The early signing period in December has made it such that February signing day — at one time the only signing day — no longer has much significance on the calendar. Wednesday was again proof of that, with little activity and nothing unexpected happening.
Starting now, coaches can officially close the door on the Class of 2024 and get moving on the Class of 2025, which should be an intriguing group to follow with conference realignment in full swing. The ACC is no exception. Cal, Stanford and SMU will look to compete with other league members for recruits. Clemson and Florida State will continue to jockey for the top spot in the conference standings. As we wrap up the 2024 class, let’s check in on the league with one thought for each team.
Things recently got interesting at Boston College. About six weeks after the Eagles signed the majority of their class, head coach Jeff Hafley left the program to become the defensive coordinator for the Green Bay Packers. The move makes sense for Hafley — Boston College is a difficult place to win at, and he left on his own terms — but the timing is far from ideal for the program’s 12 signees. Even if the Class of 2024 recruits were interested in entering the transfer portal, it’s so late in the process that it would be difficult for them to find a new school. The best plan for this group — and the team — is to go through spring practice with the new staff and then determine if they want to stay at Boston College or pursue a transfer.
Cal’s 2024 class is concerning. The Golden Bears have just one blue-chipper — four-star receiver Trevor Rogers out of Northern California — and have signed just three blue-chippers in the last three cycles. This after signing six in the Class of 2021 alone. But did the Golden Bears tip their hand this cycle and show us how they might beef up recruiting in the future? Cal signed a combined three players from Texas from 2021 through 2023. This year, the staff signed a whopping nine prospects from the Lone Star State, compared to five from California and one each from Florida, Kansas, North Carolina and Washington. Georgia has become an important state for ACC schools to get into given its deep pool of talent and proximity to most of the league’s programs. But will Texas become that state for Cal? And will it make a difference? It’s too early to tell but certainly something to keep an eye on.
Clemson’s offense has struggled the past three seasons, in large part due to a lack of playmakers at wide receiver. The Tigers believe they have addressed that issue in the 2024 class. Clemson signed two top-50 receivers in December: five-star TJ Moore out of Tampa (Fla.) Catholic and four-star Bryant Wesco out of Midlothian (Texas) High. Moore is the nation’s No. 23 prospect, and Wesco comes in at No. 48. Dabo Swinney will be under a microscope in 2024 to see if he can get his program back among the elite in the sport. If the offense gets rolling again, don’t be surprised if these two receivers play a crucial role.
Manny Diaz has his work cut out for him. In June, Duke was on pace to sign a top-35 class for just the second time in program history thanks to the work of Mike Elko and his staff. After the coaching change and a host of defections, the Blue Devils’ final ranking is No. 62. Among the notable losses were four-star quarterback Tyler Cherry, who signed with Indiana, and four-star offensive tackle Robert Bourdon, who is following Elko to Texas A&M. The Blue Devils landed former Texas quarterback Maalik Murphy out of the transfer portal in December but have no high school quarterback in the 2024 class. It will be interesting to see whether Diaz — who was previously the head coach at Miami and attended Florida State — targets the state of Florida. Duke has signed just six players from the state over the last six cycles.
Florida State lost five-star safety KJ Bolden to Georgia and five-star edge Armondo Blount to Miami during the early signing period, which knocked the Seminoles out of the top 10. But don’t be mistaken: This is still a strong class with some outstanding playmakers. Florida State’s average player rating of 90.90 is good for 12th nationally and is the program’s highest mark since the Class of 2018. In a year when competition was stiff in the Sunshine State, with Florida and Miami finishing No. 7 and No. 11, respectively, in average player rating, Florida State hung in despite its late losses. This is a program with a lot of momentum.
Georgia is one of the most talent-rich states in the country. That’s good (a lot of players) and bad (a lot of competition) for the Yellow Jackets. There were 57 blue-chip prospects in Georgia in the 2024 cycle, and the Yellow Jackets landed only two of them: wide receiver Isiah Canion out of Warner Robins High and tight end Luke Harpring out of the Marist School in Atlanta. Still, it was a solid class for Brent Key and his staff. Georgia Tech’s average player rating of 87.39 was a big improvement from the 85.86 mark in the 2023 cycle and the first time since 2020 the program topped 87. In addition to Canion, the Jackets signed two other four-star prospects: running back Anthony Carrie and cornerback Troy Stevenson.
