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When UTSA hired Frank Wilson I thought it was only a matter of time before the Roadrunners started to make in roads in San Antonio and around the state of Texas. Wilson was one of LSU’s home run hitters on the trail when going after a guy. But what Wilson is doing to his competition in C-USA West (specifically Rice, North Texas, UTEP) is ridiculous.
UTSA has the best recruiting class in C-USA. North Texas, UTEP, and Rice each currently have a class ranked in the bottom half of C-USA. UTSA has 17 three stars right now. North Texas (3), Rice (2) and UTEP (1) have a combined six.
UTEP has consistently finished near the bottom of C-USA in recruiting under Sean Kugler so there’s no surprise there. Rice had the best class in C-USA throughout the regular season but their class has been picked apart by P5 schools since the season has ended.
North Texas meanwhile shouldn’t be that far behind UTEP as they brought in Seth Littrell at the same time UTSA brought in Wilson. Littrell did wonders with the team he inherited last year but he has yet to make an impact on the trail just yet.
As for the rest of the West things seem to be the status quo. Southern Miss is on their way to finishing with a class that will rank near the top of C-USA and Louisiana Tech isn’t that far behind.
Out in C-USA East FAU had received all the hype with Lane Kiffin coming to Boca but it’s FIU who is slated for the stronger class on Wednesday. FIU has 11 three stars committed to play for Butch Davis in Miami.
I know FAU is getting all the pub with Lane Kiffin, but FIU is picking up a number of good football players who have P5 talent...
— SB Nation Recruiting (@SBNRecruiting) January 29, 2017
The Panthers appear to no longer be an afterthought come February like they were under previous head coach Ron Turner.
In a bit of a shocker Marshall has the second to worst recruiting class in C-USA right now with just four three stars committed. Since joining C-USA Marshall has run circles around their peers on National Signing Day as the Herd has had the best recruiting class in C-USA every year since 2013 (in 2012 they finished third).
Many assumed that with the new hires made by the G5 schools in the Sunshine State those who have thrived recruiting Florida before was going to take a hit and it appears Marshall has been one of those teams. With only 12 players committed so far I expect Doc Holliday to finish strong and have a class that will finish in the top half of the conference.
The team who has replaced Marshall has been Middle Tennessee as the Blue Raiders have the second most three stars committed in C-USA with 13. MTSU has finished with the fourth best class in C-USA in each of the past two years so a jump to third would be a great sign for Rick Stockstill that his roster is good enough to win the league.
As a whole, it’s great to see the talent that is coming to C-USA. Last year C-USA had 100 three stars and one four star on National Signing Day in 2016 (not including UAB due to how many players they were allowed to take). This year the conference has 98 but the three stars appear to be stronger as many of them currently hold P5 offers.
With two days left until National Signing Day there’s still room for a ton of movement as it is poaching season for the P5. With that in mind, it is imperative for the coaches to “Always Be Closing” as the finish line is within sight for National Signing Day 2017.