One Final Look: 2019 Signing Day Superlatives

With National Signing Day in the rear-view mirror, Herdnation.com hands out superlatives for Marshall's 2019 recruiting class.

Josh Ball is the obvious answer here, but I’m going to go with another JUCO signee in Tamarion Johnson. Listening to defensive tackles Coach J.C. Price speak at the signing day party last week furthered my belief that Marshall landed a key piece in Johnson. According to Price, Johnson is already hovering around 270 pounds. When you pair that size with Johnson’s athleticism, you could potentially have a special player. Price did say that Johnson needs to get stronger, but as an early enrollee, he should have plenty of time to do so before the 2019 season. I’m convinced that Johnson’s versatility will get him on the field early in his career. ~Josh Stowers

I'll steer clear of the JUCOs here because I think all four (Zack Leininger, Tamarion Johnson, Josh Ball and Esaias Carpetner) will play early and often and go with LB J'Coryan Anderson. Even before the coaching staff singled him out as someone who could contribute early as a true freshman I've had a bit of a mancrush on the Knoxville (TN) product. Anderson is long and lean and could legitimately play all three linebacker positions. Anderson will be someone to keep an eye on in spring practice. ~Chris McLaughlin

I may be way off base here, but I love the potential that I see from Malik Darisaw. At 6’4 – 230 pounds, Darisaw is an explosive playmaker around the line of scrimmage. Darisaw basically told us that he would be a non-qualifier so his development will be at least a year behind. With that said, I think he could add 15-20 pounds to his frame and be a three-down edge rusher in the future, especially on third down when Marshall goes to their 3-3-5 look. ~Josh Stowers

This is an easy one for me: Grant Wells. The star QB from Charleston is already enrolled at MU and is drawing rave reviews from the coaching staff. Wells had almost no help at George Washington HS and just about singlehandedly kept his team competitive. An underrated athlete with a well above average arm, Wells has the luxury of sitting, red-shirting and developing while Isaiah Green leads the team over the next few years. ~Chris McLaughlin

Micah Abraham is the guy for me. I think he’s a guy that could be a key piece to Marshall’s defense going forward. Abraham’s pedigree (Dad was a 9-year NFL veteran and former Pro-Bowler) and speed (clocked in the 4.4’s) should allow for him to become a lock down defender in the secondary. Micah’s ball awareness is really second to none in this class. He does a really good job of locating the ball and then using his athleticism to make a play. Abraham will likely red-shirt in 2019, but I think he could crack the two-deep in 2020 and trend up afterwards. ~Josh Stowers

Lots of options here but the one guy who sticks out to me is DT Jayshaun Coffman. Coffman will take an academic red-shirt year at Marshall and assuming he commits himself in the classroom Marshall very well could have themselves an all-conference type of DT down the road. Coffman would have almost assuredly received scholarship offers from in-state P5s Louisville and Kentucky had he been a qualifier out of high school. ~Chris McLaughlin

You really can’t go wrong here with either the additions to the line backing corps or the defensive line, but I’ll go with linebacker. Marshall added six guys to the depth chart at linebacker on signing day and could potentially add another (TJ Holl) in the coming days. Head coach Doc Holliday addressed needs at all three linebacker spots. Elias Neal and JoJo Doleman both forecast to play the MIKE position. Sidney Porter and Jeremy Smith should both add needed depth at the SAM spot. DeShawn Page and J’Coryan Anderson, whom I think could both play early, both project as playing on the weak-side or WILL. Something this class certainly brings to the linebacker room is speed. All six of the guys run extremely well for their positions. With the departures of Chase Hancock, Frankie Hernandez, and Artis Johnson, it was important for Holliday and his staff to retool the second level and they’ve done so with this group. ~Josh Stowers

The hauls at defensive line and linebacker jump out but I really believe Marshall hit a homerun with the group of running backs signed this cycle. Cedric Wilcox is the Tyler King of the bunch; Rahsul Faison is the Brenden Knox of the group; and Knowledge McDaniel is a little bit of both King and Knox. Lots to like here for the future of running back at MU. ~Chris McLaughlin

Wide receiver was a concern for me entering signing day and that didn’t change following it. Marshall did add three very talented players (Amir Richardson, Malik Tolbert, and Broc Thompson), but I don’t see any of those three providing immediate help. Wide receivers Coach Dallas Baker, is going to have to stunt the development of some of the younger guys (Talik Keaton, Naquan Renalds, Ty Terrell, Corey Gammage, and Thompson) in hopes of being to replace the production lost by the graduations of Tyre Brady and Marcel Williams. It’ll be interesting to see how things pan out, but this remains a question mark for me. ~Josh Stowers

I was a little surprised Marshall did not push for a few additional numbers at safety, especially with the loss of Malik Gant to the NFL. Rashawn Hunter is a fantastic prospect and has the look of a multi-year starter but with the news that Sidney Porter will start at LB, Hunter is the only safety in the entire 2019 class. Marshall desperately needs Kenard King and Chad Clay to develop as solid back-ups to Nazeeh Johnson and Brandon Drayton this year or Hunter may be forced into playing as a true freshman. It is possible Taymon Cooke could help at nickel, which is where Johnson has shined the past few years. ~Chris McLaughlin

Two-star Deante Nelson pulled a signing day flip on the staff, but that would be about it in terms of “misses” TBH. I know cornerbacks Coach Mike Treier liked what Nelson provided in the way of speed in the secondary, but ultimately felt great about their haul on the defensive side of the ball. With the younger guys Marshall secured in the 2018 class, cornerback was a position that Marshall could afford to “miss” on this year. Look for them to work on retooling that position in the 2020 class.

To be honest, Marshall did not miss on many recruits they legitimately had a chance to land. 3 star ATH Jashon Watkins and 3 star CB Eddie Williams both officially visited Marshall but eventually picked Memphis and FAU respectively. if I had to pick one I'd go with Williams, mostly because Marshall only signed one CB and Williams picked conference rival FAU.