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Scouting Report: Analyzing Miami Hurricanes’ 2017 Class

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Dykstra has been the biggest question mark. Not a take for Iowa but yet we want him? Just don't know why staff wanted him.
 
Good read. My only issue with his scoring system is it doesn't really account for prospects with a wider gap between floor and ceilings (i.e. a prospect that is raw with huge potential).

10: five-star player, projected All-American, immediate impact player
9: high four-star, projected All-ACC
8: mid-level four-star, an impact player and multiyear starter without the ceiling of the higher ratings
7: low four-star, solid starter but not the type to build a team around
6: high three-star, role player with physical limitations that prevent a full-time starting role
5: mid-level three-star, likely a project or special-teamer.
Below 5: “Not someone I would rate as worthy of a Miami Hurricanes scholarship,” Gould wrote.


Quarterbacks

N’Kosi Perry (9) -- Agreed

Cade Weldon (6) -- I'd give him a 7 based on his strong arm and coachability


Running back

Robert Burns (7) -- Agreed


Wide receivers

Jeff Thomas (9) -- Agreed

DeeJay Dallas (8) -- Agreed. Might push a 9 for me as a DB. I just think he has huge potential to be a playmaker on defense.

Evidence Njoku (7) -- Agreed. But, this is one of those cases where I don't think this scoring system properly accounts for greater upside.

Mike Harley (7) -- Agreed


Tight end

Brian Polendey (6) -- I give him a 5. I don't see much with Polendey. If he's a blocking specialist then we might as well throw another OL in there.


Offensive linemen

Navaughn Donaldson (9) -- I give him a 10

Kai-Leon Herbert (8) -- I give him a 7 based on the film I've seen, but I haven't been able to find anything from his senior year (there are reports he showed great growth into senior year).

Zalon’tae Hillery (7) -- Agreed. But this is another one where I think he has a ceiling as high as most of the prospects in the class. He is raw and needs to add weight, but his feet and balance are special for a player with his frame.

Corey Gaynor (7) -- I give him an 8. I see Gaynor as a multi-year starter.

Zach Dykstra (4) -- Agreed. Never liked Dykstra. He is a big body that didn't even seem to dominate his Iowa competition. Hopefully we cna make something out of him on the interior, but I don't see it.


Edge defenders

DJ Johnson (9) -- Agreed. Star potential under Kool

Jonathan Garvin (8) -- Should be a 9 or 10. He has very good physical attributes (maybe not elite), but his functional athleticism is tailor made to be a dominant edge defender. His first 3 steps out his stance paired with his natural ability to bend around the edge to close on the backfield are truly special. As good as any DE in this class IMO.


Interior lineman

Jonathan Ford (7) -- Agreed but he is another one that suffers from this rating system because he is raw with all the potential in the world.


Linebackers

Waynmon Steed (6) -- Agreed.

De’Andre Wilder (5) -- Agreed. I think he'll struggle to add weight while maintaining his burst and I don't think he has LB instinct -- See Ramon Buchanon with less fluidity.

Bradley Jennings Jr. (5) -- I think he should be a 6/7. Good size, very mobile and knows how to play through traffic. He'll be a starter at some point IMO


Defensive backs

Jhavonte Dean (8) -- Agreed.

Amari Carter (7) -- Agreed. Great physical profile and can play the run, but the jury is still out as to whether he can play instinctually as a deep safety

Trajan Bandy (7) -- 8. Despite his size he will make an impact early and be a regular on the field.

Derrick Smith (6) -- 7 with upside. Hard to judge because he very well may end up moving to LB and becoming an absolute terror.
 
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I don't see a measurement for Heart, love of the game, work ethic, Football IQ, he is coachable, is he a knucklehead, are we going to worry about him getting kick out the program...
 
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Last years class was the best we've had in 10 yrs. I have high hopes for about 10 of the players we signed this year. The 2018 class will determine the future of the program.
 
