, BYU did very well this year.

Nov 15, 2014; Provo, UT, USA; Brigham Young Cougars head coach Bronco Mendenhall walks the field before the game against the UNLV Rebels at Lavell Edwards Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

So, let’s take a look at BYU’s compared to nobody but themselves. We won’t compare BYU to any other schools, we’ll throw out the rankings and the stars and we’ll just look at BYU’s class and see how it grades out for BYU. Let’s just focus on the kinds of players that BYU traditionally gets and how that compares to this class. We’ll look at the needs that were identified at the beginning of the year and how they filled those needs. ‘A’ is absolutely fantastic and couldn’t have been any better, ‘C’ is average by BYU standards and ‘F’ is dreadful.

Offense

QB: Beau Hoge, Kody Wilstead (and Tanner Mangum comes home)

I really like both Hoge and Wilstead. Hoge didn’t have many offers but only played quarterback for a single season. He’s got a big arm and is an exceptional athlete. Wilstead has an NFL frame. He’s 6’6″ tall and has a rocket for an arm. Hoge will play four years straight and Wilstead will leave on a mission this Spring.

Currently, BYU only has Taysom Hill coming off a broken ankle and tight end turned quarterback McCoy Hill on the roster. If T. Hill is able to get back to pre-injury form then he is an exceptional starting quarterback. If coaches are counting on M. Hill doing much other than serving as an emergency quarterback then BYU may be in trouble.

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Tanner Mangum is an elite talent but hasn’t played in a game of football since his last high school game in 2012 so there are some question marks to how effective he will be nearly four years later.

I think BYU signed some good quarterbacks in this class but I think they were one player short. I would have liked to have seen a JUCO quarterback that had at least some experience in the even T. Hill goes down. Right now, the depth chart is 1. T. Hill (suffered season ending injuries in two of three seasons), 2. Magnum (hasn’t played since 2012), 3. Hoge (true freshman with only one year of QB experience) and 4. M. Hill (tight end turned quarterback). I would have liked a JUCO guy.

Class Grade: B

RB: Squally Canada, Charles West

Canada is a transfer from Washington State that will have three years to play three after he sits out the 2015 season. He’s a former four-star quarterback that can run for power. West is a speedster that could potentially break a long touchdown run every time he touches they ball. Both are non-LDS athletes that BYU doesn’t normally get to Provo.

Jamaal Williams is one of the best running backs to ever come through BYU. He has season ending knee surgery last year but is set to come back for a big senior season. If he’s able to return to form then Williams will leave BYU as the all-time leading rusher. Algie Brown and Adam Hine have both shown that they can be effective runners but they are certainly not Williams. BYU needed a couple of big time play makers out of the offensive backfield and that’s exactly what they got.

Class Grade: A- 

WR: Akile Davis, Micah Simon

Davis is a big time receiver. I like him. He needs to fill out a little before he’ll be able to reach his potential, but I like him. He’s got good hands and comes from a high school that plays at a high level in Texas. I think he ends up being the kind of impact player that Margin Hooks was for BYU. (Ironically, Hooks also helped get Davis to BYU.)He has a really high ceiling but he’s got some work to get there.

Simon is also very talented. In high school, typically your best players play quarterback or running back. Simon played quarterback and won a state title. I think that he is going to be a good wide receiver but there is no doubt some risk. He hasn’t played wide receiver and BYU is going to transition him this season. He’ll develop, but I don’t know if it’s fair to expect him to contribute next season.

Jordan Leslie is gone but Nick Kurtz is healthy. Mitch Matthews returns. There are guys like  Devon Blackmon, Mitchell Juergens, Colby Pearson and Terren Houk that will contribute. Josh Weeks and Talon Shumway are two big receivers that return from missions. There are a lot of bodies that are going to compete for reps at receiver but none of them seem like surefire options. I would have liked to see BYU bring in a bigger wide receiver that could contribute. Ultimately, I think BYU did good in the class of 2015 but I do think we needed more impact guys this year. Simon and Davis will be good but I don’t know how good they will be.

Sep 20, 2014; Provo, UT, USA; Brigham Young Cougars wide receiver Jordan Leslie (9) runs past Virginia Cavaliers cornerback Tim Harris (5) during the first half at Lavell Edwards Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Class Grade: C

TE: Scott Huntsman

Huntsman was an absolute steal. He had offers from Purdue, New Mexico and a late offer from Houston but he chose to walk-on at BYU instead of taking those offers. He was a key factor in getting his teammate Charles West to sign. He’s talented and I think he could be a really good player. I like Scott Huntsman a whole lot.

Devin Mahina is leaving and Terren Houk is the closest thing to a traditional tight end with any experience on BYU’s roster. The tight ends of old are a dying breed at BYU. Huntsman is a steal but BYU didn’t target a tight end and it wasn’t a priority. They don’t really need one.

Class Grade: C by default

OL: Kieffer Longson, JJ Nwigwe, Jacob Jimenez, DeMetrius Davis, Brady Christensen

Longson is headed on a mission but is one of the highest rated recruits of the class. He turned down Utah, UCLA and Ohio State in favor of BYU. Nwigwe and Jimenez are both from the state of Texas and both turned down offers from P5 schools to sign with BYU. Both are athletic and both have the versatility to play multiple positions along the offensive line. Davis and Christensen were late additions to the class. Davis has legitimate potential but has a long ways to get there and Christensen is a bit of a flyer as an athletic, undersized lineman but will head on a mission.It’s a good class and there is a lot of different pieces.

