Army Class of 2017: 5 Commits in Past 2 Weeks

Ben Roth (LB): Seminole (Fl)- Army's first commit was impressed with the atmosphere at West Point. So impressed that he made up his mind and settled on West Point a day after his only visit to the campus. "Originally, I was thinking about committing when I saw the facilities [on June 22nd]," Roth told The Times Herald-Record's Sal Interdonato. "[I] knew I made the right choice." Roth, a linebacker from Seminole, Florida, recorded 76 tackles in 2015. Seven of those tackles resulted in a loss of yardage for the opposing high school team. A quick linebacker, Roth should be a solid edition to the Black Knights' team come 2017.

Gabe Schappell (WR): Exter (Pa)- Shortly after Roth (less than 24 hours actually), Schappell, who had received offers from New Hampshire, Richmond, and Syracuse, announced his commitment. In the first five games of Exter's (Pa) 2015 season, Schappell hauled in four touchdowns, while catching 14 passes for almost 200 yards. Then their starting quarterback broke his leg.

Surprisingly, Schappell, a wideout, was the next man in line to be under center. He rose to the occasion and surprised his coaches by winning the next six consecutive games. The new Exter quarterback even rushed for almost 1,000 yards and 15 touchdowns. Black Knights fans reminiscent about recently graduated tight end Kelvin White, another Pennsylvania native,  will notice the similarity between the versatile Schappell and the newly graduated White.  Army sees Schappell as either "a tight end or H-back" according to Sal Interdonato of the Times-Herald Record.

Ayrton Payne (FS/SS): St. Pius X (Houston) & Kemonte Yow (LB): DeSoto (Tx)- These two Texas defensive commits add speed to Army's freshman class of 2017. Payne's estimated 40-yard dash time of 4.49 seconds ranks in the top five among current linebackers and safeties at the Military Academy. Payne recorded over 70 tackles for St. Pius X, in Houston. Kemonte Yow, another Texas secondary commit, was a presence on the other side of the line of scrimmage. A versatile 6 foot 228-lbs linebacker, Yow recorded 96 tackles in the 2015 season.

Jeremiah Lowery (LB): Edgewood (Ala)- Lowery ran a 4.70 in the 40-yard dash. The  6'3" 235-lbs linebacker has quick feet. He is utilized in punt formations as a blocker. Lowery is a middle linebacker, calling out signals to his teammates. He is effective in rolling off offensive linemen, evading their attempt to block him from the backfield. This can be beneficial to Army come the 2017 season. Lowery could see some playing time then.