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National Signing Day 2018: Memphis adds nine recruits

The Tigers received a couple surprises that didn’t go their way, but still added nine recruits to round out their 2018 class.

NCAA Football: American Athletic Conference Championship-Memphis at Central Florida Matt Stamey-USA TODAY Sports

There might have been some concern with Memphis only signing 12 during the Early Signing Period, but we knew that Mike Norvell wasn’t done recruiting. Norvell nearly signed as many players today as he did during the early signing period, which was expected. Here’s who signed with Memphis in the 2018 class.

Memphis 2018 Recruiting Class

NAME POS HT WT PREVIOUS SCHOOL STARS
NAME POS HT WT PREVIOUS SCHOOL STARS
Antonio Gibson WR 6-2 220 East Central C.C. ⭐⭐⭐
Nigel Brannon OT 6-5 333 John Marshall ⭐⭐⭐
Will Lawrence OG 6-4 285 Harding Academy of Memphis ⭐⭐⭐
Titus Jones OG 6-3 265 Ena Karr ⭐⭐⭐
Troy Hurst ATH 6-2 185 St. Helena Central ⭐⭐⭐
Kenny Gainwell ATH 5-11 185 Yazoo County ⭐⭐⭐
Keith Brigham DE 6-3 270 Pima C.C. ⭐⭐⭐
Jaylon Allen OLB 6-2 215 Atascocita ⭐⭐⭐
Brady McBride QB 6-0 189 Coppell ⭐⭐⭐
Keith Brown ILB 6-2 230 Nortwest Mississippi C.C. ⭐⭐⭐
Manuel Orona OT 6-3 285 Glendale C.C. ⭐⭐⭐
Evan Fields OT 6-6 260 East Coweta ⭐⭐⭐
Cameron Fleming RB 5-7 171 Cedar Hill ⭐⭐⭐
Nyle Love OLB 6-1 225 Lausanne Collegiate School ⭐⭐
Quindell Johnson S 6-0 185 Edna Karr ⭐⭐
Chris Clark OT 6-4 255 North Panola ⭐⭐
Jeremy Tate WR 6-4 210 New Hope ⭐⭐
Corteze Love DE 6-3 230 Lausanne Collegiate School ⭐⭐
Isaac Ellis OG 6-2 319 Carroll ⭐⭐
Kameron Wilson DE 6-7 225 Hueytown ⭐⭐
Montre Bonner DE 6-3 270 Fullerton College N/A

Analysis

Norvell wanted to target offensive line, and he accomplished that goal. Seven players will suit up for the Tigers on the line, and some of them bring some tremendous size. Nigel Brannon (6-5, 333), Will Lawrence (6-4, 285), and Isaac Ellis (6-2, 319) all are big bodies and should add quality depth to the offensive line. Lawrence will be a preferred walk-on. This was a position of strength for Memphis this past year, and Norvell wants to keep that going in the future.

Receiver Antonio Gibson will be in competition to replace Anthony Miller. At 6-2, 220 pounds, Gibson has great size to keep his name in the mix. Troy Hurst and Kenny Gainwell come in as athletes, but could be used as running backs which only gives the offense more playmakers. They will have to wait at least one year with Darrell Henderson and Patrick Taylor Jr. returning.

The interesting signings were Corteze Love and Kameron Wilson. Love, a defensive end who’s cousin is fellow Memphis signee Nyle Love, was limited to just one game his senior year due to transfer rules. He has been rising up 247Sports boards, and could be a gem in this class. Wilson played tight end and defensive end in high school, but is expected to play defense with Memphis. At 6-7, he’s got great height and length, but will need to add weight to his long frame (225 pounds).

Overall, Norvell did a great job of continuing to pursue recruits even when things didn’t go right. There were a few Signing Day surprises that didn’t go in Memphis’ favor, but Norvell was still working with other recruits like outside linebacker Jaylon Allen, who signed after a couple hiccups from other recruits. Memphis currently ranks 88th in the nation, and seventh in the AAC.