DeeJay Dallas (8) – On the shorter side at 5-10 but a solid build. Electric athlete with elite quickness and agility. Natural hands catcher. Aggressive when the ball is in the air. Excels after the catch and is a threat to score when he gets in the open field. Great football instincts and excels no matter where he is on the field. Surprising power as a runner. Solid passer who is a threat to throw on direct snaps and trick plays. Played primarily as a running quarterback in high school but has experience at receiver and defensive back. Former Georgia commit that followed the new staff to Miami. Extremely versatile athlete that projects well to running back, receiver, corner or safety. Could contribute immediately as a return man.


Anyone know where he is getting all this film that shows Dee Jay at WR?
 
CaliforniaCanes said:
DeeJay Dallas (8) – On the shorter side at 5-10 but a solid build. Electric athlete with elite quickness and agility. Natural hands catcher. Aggressive when the ball is in the air. Excels after the catch and is a threat to score when he gets in the open field. Great football instincts and excels no matter where he is on the field. Surprising power as a runner. Solid passer who is a threat to throw on direct snaps and trick plays. Played primarily as a running quarterback in high school but has experience at receiver and defensive back. Former Georgia commit that followed the new staff to Miami. Extremely versatile athlete that projects well to running back, receiver, corner or safety. Could contribute immediately as a return man.


Anyone know where he is getting all this film that shows Dee Jay at WR?
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My guess would be sophomore/freshman film on hudl
 
I like Steed a lot and I would even bump him but the Wilder and Jennings analysis is fair.

They took a few LB's with zero film in coverage and clear limitations.

Jennings is a tough dude and Wilder can run I just think two LB's who project as special teams was too much.
 
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CaliforniaCanes said:
DeeJay Dallas (8) – On the shorter side at 5-10 but a solid build. Electric athlete with elite quickness and agility. Natural hands catcher. Aggressive when the ball is in the air. Excels after the catch and is a threat to score when he gets in the open field. Great football instincts and excels no matter where he is on the field. Surprising power as a runner. Solid passer who is a threat to throw on direct snaps and trick plays. Played primarily as a running quarterback in high school but has experience at receiver and defensive back. Former Georgia commit that followed the new staff to Miami. Extremely versatile athlete that projects well to running back, receiver, corner or safety. Could contribute immediately as a return man.


Anyone know where he is getting all this film that shows Dee Jay at WR?
Click to expand...

Some of his older tape, you can check out his game highlights from those years.
 
SwagUniversity said:
Dykstra has been the biggest question mark. Not a take for Iowa but yet we want him? Just don't know why staff wanted him.
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The same analysis I gave for Dykstra in another thread is exactly what was shared by this evaluator. I didn't like Dykstra's hand placement, his balance, or his leverage. I'm just hoping he's coachable and can be refined, but I have a strong feeling he'll be a depth guy, that's about all.
 
Canething said:
Last years class was the best we've had in 10 yrs. I have high hopes for about 10 of the players we signed this year. The 2018 class will determine the future of the program.
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I love what we got out of last year, especially the LB trio, but they had the benefit of playing for a super dline coach and a Miami style aggressive DC who is best we have seen in those 10 years. Nobody benefited more from the Golden fire than the D recruits last year. Golden would have made them fat and slow, just the way he liked them. If Mark can match up with his coaching and let the defense loose in practice to toughen up the offense, we are going to have happy faces.
 
I'm confused about Dykstra. The complaints stated in the article all seem like fixable things, so what's the problem? Since we brought in those other guys I would think there's room for a project. Does he have some flaw that would be impossible to coach?
 
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Rellyrell said:
SwagUniversity said:
Dykstra has been the biggest question mark. Not a take for Iowa but yet we want him? Just don't know why staff wanted him.
Click to expand...

