2017 National Signing Day Recap: Akron Zips

Last season the Zips went 5-7 overall and finished 3-5 in conference play.

Meet Akron’s 2017 recruiting class:

DB Zaire Jacobs 5’11’’ 185 lbs, St. Thomas Aquinas HS, Fort Lauderdale (FL)

DB Jeffery Lubin 6’2’’ 185 lbs, South Broward HS, Hollywood (FL)

OL Hunter Corne,2-Star 6’3’’ 274 lbs, Dunnellon HS, Dunnellon, (FL)

ATH Jordyn Riley, 2-Star 5’10’’ 170 lbs, North Marion HS, Citra, (FL)

QB Nick Johns, 3-Star 6’4’’ 220 lbs , Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College, Miami, (OK)

QB Alex Ramart, 2-Star 6’3’’ 210 lbs, Foster HS, Richmond, (TX)

SS Jerome Cooper, 6’0’’ 200 lbs, Utica Stevenson HS, Sterling Heights, (MI)

DL Malik Townsend, 6’4’’ 253 lbs , Perry Traditional Academy HS, Pittsburgh, (PA)

DE Matther Hanson, 6’3’’ 245 lbs , Western HS, Davie, (FL)

OL Marcus Kidd, 6’6’’ 300 lbs, Garfield HS, Akron (OH)

RB Jemarulin Suggs, 2-Star 5’11’’ 180lbs, East HS, Akron, (OH)

DL Deandre Brimage, 6’0’’ 245 lbs, East HS, Akron, (OH)

CB Marquess Callaway, 6’0’’ 161 lbs, East HS, Akron, (OH)

RB Marquise Bridges, 5’9’’ 180 lbs, Ellet HS, Akron, (OH)

DL Tracy Jordan, 6’3’’ 245 lbs, Springfield HS, Akron, (OH)

WR Malik Wooldridge, 5’10’’ 170 lbs, St Vincent St Mary HS, Akron, (OH)

DE Justin Sampson, 6’2’’ 210 lbs, St Vincent St Mary HS, Akron, (OH)

DE Kobie Booker, 6’1’’ 245 lbs, Barberton HS, Barberton, (OH)

WR Dusty Burkhart, 6’2’’ 190 lbs, Coventry HS, Coventry, (OH)

SS Reggie Corner Jr., 5’11’’ 200 lbs, McKinley HS, Canton, (OH)

WR Mitch Cooper, 6’0’’ 170 lbs, Avon HS, Avon, (OH)

P Jonah Weiland, 6’3’’ 225 lbs, Hudson HS, Hudson, (OH)

LB Bubba Arslanian, 6’1’’ 210 lbs, Aurora HS, Aurora, (OH)

DL Eric Bentley, 6’1’’ 250 lbs, St Vincent St Mary HS, Akron, (OH)

Takeaways

On offense, 3-Star QB Nick Johns is a JUCO transfer from Northeastern Oklahoma A&M. Johns originally signed his letter of intent to attend University of Virginia as a member of the 2015 class. He later decided to transfer out when the staff asked him to switch to WR, and eventually was granted a release to play at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M as a QB.

Jordyn Riley, a 2-Star athlete, has a ton of potential. His play making skills and the ability to play both sides of the ball will be huge for the Zips. Hanson looks to be a great addition to the defensive line. He also had reported offers from five other schools including: Florida A&M, Florida Atlantic, Iowa State, Southern Miss and Western Kentucky. DB Zaire Jacobs also comes in from Florida as a very underrated player, who could surprise a lot of people. He turned down reported offers from Ball State and Middle Tennessee State. Jacobs also was a late addition to this class, providing a big boost in the secondary.

Akron had a solid recruiting season hauling in two quarterbacks and two running backs. The Zips also reloaded on the defensive line by bringing in seven defensive lineman. They’ll have an opportunity to compete against each other for playing time right away.

Overall, this group looks to bring in a lot of good talent to an underachieving Akron team. Akron has the talent, now it will be a matter of getting it done on the field, which is something I could see materializing for them next season. The Zips are gaining a lot of speed and size on defense, and getting some offensive sparks in Riley and Suggs. Hopefully this spells success for the Zips and we see a group that will prosper for the years to come.