Tag: 2024 recruiting cycle

2024 National Recruiting Rankings: Updated top 25 football teams

Here are the complete updated top 25 teams, according to the 247Sports composite rankings.

Here are the complete updated top 25 teams as of the end of April 2024, according to the 247Sports composite rankings.

The teams hold firm as the the recruiting cycle moves toward the summer, with only minor flips among the programs.

Duke signee Darren Harris drops 36 points in victory over IMG Academy

Duke signee Darren Harris, a member of the vaunted 2024 recruiting class, scored 36 points in a victory over IMG Academy on Thursday.

Cooper Flagg and Isaiah Evans drew headlines at the McDonald’s All-American Game earlier this week, but future teammate Darren Harris stole the show on Thursday.

The four-star Duke signee helped lead Paul VI Catholic to a 101-89 victory over IMG Academy after he scored 36 points, including a 19-point third quarter.

Harris finished the game 12/21 from the floor after making five of his nine 3-point attempts. He also pulled down seven rebounds.

The game was part of the Chipotle Nationals tournament, pitting the nation’s best high school basketball teams against each other. Paul VI is the No. 2 overall seed in the tournament behind only Flagg’s Montverde Academy.

Harris’s 36 points are the second most in a single game during the tournament. The record? 37 points by Duke’s own Austin Rivers back in 2010.

Harris’s teammate Patrick Ngongba, another member of Duke’s fantastic 2024 recruiting class, added six points and five rebounds.

Harris and his team will play the winner of Thursday night’s game between Prolific Prep and Link Academy. The semifinal game will air on ESPN2 at 2:30 p.m. on Friday.

DeMarco Murray to stay at Oklahoma and sign an extension per report

DeMarco Murray staying in Norman despite overtures from Ohio State.

The Oklahoma Sooners have dodged what could have been a big blow to their coaching staff. This comes after reports started circling earlier this week that running backs coach DeMarco Murray was being pursued by a number of college and NFL teams, including the Ohio State Buckeyes.

The Buckeyes are widely thought of as having the best running back room in the country this upcoming season with TreVeyon Henderson and Ole Miss transfer Quinshon Judkins. But the Sooners got some good news on Wednesday as On3’s Pete Nakos reported Murray would be staying at Oklahoma.

Murray and the Sooners agreed on a three-year contract extension.

Murray has family ties to Ohio, which made that job a real possibility. He’s currently the lowest-paid assistant on staff, making $575,000 annually. He’s expected to receive a pay bump with this new contract but those details have not been announced.

Murray is also one of the most tenured assistants on staff. He arrived back in Norman in 2020 and has been huge on the recruiting trail.

He most recently helped Oklahoma sign [autotag]Taylor Tatum[/autotag] as part of the 2024 recruiting class. The Longview, Texas, native was ranked as the No. 1 overall running back in the [autotag]2024 recruiting cycle[/autotag].

He’s also helped guys like [autotag]Eric Gray[/autotag], [autotag]Kennedy Brooks[/autotag], and Rhamondre Stevenson have career years under his tutelage. His room this year is loaded with talent, but it is also very young. If they can avoid the injury bug, Oklahoma’s running backs will play a pivotal role in the Sooners success in 2024.

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Duke signee Isaiah Evans named North Carolina Mr. Basketball for second year in a row

Isaiah Evans, a five-star Duke signee and part of the Blue Devils’ historic 2024 class, was named North Carolina Mr. Basketball for the second straight year.

Duke signee Isaiah Evans was named North Carolina’s Mr. Basketball for the second straight year on Friday.

The honor, awarded by the Charlotte Observer, is given to the best high school men’s basketball player in the state.

Evans is the No. 14 player in the Class of 2024, according to 247Sports’ Composite rankings. He’s a member of Duke’s vaunted 2024 class that features No. 1 overall prospect Cooper Flagg, the sixth-ranked player in center Khaman Maluach, and three other players in the top 24.

The future Blue Devil beat out NC State signee Paul McNeil and North Carolina signee Drake Powell for the honor.

Evans already turned heads earlier this month as he jawed with some Tar Heels fans during a high school game. Fans wore UNC gear in the front rows of the bleachers, and Evans routinely gestured toward them whenever he made a big shot.

