2024 WV Team Preview: George Washington Patriots

For a discounted subscription to view all of our content, use Code PRZWV30 at checkout for 30% off!   George Washington returns a talented roster in 2024 after going 6-5 a season ago with hopes of improving on that record this season. The Patriots will boast a handful of D1-level prospects, allowing them to see more potential success this year. They'll possibly have the best linebacker corps in the state, with two 2025 prospects already with multiple D1 offers who could also see carries on offense. There are wins to be had on the schedule and 8-9 wins are a possibility if they can pull out some tough games against MSAC foes. The Patriots will be breaking in a new quarterback in 2024 after the graduation of long-time starter Abe Fenwick and will need to replace significant rushing and receiving production lost to graduation and transfers. George Washington has the top-end talent to be a sleeper team this season and could make some noise come playoff time if they take care of business during the regular season.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">2024 TEAM SCHEDULE</h2>   08/29 (H) St. Albans 09/06 (A) John Marshall 09/13 (H) Cabell Midland 09/20 (A) South Charleston 09/27 (A) Spring Valley 10/04 (H) Capital 10/11 (H) Parkersburg 10/18 (H) Riverside 10/25 (-) Open 11/01 (A) Hurricane 11/08 (A) Woodrow Wilson   2024 Record Prediction: 7-3 2023 Record: 6-5   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">PLAYERS TO KNOW</h2>    George Washington has the top two linebackers in the state in our eyes with [player_tooltip player_id='450997' first='Hunter' last='Giacomo'] leading the way. Giacomo is a hybrid LB/S prospect with athletic versatility to play either position at the next level depending on what kind of defense his college destination runs. He picked up offers from App State and multiple FCS programs this off-season and recently earned a PWO opportunity with the home-standing Mountaineers of WVU. Giacomo totaled 104 tackles and 2 interceptions as a junior in 2023 as the leading tackler for the Patriots and will be battling it out with teammate [player_tooltip player_id='908984' first='Guner' last='Flores'] for those honors again in 2024. He performs well in pass coverage as an athletic linebacker who can cover a lot of ground quickly with great pursuit speed. Giacomo has natural instincts for the game and puts himself in great positions to make a play on the ball while performing well in the open field.   He's inched inside of the 2025 Top 10 over the past year and has been a steady climber in our rankings.      Right behind Giacomo in our 2025 rankings is [player_tooltip player_id='908984' first='Guner' last='Flores'] who is a great complement to him in the middle of the linebacker corps. Flores is a bigger-bodied athlete who fits in well at the Mike with his versatile skillset. He has the athleticism to drop into coverage, the strength to play between the tackles in run support, and the pass-rush ability to harass the quarterback when needed. Flores is a physical player who tackles through ball carriers and does a great job squaring his shoulders and driving. He's a stout athlete with the strength to disengage from blockers consistently with good pursuit speed to the ball.   He and Giacomo are neck and neck for the top linebacker spot and just a matter of preference for who you prefer as different styles of players.      We are big fans of 2025 George Washington OL [player_tooltip player_id='908151' first='Brayden' last='Lude']'s game here at PRZ WV and believe he's still one of the more underrated prospects in this class. Saint Francis finally saw what we've seen in him and extended Lude his first D1 offer back in May, and he's deserving of much more. Size may be the one trait that has kept bigger programs from offering Lude at this juncture, but you won't find many big men as athletic as he is. We've said time and time again that Lude has some of the best feet and footwork that you find in a lineman anywhere, and we stand behind that statement. He's done a great job building up his body and filling out his frame over the years and still isn't close to his ceiling in that regard.   Lude will be a major steal for whichever college gets his signature on Signing Day and is a must-watch OL prospect this season.      Another very underrated George Washington prospect who we've been high on for a while is 2025 DB [player_tooltip player_id='872712' first='Solomon' last='Ferrell']. It's been surprising that he hasn't received for D1 attention to this point but a big senior season could change that quickly for him. You can't teach long and athletic corners and Ferrell has safety versatility and potential if colleges prefer him there. You can leave him on an island with no safety help and feel comfortable with him shutting down one side of the field on his own. Ferrell is a fluid athlete for his size with flexible hips and the speed and stride to close on passes well. His size also creates difficulty for receivers to play the ball over him and he can further utilize it in press situations.   Ferrell is a must-offer prospect for all D2 programs in the state and should receiver more FCS attention this season.      [player_tooltip player_id='907163' first='Sai'Vyon' last='Brown'] got overshadowed a bit last season as a junior among some highly touted teammates but should have his breakout year as a senior in 2024. Brown is a scat-back prospect who should be much more productive in the running game for the Patriots this season as they'll be looking for someone to step up. He has a great burst and some twitch in his game that makes him a difficult tackle in the open field. Brown has very good footwork with great quickness that will allow him to create explosive plays this season. He has defensive back versatility as well and could play on that side of the ball in college but his playmaking potential on offense gives him a high ceiling for RB or slot receiver.   More opportunities are available for Brown to showcase what he can do as a senior and has already earned an offer from WV State heading into his final season.      Another George Washington prospect who's ready to have his breakout year is 2025 ATH [player_tooltip player_id='865703' first='Hayden' last='Hinkle']. Hinkle will be battling for the QB1 spot this season as the Patriots look to break in a new quarterback, and he has potential for the position. He's an all-around athlete with positional versatility to play a few other different positions if needed and could do so in college as well. Hinkle has dual-threat quarterback potential if he's able to win the job as we'll be looking for more evidence of his arm talent this season.   