Missouri recruiting notebook: Show-Me standouts get first offers
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Recruiting is starting to heat up for the top prospects in Missouri in the Class of 2023 as we close in on the end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs. Four promising 2023 prospects recently picked…
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Continue ReadingRecruiting is starting to heat up for the top prospects in Missouri in the Class of 2023 as we close in on the end of the regular season and the start of the playoffs.
Four promising 2023 prospects recently picked up Power 5 scholarship offers as their first offers, which will likely lead to a flurry of offers in the near future as more colleges take notice and coaches aren’t afraid of being the first offer.
One of the Show-Me State’s top 2024 prospects picked up a big offer recently as well. Another 2023 prospect who emerged in the offseason despite missing his sophomore season with an injury picked up two more offers as well.
Here is a quick look at the new offers and some new names to remember…
QB Sam Van Dyne Sam Van Dyne 6'3" | 200 lbs | QB Liberty North | 2023 State MO , Lee’s Summit North, 2023
Prep Redzone ranked Van Dyne, a left-hander, as the top quarterback prospect in the state in his class as well as the 21st-best prospect overall in Missouri. On Monday, Van Dyne picked up his first scholarship offer and it was a big one.
Van Dyne posted on his Twitter account that he had received an offer from the University of Missouri.
A 6-foot-3, 205-pounder, Van Dyne looks the part of a Division I quarterback with his size, strong arm and the athletic ability to escape the pocket and either pick up some rushing yards or buy enough time for his receivers to get open.
Van Dyne visited Missouri, Alabama and Louisville during the camp circuit in the offseason and his recruitment is sure to pick up now after the offer from the home-state Tigers.
WR Ricky Ahumaraeze Ricky Ahumaraeze 6'4" | 195 lbs | WR Liberty (KC) | 2023 State MO , Liberty, 2023
WR Joshua Manning Joshua Manning 6'2" | 190 lbs | WR Lee's Summit | 2023 State MO , Lee’s Summit, 2023
The 2023 class in Missouri features some big-time wide receiver prospects and Ahumaraeze and Manning add to that group as speedsters with size.
Both received their first scholarship offer from Kansas State this past weekend.
Ahumaraeze, who lists himself as 6-4 and 195 on his Twitter account, also plays defensive back, but it’s hard not to like his size and speed combination at wide receiver.
Manning is a similarly-sized wide receiver at 6-3 and 190 pounds and has displayed his explosive athletic ability on the football field and the track.
Back in the spring, as a sophomore, Manning finished second in the long jump at the Missouri Class 5 track and field championships after leaping 23 feet 6 inches.
RB Deion Brown Deion Brown 5'8" | 170 lbs | RB Kirkwood | 2023 State MO , Kirkwood, 2023
A 5-9, 170-pounder, Brown was one of the state’s breakout players this season before suffering an injury.
He rushed for 845 yards and 13 total touchdowns in five games, averaging 11.3 yards per carry, before being sidelined with an injury he suffered against Hazelwood Central.
Brown recently received his first scholarship offer from Colorado.
DL Williams Nwaneri Williams Nwaneri 6'5" | 250 lbs | DL Lee's Summit North | 2024 State MO , Lee’s Summit North, 2024
Nwaneri, a 6-5, 240-pound defensive end, received his first offer from the University of Iowa on Oct. 9, which solidified his standing as one of the top sophomores to watch in Missouri and throughout the Midwest.
RB Jeremiyah Love Jeremiyah Love 6'1" | 195 lbs | RB CBC | 2023 State MO , CBC, 2023
Love missed his sophomore football season but showed he was healthy in the late winter and spring when he showed out at camps and then won the 100-meter dash at the Missouri Class 5 track and field championships.
He picked up early scholarship offers from Missouri and Eastern Illinois, but his strong return to the field this season has helped him recently add scholarship offers from Boston College and Kansas.
In seven games this fall, Love has rushed for a team-high 594 yards and scored eight touchdowns while sharing carries in CBC’s backfield with two other outstanding 2023 running backs – Dylan Van Dylan Van 5'11" | 175 lbs | RB CBC | 2023 State MO and Ralph Dixon Ralph Dixon 5'7" | 170 lbs | RB CBC | 2023 State MO . Love is averaging 10.8 yards per carry.
You can follow Nate Latsch on Twitter at @natelatsch.