Five-star Duke signee Kon Knueppel named Wisconsin’s Mr. Basketball

Kon Knueppel, a five-star Duke signee and 247Sports’ No. 17 player in the nation, was named Wisconsin’s Mr. Basketball on Wednesday.

Kon Knueppel, a five-star Duke signee, was named Mr. Basketball in the state of Wisconsin on Wednesday.

The honor, bestowed upon the best high school player in the state, goes to the highest-ranked player in the state. Knueppel, a 6-foot-5 forward and 247Sports’ No. 17 player in the Class of 2024, is the highest player from the state of Wisconsin in his year.

Knueppel plays for Wisconsin Lutheran, a school in Milwaukee. He helped lead his team to a 28-0 record so far this season, and his team is currently in the Division 2 WIAA Boys Basketball State semifinals.

Knueppel joins a historically good 2024 Duke class that features five of the top 18 players in the country. Naismith High School Boys Player of the Year Cooper Flagg and projected 2025 lottery pick Khaman Maluach will join him in Durham next season.

Meet Duke’s entire 2024 commitment class here.

Cooper Flagg named Naismith High School Boys’ Player of the Year

Future Duke Blue Devil Cooper Flagg, the No. 1 recruit in the country, was named the Naismith High School Boys’ Player of the Year on Friday.

It shouldn’t surprise anyone that Cooper Flagg is standing out among his peers.

The Duke signee and No. 1 overall recruit in the Class of 2024 was named the Naismith High School Boys’ Player of the Year on Friday for his performance with Montverde Academy so far this season.

According to MaxPreps’ data, Flagg has scored 16.1 points per game as a senior while shooting 55% from the floor. He also averages 7.6 rebounds and an eye-popping 2.7 blocks per game, working his 6-foot-9 frame to his advantage.

Despite his size, however, he’s shown off excellent ball skills with 3.9 assists and 1.6 steals per game as well.

Flagg is 247Sports’ top-rated recruit in the 2024 class and a member of Duke’s vaunted upcoming recruiting cycle. The Blue Devils have commitments from the third, 12th, 17th, and 18th overall players in the site’s rankings.

Flagg’s Montverde Academy team is undefeated in 31 games so far this season.

WATCH: Five-star Duke commit Isaiah Evans shows out in front of UNC fans

Duke five-star signee Isaiah Evans saw some fans donning Tar Heels jerseys at his high school game this week and let them know where he stands on the in-state rivalry.

Isaiah Evans looks poised to be a crowd favorite in Durham next season.

The top recruit and Duke signee played a high school game for North Mecklenburg earlier this week, and a crowd of North Carolina fans wearing Tar Heels colors crowded the front row.

Evans noticed.

The 6-foot-6 prospect scored 22 points and kept reminding the UNC fans that he saw and heard them, gesturing at them after made 3-pointers or clutch baskets. After one triple, he walked over to a fan in a North Carolina jersey and thumped his chest repeatedly.

Evans, a five-star prospect, committed to the Blue Devils last April and has already officially signed on to join Duke’s team next season. 247Sports ranks him as the 12th overall player in the class and the third-ranked small forward in the country.

In case there was any doubt after the game, Evans shared a photo to his account on X (formerly known as Twitter).

Evans is one of four five-stars in Duke’s 2024 class after Khaman Maluach committed on Wednesday.

Oklahoma Sooners No. 8 in ESPN’s 2024 team recruiting rankings

The Oklahoma Sooners finished the 2024 recruiting cycle No. 8 in ESPN’s team recruiting rankings.

[autotag]Brent Venables[/autotag] and the Oklahoma Sooners have done a fantastic job on the recruiting trail since their head coach arrived in December of 2021. They’ve put together three consecutive top 10 classes, highlighted by the No. 5 class in the 2023 recruiting cycle.

In 2024, they’ll finish with the No. 8 recruiting class, according to ESPN (ESPN+).

He and his staff continue to stack talent year after year, building the competitive depth on the roster as they prepare for year one in the SEC. And they’ve done so by taking advantage of their proximity to the State of Texas.

The Sooners are preparing to enter the SEC by adding more talent to a 2023 class that ranked in the top five. Texas remains a key recruiting ground, as the Sooners have added several ESPN 300 prospects from there. – Haubert, ESPN

While Oklahoma and Texas make up 13 of their 28 signees, the Sooners 2024 recruiting class spanned 12 states.

