****(WR) Tristan Payton: A very exciting prospect. The best recruit (on paper) we have ever signed. Tristan performed extremely well at the Semper Fidelis Bowl, a showcase featuring some of the better players out of high school. On multiple occasions Tristan showed that he is a solid route runner, completely torching an opposing DB on a Stop N GO where he caught a 40 yard+ TD leaving everyone in the dust.
UCF player comparison: Josh Reese (hopefully utilized more)
Potential: (1-10): 8
***(DB) Rashard Causey: Another highly recruited prospect landed by UCF. Something I like a lot about him is that he played against some of the best high school players week in and week out at St. Thomas Aquinas and still performed well. Although lacking elite level ball skills, he makes up for it with his ability to get defenders on the ground immediately. He is a solid tackler. Rashard also has pretty good speed at the corner position.
UCF player comparison: Josh Robinson
Potential: 7
***(C) Luke Hiers: Highly recruited prospect that wanted to go to UCF early in the recruiting process. Luke is a much needed addition to the team as our weakest position as of now is the offensive line. Coaches describe Luke as someone who plays the game with a "mean streak." These are the types of guys we need on our line right away. Much like Rashard Causey, Luke Hiers played up against quality competition at Lake Wales and performed exceptionally well.
UCF player comparison: None, we haven't really had any solid centers.
Potential: 7
***(CB/S) Brandon Scott: A big get for UCF, Scott decided to sign after an intense recruiting battle took place between UCF and Arkansas. In an interview Brandon is quoted saying that a few nights before signing day he actually texted the coaches at UCF letting him know he was leaning on attending Arkansas. Luckily for us he decided to go with the good guys, citing newly hired coach Travis Fischer as a big reason why he chose UCF. I really like his high school tape. He is quick to the ball, and a good hitter. I would't be surprised if he was right in the mix as a starting Safety straight out of high school.
UCF player comparison: Clayton Geathers (although Geathers is a bigger hitter, Scott seems to have better ball skills)
Potential: 8
***(DE) Titus Davis: Although slightly undersized, Titus is an intriguing prospect for the Knights. Titus was heavily recruited out of high school. Playing DE in high school, Titus is a guy that we desperately need to pan out. If we could ever field a quality Defensive Line this team would be so much better. We were more talented than NC State but our inability to bring down the QB killed us all game. Luckily, Davis flashes pretty good speed and an ability to get to the QB. Much like Luke Hiers at Center, Titus has an opportunity to start right away at the DE position.
UCF player comparison: Thomas Niles (although faster than Niles)
Potential: 6.5
***(WR) Cameron Stewart: Cam Stewart is a very exciting prospect. Georgia came on the scene late in the recruiting process, but Cam stuck with the Knights. He was also our first commitment. What I like most about him is his ability to win the jump ball. He has very good body control for someone his size. Surprisingly, he also has great speed for someone that is 6'3. (4.5) Look for Cam to compete for one of the starting WR jobs come Spring time.
UCF player comparison: Breshad Perriman (let's hope)
Potential: 7.5
***(QB) Bo Schneider: In my opinion, Bo Schneider is the player I'm looking forward to seeing in the Spring the most. He has an incredible highlight reel. ( I understand you can't completely judge someone off of highlights) He consistently picked apart defenses in high school. He threw for 40+ TD's and around 7 INT's last season. Some of his throws are REALLY impressive. He has excellent touch on his throws. The guy is in total control out there and certainly looks the part. The only thing I struggle with is the idea that he didn't really receive much interest from colleges outside of us and Oregon State. I'm hoping for another Blake Bortles situation, but am cautiously optimistic. He's not going to be average here at UCF. He's either going to be Really good or really disappointing, I see no middle ground with him.
UCF player comparison: Blake Bortles
Potential: 8.5
***(MLB) Quintin Hampton: Although not heavily recruited, Quintin comes from good stock. Hampton lead his high school team (Colquitt County) to a state championship this year at Line Backer. UCF coaches like him because they see him as someone who will become a leader when he steps foot on campus. Hampton also helped UCF a lot in their recruiting efforts by contacting guys like Brandon Scott encouraging them to join "the family."
UCF player comparison: Terrance Plummer
Potential: 6
***(OLB) Neal Nelson: Along with Quintin Hampton, Neal plays a position of great need at UCF. With the departures of Terrance Plummer and Troy Gray, at least 1 Freshman will start at LB right away. Nelson has good size and can handle running from sideline to sideline to take down ball carriers. Another thing I like is that we got Nelson over Boston College. The reason I put weight into that is the fact that BC has an eye for LB talent (Luke Kuechly comes to mind) One knock on Nelson would be the competition he played up in New Jersey. However, that doesn't mean much if your dominant at your position and you have the intangibles.