Kentucky State has already jumped on board with an offer to Hinkle before his senior year and is a definite D2 prospect regardless of which position he ends up at.      2025 OL [player_tooltip player_id='1225852' first='Landon' last='Byrd'] has been quieter on the recruiting front but is certainly worthy of D2 attention heading into his senior year. George Washington has a talented OL group and Byrd may be the most underrated out of the bunch. He's a tough physical guard prospect who plays with an edge and with some nastiness in his game. Byrd can give you good snaps as an interior defensive lineman as well with the potential to play there in college but has a higher ceiling at OL in our opinion. Byrd has powerful hands and a strong punch that makes it difficult to disengage from. He also has enough athleticism to block down to the second level and get out in space some as well with pulling potential.   Byrd is quiet on social media so it's hard to say which schools are interested in him right now, but we believe he's a definite D2-level prospect.      George Washington will need a specialist to step up in 2024 after losing their highly ranked returner to transfer and 2025 K [player_tooltip player_id='1126263' first='Sam' last='Crowder'] is in a good position to take over. Crowder saw some spot duty in 2023 on PATS and went a perfect 6/6 which leads you to believe he'll have success this season if he's able to win the full-time job. He's a long 6'4 athlete which gives him a great base to work with as a punter and has a high ceiling for that position if he continues to develop. Crowder can get quicker operationally on PATs which will come with more experience and development but appears to have a solid foundation to work with in the limited game film available. Ball flight is another area he can make strides in and we'll see how he's progressed since last year in 2024.      We are big believers in 2026 OL [player_tooltip player_id='894640' first='Johvon' last='Davis'] and is a prospect with immense potential and upside if he puts it all together. Davis has already earned an offer from WV State before his junior year has begun and has D1 potential if he steadily progresses over the next two years. He's still raw in some areas and has plenty of room to grow, but the raw talent and athleticism are there for him to develop into one of the top big men in this class by his senior year. Davis saw time at both guard and tackle as a sophomore and has true tackle potential once he gets more comfortable on the edge.   The best of [player_tooltip player_id='894640' first='Johvon' last='Davis'] has yet to come but special things could be in order for him once he realizes his full potential.      2026 LB [player_tooltip player_id='1227640' first='Clyde' last='May'] is an intriguing prospect who we'll be watching closely this season to see which position he plays the most. May saw a lot of time along the defensive line as a sophomore but appears to have serious linebacker potential if he has the athleticism to do so. May totaled 50 tackles in 2023 which was third on the team respectively and even saw snaps at offensive line at times. His short-area quickness and pursuit speed lead you to believe he can slide out to outside linebacker or Edge which are positions he could potentially thrive in eventually.   May is a stout athlete to be able to also play interior DL reps as a sophomore at his size and appears to have a bright future no matter where he ends up.      2026 George Washington ATH [player_tooltip player_id='894638' first='Grant' last='Uldrich'] has been waiting patiently for his turn at the varsity level in an expanded role and may finally have his chance to show what he can do on a bigger scale as a junior. Uldrich is a versatile athlete who can play a few different positions but linebacker or receiver appears to be where his future is. He appears to be a quality overall athlete in the limited varsity film available who has steadily added size to his frame over the past two years. Uldrich has safety experience as well and can give you reps in pass coverage as a linebacker too which further speaks to his athleticism. He can also give you good special teams effort on kick and punt coverage as well.   We'll learn more about Uldrich's ceiling and ability over the next two years as more opportunities come his way but are confident he'll end up a noteworthy prospect in time.      We ranked 2026 [player_tooltip player_id='864575' first='Brayden' last='Edwards'] as a defensive lineman in our recent update but he also handled long-snapping duties as a sophomore. Edwards is a big athlete in the 6'3 260 range who appears to be outgrowing the LS position at least for college standards and looks like he'll have a bright future along the defensive or offensive line.   Here's what we recently said about Edwards in our <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2024/07/2026-prospect-new-to-the-top-100/">2026 rankings New Additions article</a>:   "[player_tooltip player_id='864575' first='Brayden' last='Edwards']<a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/brayden-edwards/"></a> will be an interesting prospect to watch this season with what should be an expanded role on offense and defense. Edwards has mainly long snapping highlights available right now but at his size and age, we see him growing into an OL or DL prospect by the time he's a senior. Edwards picked up his first offer from WV State last month and has shown early potential as a lineman prospect. At 6'3 240, Edwards likely isn't done growing and has quality athleticism to pair with his size. He flashed some good things in spot duty last season that lead you to believe he'll take a step forward as a lineman this season and secure a starting spot on one or both sides of the line."      The future is bright for 2027 George Washington WR [player_tooltip player_id='1154939' first='Kai' last='Martin'] who has shown flashes of what he could one day become. We've only gotten to see some brief film of Martin to date but expect him to carve out a varsity role as a sophomore with big things potentially on the horizon for him. If he develops how we think he will, Martin could end up being a D1 prospect by his senior year or sooner.   Here's what we recently said about Martin in our <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2024/07/2027-rankings-debut-the-top-10/">2027 rankings Debut article</a>:   "Another 2027 prospect with limited game film but flashed obvious high-level potential is George Washington WR [player_tooltip player_id='1154939' first='Kai' last='Martin']. Martin is a long and athletic receiver with natural playmaking ability which you could see in the few clips available to us. He should be one of the Patriots' go-to receivers this season as they'll be searching for some to step up after some losses from last season's team. Martin is one of many prospects inside of the Top 10 with basketball backgrounds and athleticism that you're born with. We're betting on Martin to make strides over the next three years and take on a bigger role on the varsity team sooner rather than later with the #2 WR ranking and inside of the Top 10 overall."

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