The same analysis I gave for Dykstra in another thread is exactly what was shared by this evaluator. I didn't like Dykstra's hand placement, his balance, or his leverage. I'm just hoping he's coachable and can be refined, but I have a strong feeling he'll be a depth guy, that's about all.
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Any other year, he might not be a take but our OL is so bad I think the staff took a chance in hopes they can develop him. The other 4 guys we took made this a very strong OL class already.
 
kryptonite said:
I'm confused about Dykstra. The complaints stated in the article all seem like fixable things, so what's the problem? Since we brought in those other guys I would think there's room for a project. Does he have some flaw that would be impossible to coach?
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Seems like this with all guys but Burns and Weldon. IT's seems he's high on him out side of the health issue. If he stays on the field (Big if) we my have gotten a beast.
 
Who is this guy Gould? I know he charts plays, but what gives his opinion on talent evaluation any more validity than a normal fan?

They said he's been doing these write-ups for 4 or 5 years. I'd like to see all of his past write-ups to see how they panned out.
 
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The Franchise said:
Who is this guy Gould? I know he charts plays, but what gives his opinion on talent evaluation any more validity than a normal fan?

They said he's been doing these write-ups for 4 or 5 years. I'd like to see all of his past write-ups to see how they panned out.
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I could not agree more! Organizing data, and actually analyzing the film that provided the data, are two separate skill sets!
 
There where some real head scratchers on that list. First and foremost Amari Carter is going to be a star here idc what anyone says that kid can really play hits with force and has great instincts. Also Jon ford at 7 is a joke coach kool is psyched about his potential which leads me to believe this scouting report that pegs him as a average contributer at best is very inaccurate
 
gcane44 said:
Good read. My only issue with his scoring system is it doesn't really account for prospects with a wider gap between floor and ceilings (i.e. a prospect that is raw with huge potential).
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I try to account for both potential as well as a risk factor. Donaldson for example, is a player I could easily see ending up as a top 20 draft pick in 3 years after a great career, but his pass blocking isn't at a level I'm comfortable saying that will happen with high confidence (It's the same reason I had Joe Jackson at 9 last year when I loved him as a player, he was just so friggin raw that there's a chance he doesn't fully develop). Burns is another example, because the tape I did see was extremely impressive, but there's just such a huge unknown with him that he probably dropped 2 tiers for me. It's definitely something that I could expand on inside the scouting report (or just on it's own) to explain how I got to where I did on the grade.

The grading system itself is just to give a general idea of how I think they end up in college. I used to use the rivals 5.whatever ratings but I think the 10-1 gives a better feeling of the difference between each tier. I tried /100 for like 5 minutes last year and the specificity was terrible, there's no difference between a 86 and a 87. The descriptions for those is more just to show how I think each tier works out in college and isn't remotely exact (so much goes into AA/all conf that doesn't have to do with talent/production level).

Thanks for the feedback.

Trescerocinco said:
There where some real head scratchers on that list. First and foremost Amari Carter is going to be a star here idc what anyone says that kid can really play hits with force and has great instincts. Also Jon ford at 7 is a joke coach kool is psyched about his potential which leads me to believe this scouting report that pegs him as a average contributer at best is very inaccurate
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7 is really good! That's still 4*/blue chip. I think both will be really good players (especially against the run) and those 2 are actually guys I had rated at 8 at some point and flipped back and forth on. I did have some concerns with Carter's fluidity and how he would do in space and I don't think Ford will be a huge pass rusher and that hurts his overall potential. I still would gladly take both those guys as starters.


These are all the old scouting reports I've done. Certainly not perfect but I think most were fairly good (obviously I hope they've gotten better in the more recent reports). I'm certainly more confident in my own opinions now than previously where a lack of tape (and outside confirmation) made me doubt some things. I guess I'm more known for the charting stuff I do now but I've been doing player evals for a lot longer than I've done stats stuff (used to do NFL draft stuff before I started these).


2016, 2015, 2014, 2013.
 
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