It’s a balanced class with blue-chip prospects on both sides of the ball. But it’s what they did along the defensive line that may prove to be the most important moving forward.

Five-star DT [autotag]David Stone[/autotag] returns to his home state via IMG and, as an explosive and agile big man, he can be an immediate contributor and impact presence for them in the trenches.  – Haubert, ESPN

[autotag]David Stone[/autotag] is the cornerstone piece for the Sooners this cycle. His blend of power, quickness, speed, and incredible work ethic give him an opportunity to be an instant contributor in 2024. Oklahoma needs to find some interior pass rush. While expecting a true freshman to come in and be a day-one impact player may not be reasonable, David Stone has the talent to exceed all expectations for the true freshman in year one.

In addition to Stone, the Sooners added four-star prospects Jayden Jackson, Nigel Smith, Danny Okoye, and Wyatt Gilmore. Because of their size and athleticism each of their blue chip defensive linemen has an opportunity to be instant contributors in 2024. Even if they don’t, though, this group will serve as the foundation of Oklahoma’s defensive lines for the next four years.

The Sooners have done a fantastic job on the recruiting trail and the results are beginning to follow with a 10-win season in 2023. Now they have to take a step in their development and performance as Oklahoma wades into the SEC waters in 2024.

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Five-star Texas A&M commit responds to Aggies graphic before deleting tweet

A five-star Texas A&M commit noticed he wasn’t on a team social media post for the Under Armour All-American Game, but deleted the comment soon after.

Texas A&M released a graphic for their signees playing in the Under Armour All-American Game on Wednesday, and one five-star prospect noticed he wasn’t included.

The Aggies wished good luck to a pair of four-star Aggies signees, defensive lineman Daelyn Evans and offensive tackle Blake Ivy, with a social media graphic. Terry Bussey, an Aggies commit who is 247Sports’ No. 2 athlete and No. 19 overall recruit in the Class of 2024, quote-tweeted the graphic with one word.

“Ok”

Bussey has not signed his letter of intent yet, so the Aggies cannot include him on any team social media posts. Bussey deleted his response within two hours.

The Texas native is the second-highest recruit in 247Sports’ composite rankings to not sign his letter of intent yet, behind just wide receiver and Alabama commit Ryan Williams.

Get more Texas A&M coverage at Aggies Wire.

What does ESPN have to say about incoming quarterback Michael Hawkins?

Oklahoma’s incoming quarterback Michael Hawkins has a chance to be a big-time player due to his dual-threat ability, says ESPN.

The Oklahoma Sooners have long been a place where quarterbacks find success. That’s in part due to the offenses that the Sooners playcallers have put on the field, but also because the university attracts some of the nation’s best quarterbacks.

In the [autotag]Alamo Bow[/autotag]l, we’ll get to see [autotag]Jackson Arnold[/autotag] make his first start, but Oklahoma’s quarterback future goes beyond Arnold. The Sooners added two quarterbacks in the 2024 recruiting class, [autotag]Michael Hawkins[/autotag] and [autotag]Brendan Zurbrugg[/autotag].

Hawkins, it could be argued, was severely underrated in the 2024 recruiting class as he showed off a number of tools that will make him successful at the collegiate level. 247Sports and On3 were lower than ESPN and Rivals on the Oklahoma legacy, where he was considered a four-star prospect in the 2024 cycle.

It’s the dual-threat nature of Hawkins’ game that has Todd Luginbill of ESPN (ESPN+)  excited for his future with the Sooners.

Hawkins is going to be a dynamic runner for the Sooners. He has a live arm but is not a classic passer. He timed at 4.9 seconds in the 40-yard dash in 2021 and now runs 4.6. If Oklahoma and new OC Seth Littrell want to really challenge defenses with a running QB, Hawkins fits the bill. – Tom Luginbill, ESPN

At a camp at SMU back in 2021, Hawkins posted a time of 4.43 in the 40-yard dash.

There’s no telling at what point Hawkins could see the field. It could very well be in 2024 as he’s gotten a jump start on his Oklahoma Sooners career, joining the team for Alamo Bowl practices. But when he does, you can bet, he’ll put a lot of stress on the defense with his ability to beat teams with his legs.

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