UCF player comparison: Troy Davis
Potential: 6.5
***(TE/HB) Aaron Cochran: Obviously I have to start out by saying I already like him because he left Louisville for us. He looks like a 40 year old man already, it's kind of scary. Cochran also played just about every position possible in high school. (QB, RB, TE, you name it) I honestly have no idea what position he projects at in college. What I do know is that he is a good athlete who isn't afraid of contact. There is always a spot on the team for someone like that.
UCF player comparison: Jordan Akins
Potential: 7? tough to tell
***(LB) Pat Jasinski: Outside of the secondary additions, Jasinski is my favorite defensive recruit we landed. His only other offer was Air Force, but that doesn't paint the full picture. He is extremely physical and surprisingly has great ball skills. Pat scored 6+ TD's at TE this year, and that isn't even his position of choice. This just shows how great of an athlete he is. I believe he is most ready out of this year's class. My only concern is that he is pretty slow. He ran a 5.02 at one of the Nike Spark Combines recently. However, if you watch his film you would never guess that he runs a 40 yard dash anywhere near 5 seconds.
UCF player comparison: Josh Linam
Potential: 7
***(RT) Tyler Hudanick: With Tyler, either he is extremely underrated or he plays the "little sisters of the poor" week in and week out. He absolutely dominates defenders, pancaking them every other play it seems. What I also like about him is the idea that he continues to rough up defenders when they are on the ground after a pancake (not illegally). He seems to have a mean streak as well. I am more excited about Hudanick than I am Luke Hiers at the moment.
UCF player comparison: Chris Martin
Potential: 7.5
**(DE/DT) Brendon Hayes: Another guy that comes at a position of need, DE. Hayes has good size at 6'4, 250 pounds. He ended up choosing UCF over Miss State. I believe him and Titus Davis will end up being better than our current DE's when it is all said and done. O'Leary also stated that Hayes may shift over to Defensive tackle alongside Jamiyus Pittman. If Hayes pans out that is a nice set of Defensive Tackles.
UCF player comparison: Victor Gray
Potential: 6.5
**(DE) Monte Taylor: Originally committed to play football at UNC, Monte Taylor took the Junior College route instead. Now Monte Taylor will have a chance to contribute right away at the DE position. The UCF staff likes him a lot from what I heard yesterday at the UCF signing day show. To be honest, I didn't see much from him but I'll take the coaches word on him.
UCF player comparison: Cam Henderson
Potential: 5.5
**(WR) D'erren Wilson: Originally when he committed, I wasn't all that excited. After all, his only other suitors were North Texas and SMU. After looking at his film, this guy has a lot of potential. If I showed you video of him and Tristan Payton, but took the names off of the videos (and removed the star ratings), I bet you would grade Wilson higher than Payton. This is obviously great news. He is another guy who has a great combination of speed and size. Eventually other schools caught on to him and Texas Tech made a late push to sign him. Luckily for us he chose the Knights.
UCF player comparison: Mike-Sims Walker (let's hope)
Potential: 9
***(LB) Marcus Foster: Another guy who fell through the cracks, Marcus Foster is an impressive looking prospect. He is the best tackler out of the linebacking group that we signed this class. He has good size at 6'2, 210 lbs. He is someone that also has a great chance to start early in his career given the defections at LB.
UCF player comparison: Cory Hogue
Potential: 7
***(RB) Taj McGowan: It's hard to say what he will become at UCF. He has the size, but seems awkward running the football. He has average speed (although stating he runs a 4.4) but does seem to be an aggressive runner. Another thing that troubles me is that McGowan doesn't seem to have much lateral ability (as far as juking/avoiding defenders) He will run straight at you and sometimes that is a good thing I guess. However, it will be much harder planting LB's at the college level.
UCF player comparison: A smaller Will Stanback
Potential: 6
Closing comments: In my opinion, this is by far the best class we have ever had. Although the class is not highly ranked on sites like Rivals, these sites base rankings off of quantity as well. Since we only signed 18 and others sign 24+, this skews our ranking. If you look at our average star rating, we are right up there with P5 schools. There are guys in this class that have serious offers (Payton, Causey, Hiers) to name a few. These are guys we wouldn't have landed years ago. You start to get excited for the future when you realize that we have had great success with far less talent (on paper, coming out of high school) than we do now. Just imagine what we can accomplish now that we are starting to get highly touted players coming out of high school. If the staff can develop the recruits we've had from (2010-2014), they can certainly develop this one!