BYU returns most of their starting offensive line from last year. Ryker Matthews will be healthy, Ului Lapuaho and Matthews should be favored to start at the tackle positions. Tejan Koroma is back at center and Kyle Johnson and Tuni Kanuch will be back at the guard positions. The starting offensive line is actually really good. Beyond those five however, there isn’t much. Terrence Alletto is the only guy that you would want to count on to take significant reps. So, some of these freshmen will have a chance.

There isn’t much coming home from missions this year so look for Jimenez, Nwigwe and even Davis to get reps in fall camp and a chance to earn playing time. It is a bummer that the best lineman of the class is going on a mission, but there are some pretty good options that will be on campus.

Class Grade: B-

Defense

DL: Devin Kaufusi, David Lui, Tevita Mounga, Motekiai Langi

Kaufusi is the latest Kaufusi to sign at BYU. Like his brothers Bronson and Corbin, nobody really knows what he’s going to turn into. He’s the least polished Kaufusi coming out of high school but he is has all of the tools to grow into a good defensive end. Time will tell with Kaufusi. I like Lui. I don’t love Lui, but I like Lui. He’s the kind of guy that you have to have on your team but you hardly notice them. Tevita Mounga is a very, very nice pickup. He reminds me so much of Romney Fuga. All three of these players are mission first players. Langi is a mountain of a man but is very obviously a huge gamble and massive project.

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BYU isn’t really losing anyone from the defensive line other then Marques Johnson. They will add Isaiah Nacua and Moses Kaumatule among others. Defensive line wasn’t a huge need and it’s a good thing because they didn’t sign anyone that will contribute before 2017. All three players are the kinds of linemen that you would expect BYU to get. And BYU missed on Gabe Reid and Mufi Hunt, two in-state recruits that were highly recruited that BYU really wanted to get.

Class Grade: C-

LB: Mika Tafua, Will Sedgwick, Jeremiah Ieremia

I love these linebackers. Tafua turned down Washington and USC among others. There is nothing not to like about his game. He’s big, fast, athletic and hits hard. Tafua is going to be great. Ieremia is one of the hardest hitters in the West this year. He turned down offers from Washington and Utah State to sign with BYU. Some guys make tackles and guys like Ieremia rip people’s heads off. Sedgwick is as underrated as any prospect in this class. He committed to BYU in June of 2013 and shut down his recruitment. He never racked up a laundry list of offers because he didn’t really entertain any. Sedgwick is a really nice player. All three of these stud linebackers are headed on missions.

BYU is loaded at linebacker next year. Harvey Langi, Sione Takitaki, Fred Warner, Teu Kautai, Manoa Pikula, Tyler Cook, Troy Hinds…. do I need to keep going? BYU is stacked and linebackers for next year were not necessary in this class. BYU did exactly what they needed to do in the class of 2015. They locked up some stud linebackers to stick in the pipeline for after some of the guys currently on the roster graduate.

Class Grade: A-

DB: Dayan Lake, Riley Burt, Zayne Anderson, Eric Takenaka, Trevor Brent

Lake was a must have. Four star corners rarely come to BYU, especially out of high school where BYU can have them for four to five years. Burt could play either running back or defensive back, but I really like him as a corner or a safety. He’s got a lot of the same tools that Lake has but isn’t quite as polished. If he works hard he could prove to be a steal. Anderson is playing a year before his mission and has drawn Daniel Sorenson comparisons. Erik Takenaka is already on campus and Trevor Brent will be here for four straight years. It is a very good DB class for the Cougars.

There were a lot of holes in the defensive backfield. Craig Bills, Harvey Jackson, Jordan Johnson, Dallin Leavitt and for at least a few games, potentially Kai Nacua, are all gone. BYU had holes and needed guys that could play immediately. Something happened with Khari Vanderbilt and he didn’t sign with anyone. But Lake and Takenaka could play the first day they get on campus. I really like Anderson’s potential and think that Burt and Brent could both provide meaningful reps down the line.

BYU did really well with their defensive backs. Typically, this is an area of weakness for BYU but this year it’s one of the better aspects of the class.

Class Grade: B+

Sep 11, 2014; Provo, UT, USA; Brigham Young Cougars quarterback Taysom Hill (4) hands the ball to running back Jamaal Williams (21) during the third quarter against the Houston Cougars at Lavell Edwards Stadium. Brigham Young Cougars won the game 33-25. Mandatory Credit: Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports

Overall

BYU did really well. They filled most of their needs with meaningful players. I would have liked to see more impact at the receiver position and an extra offensive lineman. The defensive line class was hard for me to swallow. Missing out on guys like Gabe Reid and Mufi Hunt are tough blows. I like Mounga a lot but I feel like BYU needed help immediately and they didn’t get that.

I love what they did at running back and I think they got two really, really good quarterbacks. The secondary was as good as BYU could have done. The linebackers are great and they fit BYU’s needs perfectly. The class was very solid. There were some holes and missed on some guys, but overall they did very well.

Total Grade: B

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