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The Miami RedHawks have a smaller class for 2018 with 15 commits and a graduate transfer, but they found a lot of quality playersn with seven three-stars committing to the program this signing period. Chuck Martin’s class finished at #130 on 247Sports.com rankings, but the website did not include Zedrick Raymond or Will Carlton as a part of its rankings.
Without further ado, here are the newest RedHawks.
QB AJ Mayer - Covington Catholic High School, Edgewood, Kentucky (6’3”, 205 lbs., three-star)
Miami is getting a productive QB in Mayer, who went undefeated on his way to a state championship as he totaled 3,114 passing yards, 40 passing scores, 540 rushing yards, and 11 rush TDs in his senior season. As you can see on his Hudl film, he possesses a strong arm, excellent accuracy, and an ability to make plays in the running game. He tends to stare down receivers, so he’ll have to work on going through his progressions at the next level. He’ll likely be redshirted with Gus Ragland, Jackson Williamson, and Alex Malzone all in the QB room.
RB Tyre Shelton - Chapel Hill High School, Douglasville, Georgia (5’11”, 175 lbs., two-star)
Shelton shores up the RB position for the future as the ‘Hawks have three senior runners in 2018. He’s a tremendous athlete as you can tell off of his Hudl tape, and he looks like he could be an every-down back down the road. He’ll redshirt this year to accumulate mass and will look to work on being physical and getting yards after contact in college.
WR Cam Blakely - Knoxville Catholic High School, Knoxville, Tennessee (6’5”, 200 lbs., two-star)
WR Will Carlton - Blessed Trinity High School, Roswell, Georgia (6’2”, 190 lbs.)
The WRs got a little deeper with the additions of Blakely and Carlton. The former is a big-bodied receiver that battles for jump balls and is quick for his size, while the latter is also quick but is very hard to tackle in space. Both of them will likely be five-year players as they have to get used to the physicality of Division I corners and get off press coverage.
TE Maleak Bryant - Mays High School, Atlanta, Georgia (6’6”, 225 lbs., three-star)
The highly-touted Bryant is bringing his talents to Oxford, where the TE position is in flux with the departures of Ryan Smith and Grant Niemiec. The Hudl film shows that he can do it all from his position: can get separation and make catches in the passing game, can split outside as a receiver, can finish runs in the open field, and can be a punishing blocker in the running game. Ideally he would be redshirted this season to get up around 240 lbs., but he might work his way onto the field without a clear starter at the position right now.
OL Bennett Clark - Zionsville Community High School, Zionsville, Indiana (6’6”, 280 lbs., three-star)
OL Andrew Todd - Cedar Rapids Washington High School, Cedar Rapids, Iowa (6’4”, 275 lbs., three-star)
The OLs of this class will have to wait their turn as Miami returns 16 to the position group from last season’s team. Clark is effective as a pass blocker at LT and works hard as a run blocker, while Todd is a great finisher in the running game. These two tackles will likely sit out this season, but look for them to provide some depth in 2019.
DE Kameron Butler - Covington Catholic High School, Florence, Kentucky (6’3”, 240 lbs., three-star)
DL Will Kellison - Bishop Chatard High School, Indianapolis, Indiana (6’4”, 240 lbs., two-star)
These two DLs will likely sit out the 2018 season for their redshirt year with as many returners as MU has coming back. Butler was named to the All-Northern Kentucky First Team and it’s easy to see why with his athleticism and striking ability. Kellison is effective with using his hands to defeat blocks and is a sound DE. A year or two in the strength program and they’ll be pushing for some time on the field.
LB Dallas Fields - Toledo Central Catholic High School, Toledo, Ohio (6’1”, 220 lbs., two-star)
LB Isaiah Schoonmaker - Washington High School, Washington, Pennsylvania (6’2”, 200 lbs., two-star)
These two LBs will add some depth as all of Miami’s backers return from last year’s team. Fields is accomplished as he was named to the First-Team All-State team his junior year and he has some serious playmaking ability as a 3-4 OLB. Schoonmaker, meanwhile, is an intriguing player because of his ball skills and physicality, so a move to the fifth DB spot in MU’s 4-2-5 wouldn’t be surprising. A year to develop upper body strength would be good for both of these players.
DB Zedrick Raymond - Murphy High School, Mobile, Alabama/Independence Community College (6’0”, 180 lbs., three-star)
DB Ja’don Rucker-Furlow - Belmont High School, Dayton, Ohio (6’2”, 180 lbs., two-star)
DB Cecil Singleton - Princeton High School, Cincinnati, Ohio (6’2”, 190 lbs., three-star)
DB Blake Underwood - East Lansing High School, East Lansing, Michigan (6’3”, 190 lbs., two-star)
With a lot of talent on the back end coming back, expect the freshmen to be redshirted. Raymond might be a guy that can find his way on the field with his ball skills and his speed, and coming from one of the better JUCOs in the country has helped his development. Rucker-Furlow is a good cover guy that can come up in run support, while Singleton is the long athlete at safety you want to get coming out of high school. Underwood is another dynamic athlete who’s not afraid to come up and stop the run from his safety spot. With this many long DBs, the Red and White should be in good hands on the back end.
GRADUATE TRANSFER
QB Alex Malzone - Brother Rice High School, Bloomfield Hills, Michigan/University of Michigan (6’2”, 215 lbs.)
Malzone didn’t see the field much at Michigan, but he can valuable in the ‘Hawks QB room for 2018. A three-time state champion, he is enough of an athlete to make plays in the running game and can make some big-time throws. It’ll be interesting to see how the depth chart shakes out if Malzone would be named QB2 over Williamson and would be the first to go in the game in case something were to happen to Gus Ragland.
Next up in our National Signing Day Recap series: the Ohio Bobcats. In case you missed it, here is the Buffalo NSD recap.