Favorite recruit: Tristan Payton
Offensive Sleeper: D'erren Wilson
Defensive Sleeper: Pat Jasinski
Highest ceiling: Bo Schneider
UCF player comparison: Josh Reese (hopefully utilized more)
Potential: (1-10): 8
***(DB) Rashard Causey: Another highly recruited prospect landed by UCF. Something I like a lot about him is that he played against some of the best high school players week in and week out at St. Thomas Aquinas and still performed well. Although lacking elite level ball skills, he makes up for it with his ability to get defenders on the ground immediately. He is a solid tackler. Rashard also has pretty good speed at the corner position.
UCF player comparison: Josh Robinson
Potential: 7
***(C) Luke Hiers: Highly recruited prospect that wanted to go to UCF early in the recruiting process. Luke is a much needed addition to the team as our weakest position as of now is the offensive line. Coaches describe Luke as someone who plays the game with a "mean streak." These are the types of guys we need on our line right away. Much like Rashard Causey, Luke Hiers played up against quality competition at Lake Wales and performed exceptionally well.
UCF player comparison: None, we haven't really had any solid centers.
Potential: 7
***(CB/S) Brandon Scott: A big get for UCF, Scott decided to sign after an intense recruiting battle took place between UCF and Arkansas. In an interview Brandon is quoted saying that a few nights before signing day he actually texted the coaches at UCF letting him know he was leaning on attending Arkansas. Luckily for us he decided to go with the good guys, citing newly hired coach Travis Fischer as a big reason why he chose UCF. I really like his high school tape. He is quick to the ball, and a good hitter. I would't be surprised if he was right in the mix as a starting Safety straight out of high school.
UCF player comparison: Clayton Geathers (although Geathers is a bigger hitter, Scott seems to have better ball skills)
Potential: 8
***(DE) Titus Davis: Although slightly undersized, Titus is an intriguing prospect for the Knights. Titus was heavily recruited out of high school. Playing DE in high school, Titus is a guy that we desperately need to pan out. If we could ever field a quality Defensive Line this team would be so much better. We were more talented than NC State but our inability to bring down the QB killed us all game. Luckily, Davis flashes pretty good speed and an ability to get to the QB. Much like Luke Hiers at Center, Titus has an opportunity to start right away at the DE position.
UCF player comparison: Thomas Niles (although faster than Niles)
Potential: 6.5
***(WR) Cameron Stewart: Cam Stewart is a very exciting prospect. Georgia came on the scene late in the recruiting process, but Cam stuck with the Knights. He was also our first commitment. What I like most about him is his ability to win the jump ball. He has very good body control for someone his size. Surprisingly, he also has great speed for someone that is 6'3. (4.5) Look for Cam to compete for one of the starting WR jobs come Spring time.
UCF player comparison: Breshad Perriman (let's hope)
Potential: 7.5
***(QB) Bo Schneider: In my opinion, Bo Schneider is the player I'm looking forward to seeing in the Spring the most. He has an incredible highlight reel. ( I understand you can't completely judge someone off of highlights) He consistently picked apart defenses in high school. He threw for 40+ TD's and around 7 INT's last season. Some of his throws are REALLY impressive. He has excellent touch on his throws. The guy is in total control out there and certainly looks the part. The only thing I struggle with is the idea that he didn't really receive much interest from colleges outside of us and Oregon State. I'm hoping for another Blake Bortles situation, but am cautiously optimistic. He's not going to be average here at UCF. He's either going to be Really good or really disappointing, I see no middle ground with him.
UCF player comparison: Blake Bortles
Potential: 8.5
***(MLB) Quintin Hampton: Although not heavily recruited, Quintin comes from good stock. Hampton lead his high school team (Colquitt County) to a state championship this year at Line Backer. UCF coaches like him because they see him as someone who will become a leader when he steps foot on campus. Hampton also helped UCF a lot in their recruiting efforts by contacting guys like Brandon Scott encouraging them to join "the family."
UCF player comparison: Terrance Plummer
Potential: 6
***(OLB) Neal Nelson: Along with Quintin Hampton, Neal plays a position of great need at UCF. With the departures of Terrance Plummer and Troy Gray, at least 1 Freshman will start at LB right away. Nelson has good size and can handle running from sideline to sideline to take down ball carriers. Another thing I like is that we got Nelson over Boston College. The reason I put weight into that is the fact that BC has an eye for LB talent (Luke Kuechly comes to mind) One knock on Nelson would be the competition he played up in New Jersey. However, that doesn't mean much if your dominant at your position and you have the intangibles.
