The Georgia State Panthers signed their best recruiting class ever, bringing in eight three-star players and nine two-star players, according to the 247Sports Composite Ranking. The Panthers, who signed 21 players, answered needs at offensive line, safety, linebacker and quarterback.
Here are five things to know about the class:
1. Rebuilding the offensive line. The offensive line was a big focus for Georgia State, as the Panthers signed five offensive linemen (three three-stars and two two-stars). Connor Robbins was the highest rated three-star among the entire class, and he weighs 340 pounds and is 6-foot-9.
“Connor has been one of the best kids I have ever coached because of his work ethic,” coach Patrick Turner of Pedro Menendez High School in St. Augustine, Fla., said. “As a ninth grader, Connor was about 6-3 and maybe 200 pounds. He was scrawny, weak and not very flexible. But he worked his butt off, on the field and in the weight room. He listened to his coaches and developed into a very large, solid player with a lot of grit.”
The other two three-star players are Pat Bartlett (6-5, 295 pounds) and Jalen Jackson (6-6, 300 pounds). The two-stars are Chris Sibilia of North Gwinnett, who weighs 292 pounds and is 6-7, and Kevin Kwapis from Iowa Western Community College, who weighs 315 pounds and is 6-8.
2. Targetting safeties. After losing their first-team All-Sun Belt Conference safety in Bobby Baker, the Panthers had to fill a hole in the safety position, and they did that by signing two three-star safeties in Jaylon Jones and Chris Bacon. Jones is the highest rated defensive back prospect in Georgia State history, according to Ben Moore of PantherTalk.com. Jones finished his senior season with 90 total tackles and 15 pass breakups.
“Jaylon Jones is an outstanding player and has worked extremely hard to develop his skills,” coach Tommy Jones of Dacula High School said. “He has the ability to transition in space as well as anyone. He is very physical, as evidenced by his 90 tackles. More importantly, he is a tremendous teammate and makes those around him even better. I feel confident he that he will be very productive.”
Bacon is a safety from Westlake High, who is 6-foot and weighs 180 pounds. Bacon was chosen for the first-team defense of the 2-AAAAAAA region. Look for Bacon and Jones to make their presence in the back end of the defense.
3. Revamped the linebacker position. The Panthers also addressed their linebacker position with Trajan Stephens-McQueen and Victor Heyward; both are three-star commits. Heyward had 70 total tackles, 9 tackles for loss and 8 sacks. He also had three interceptions and one blocked punt. Stephens-McQueen had 145 tackles and 6 tackles for loss. Stephens-McQueen, 4.64 40-yard time, and Heyward, 4.56 40-yard time, will bring speed to the Panthers' defense, which allowed 206 rushing yards per game last season.
4. New quarterback in the mix. Jack Walker is a three-star quarterback from Madison Central High School in Mississippi. He committed to Florida Atlantic, where Travis Trickett was offensive coordinator. However, after Trickett landed the coordinator job at Georgia State after a coaching change at FAU, Walker followed suit and changed his commitment to Georgia State.
“I just really felt comfortable with the players and coaches,” Walker said. “Coach Trickett has been my guy for a long time. I always wanted to play for him, and Georgia State is a great program that has a lot of potential to be great.”
5. New head coach, better recruiting: With new coach Shawn Elliott and Georgia State acquiring Turner Field, there was potential for a better recruiting season than in previous years. Not only did Elliott and the Panthers recruit better than last year, but they recruited the most three-star players in the team's history, with eight. This could be the most promising class in Georgia State history.
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