MAC Football







MAC Basketball



 

MIAMI

Overview:                   After finishing 10th in the country and winning twelve straight games this season, Miami rode the wave and signed one of their best classes in their long and storied football history.  Miami signed 24 players from eight different states, with half of these recruits coming from Ohio.  Speed is evident throughout this class and the RedHawks did a fine job at hitting their pressing needs, offensive line, defensive line and LBs.  Some of the fastest players recruited in this class are RB Jimmy Calhoun, a 4.35/40 speedster who turned down an offer from Michigan State to go to Oxford, and Dustin Woods, a DB with reported 4.37/40 speed.  The coaching staff is really high on QB prospect Jared Elliot, who was a 1st team all-state player in Tennessee.  Miami was rated the #1 class in my initial rankings prior to their archrival, Cincinnati, raiding their party during the recruiting weekend.  Former MU defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi left for the Bearcats and took with him three solid recruits, OL Trevor Canfield, FB Brad Bury, and a tremendous SS prospect Lamonte Nelms, one of the top safety recruits in the Midwest.

 

Highlights:

  • Miami brought in a really nice group of LBs in this class.  Joe Conglio has 4.5/40 speed and was a top-100 player in Illinois.  Miami beat out some Big Ten schools for his services.  Clayton Mullins and Chris Shula are two undersized LB prospects who posses speed and tenacious hitting skills.
  • The defensive line got some solid players also led by DT Ryan Redman, a 6-4 270-pound sack machine.  James Case & Josh Satterwait are speed rush DE prospects from Georgia.  Both have good size and skills for that position.
  • Chris Hudson is the lone recruit from Texas and can play either LB or DE.  He is a top-100 player in that state and Miami beat out several Big 12 and Mountain West schools to sign him.
  • While there are several quality offensive linemen in this class, one player really stands out.  TE prospect David DiFranco is a tremendous talent as both a receiver and a blocker.  He is also an exceptional basketball player.  Coming from a high school offense that featured the old-fashioned wing-T scheme, don’t be surprised if DiFranco doesn’t bulk up and become an offensive lineman during his career.

 

Final Thoughts:

Miami used their success to their advantage and brought in one of the top classes in the MAC this year.  Miami met their needs, added tons of speed, and built depth.  The RedHawks always seem to do recruit well in Ohio and certainly mined their home state well once again.  Outside of a few losses to Cincinnati, this is a rock-solid class that rates as EXCELLENT, bordering on outstanding.  The line prospects are very good and there is a lot of quality skilled players.  This class will keep Miami in the hunt for championships over the next few years. 

 

 

Branden Armstrong       OL      6-7     245     Englewood, OH (Northmont)

Jimmy Calhoun           RB      6-0     195     Middletown, OH (Middletown)

James Case              DL      6-2     242     Acworth, GA (Harrison)

Joe Coniglio            LB      6-2     220     Rockford, IL (Rockford Boylan)

Tom Crabtree            TE      6-5     210     Carroll, OH (Bloom-Carroll)

Nicholas DeBartolo      FB      6-1     235     Pittsburgh, PA (Upper Saint Clair)

Dave DiFranco           TE      6-4     255     LaGrange, OH (Midview)

Jared Elliott           QB      6-5     210     Franklin, TN (Page)

Ben Huddle              DL      6-4     240     Columbus, OH (Dublin Scioto)

Chris Hudson            LB/DE   6-2     215     Arlington, TX (Bowie)

Dave Koval              WR      5-11    177     Poland, OH (Poland Seminary)

Matt McKeown            OL      6-4     250     Cincinnati, OH (Sycamore)

Sean McVay              Athlete 5-10    175     Marietta, GA (Marist)

Clayton Mullins         LB      6-1     215     Dayton, OH (Fairborn)

Jake O'Connell          WR/TE   6-4     220     Naples, FL (Gulf Coast)

Jon Pereiro             OL      6-3     275     Orland Park, IL (Carl Sandburg)

Ryan Redman             DL      6-4     270     Newark, OH (Licking Valley)

Bryan Roland            DB      5-10    185     Detroit, MI (Univ. of Detroit Jesuit)

Josh Satterthwait       TE/DL   6-4     245     Roswell, GA (Lassiter)

Pat Shepard             WR/TE   6-4     215     Pittsburgh, PA (Upper Saint Clair)

Chris Shula             LB      5-11    198     Cooper City, FL (St. Thomas Aquinas)

Steve Sutter            TE/DL   6-6     230     Saint Henry, OH (Saint Henry)

Robbie Wilson           DB      6-0     195     Cincinnati, OH (Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy)

Dustin Woods            WR      5-11    175     Cincinnati, OH (Purcell Marian)