UCF player comparison: Troy Davis
Potential: 6.5
***(TE/HB) Aaron Cochran: Obviously I have to start out by saying I already like him because he left Louisville for us. He looks like a 40 year old man already, it's kind of scary. Cochran also played just about every position possible in high school. (QB, RB, TE, you name it) I honestly have no idea what position he projects at in college. What I do know is that he is a good athlete who isn't afraid of contact. There is always a spot on the team for someone like that.
UCF player comparison: Jordan Akins
Potential: 7? tough to tell
***(LB) Pat Jasinski: Outside of the secondary additions, Jasinski is my favorite defensive recruit we landed. His only other offer was Air Force, but that doesn't paint the full picture. He is extremely physical and surprisingly has great ball skills. Pat scored 6+ TD's at TE this year, and that isn't even his position of choice. This just shows how great of an athlete he is. I believe he is most ready out of this year's class. My only concern is that he is pretty slow. He ran a 5.02 at one of the Nike Spark Combines recently. However, if you watch his film you would never guess that he runs a 40 yard dash anywhere near 5 seconds.
UCF player comparison: Josh Linam
Potential: 7
***(RT) Tyler Hudanick: With Tyler, either he is extremely underrated or he plays the "little sisters of the poor" week in and week out. He absolutely dominates defenders, pancaking them every other play it seems. What I also like about him is the idea that he continues to rough up defenders when they are on the ground after a pancake (not illegally). He seems to have a mean streak as well. I am more excited about Hudanick than I am Luke Hiers at the moment.
UCF player comparison: Chris Martin
Potential: 7.5
**(DE/DT) Brendon Hayes: Another guy that comes at a position of need, DE. Hayes has good size at 6'4, 250 pounds. He ended up choosing UCF over Miss State. I believe him and Titus Davis will end up being better than our current DE's when it is all said and done. O'Leary also stated that Hayes may shift over to Defensive tackle alongside Jamiyus Pittman. If Hayes pans out that is a nice set of Defensive Tackles.
UCF player comparison: Victor Gray
Potential: 6.5
**(DE) Monte Taylor: Originally committed to play football at UNC, Monte Taylor took the Junior College route instead. Now Monte Taylor will have a chance to contribute right away at the DE position. The UCF staff likes him a lot from what I heard yesterday at the UCF signing day show. To be honest, I didn't see much from him but I'll take the coaches word on him.
UCF player comparison: Cam Henderson
Potential: 5.5
**(WR) D'erren Wilson: Originally when he committed, I wasn't all that excited. After all, his only other suitors were North Texas and SMU. After looking at his film, this guy has a lot of potential. If I showed you video of him and Tristan Payton, but took the names off of the videos (and removed the star ratings), I bet you would grade Wilson higher than Payton. This is obviously great news. He is another guy who has a great combination of speed and size. Eventually other schools caught on to him and Texas Tech made a late push to sign him. Luckily for us he chose the Knights.
UCF player comparison: Mike-Sims Walker (let's hope)
Potential: 9
***(LB) Marcus Foster: Another guy who fell through the cracks, Marcus Foster is an impressive looking prospect. He is the best tackler out of the linebacking group that we signed this class. He has good size at 6'2, 210 lbs. He is someone that also has a great chance to start early in his career given the defections at LB.
UCF player comparison: Cory Hogue
Potential: 7
***(RB) Taj McGowan: It's hard to say what he will become at UCF. He has the size, but seems awkward running the football. He has average speed (although stating he runs a 4.4) but does seem to be an aggressive runner. Another thing that troubles me is that McGowan doesn't seem to have much lateral ability (as far as juking/avoiding defenders) He will run straight at you and sometimes that is a good thing I guess. However, it will be much harder planting LB's at the college level.
UCF player comparison: A smaller Will Stanback
Potential: 6
Closing comments: In my opinion, this is by far the best class we have ever had. Although the class is not highly ranked on sites like Rivals, these sites base rankings off of quantity as well. Since we only signed 18 and others sign 24+, this skews our ranking. If you look at our average star rating, we are right up there with P5 schools. There are guys in this class that have serious offers (Payton, Causey, Hiers) to name a few. These are guys we wouldn't have landed years ago. You start to get excited for the future when you realize that we have had great success with far less talent (on paper, coming out of high school) than we do now. Just imagine what we can accomplish now that we are starting to get highly touted players coming out of high school. If the staff can develop the recruits we've had from (2010-2014), they can certainly develop this one!
Favorite recruit: Tristan Payton
Offensive Sleeper: D'erren Wilson
Defensive Sleeper: Pat Jasinski
Highest ceiling: Bo Schneider
He was soooo fuuuunnnn to watch 
