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98 Days Until Kansas Football: 2021 Recruiting Class Update

Let’s see how Kansas stands so far with next year’s crop of recruits.

By mikevilleKS1
Kansas v TCU Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images

As Les Miles continues to work toward building a respectable football program in Lawrence, it all comes down to the Jimmy’s and Joe’s. KU hauled in a top-60 class per 247Sports back in February, and has a great start so far for the 2021 group.

The Jayhawks currently rank #38 (per 247Sports) with 11 commits so far in the class of 2021, which is currently good for fifth among Big 12 teams. All 11 commits are currently three star players, but four of them are national top-1000 recruits.

Here’s a quick look at the prospects:

2021 Football Verbal Commits

Name Juco Pos Size 247 Rank Hometown Other Offers Notes
Name Juco Pos Size 247 Rank Hometown Other Offers Notes
Ben Easters QB 6'3" 195 lbs 3* Brownsburg, IN BG Interest from CIN, IU, Lou
Devin Neal RB 5'11" 188 lbs 3* Lawrence, KS Neb, OSU, KSU, Iowa Top 700 recruit
Keon Coleman WR 6'4 185 lbs 4* Opelousas, LA Everyone Top 150 recruit
Jaddai Henry WR 6'4" 192 lbs 3* Carrollton, TX Howard, W&M Top 1100 recruit
Majik Rector WR 5'9" 152 lbs 3* Lancaster, TX TTU, Rut, BG, Tul Top 1200 recruit
Kelan Robinson WR 6'2" 183 lbs 3* Grand Prairie, TX Duke, LTU, Tul, Mem, Tol -
Mason Brotherton TE 6'4" 242 lbs 3* Mena, AR CC, Lib, ULM, Mem Other P5 interest but no offers
De'Kedrick Sterns OL 6'4" 250 lbs 3* Del Valle, TX Duke, CSU, Haw, Nev, UNT Top 1200 recruit
Edgar Amaya OL 6'3" 300 lbs 3* Russellville, AL Illini, Char, AF, Navy, Tul -
Christien Hawks OL 6'4" 260 lbs 3* Norton, KS AF, Zips, CMU, EMU, WMU, CC -
Larson Workman OL 6'5" 265 lbs 3* Ganado, TX ArkSt, CC, EMU, FIU -
D'Marion Alexander DE 6'5" 215 lbs 3* China Spring, TX Minn, ASU, Bay, TCU, TTU Top 900 recruit
Deldrick Withers DE 6'4" 245 lbs 3* Little Rock, AR ULM, ULL, UCF Top 1100 recruit
Tommy Dunn DE 6'3" 255 lbs 3* Garland, TX Navy, Rice, AF, UTSA -
Andrew Simpson LB 6'1" 220 lbs 3* Bellflower, CA Oreg, CMU, USU Top 1100 recruit
Trey Staley LB 6'2" 200 lbs 3* Snellville, GA Army, Troy, CMU, Zips -
Cameron Grays CB 6'2" 195 lbs 3* Eight Mile, AL Aub, FSU, IU, MU, Tenn Top 800 recruit
DeVonte Wilson CB 6'3" 190 lbs 3* Quincy, FL Ohio, ECU, Lib, WKU, Marsh -
Omar Burroughs Jr S 5'10" 170 lbs 3* Bradenton, FL Tenn, GT, AppSt, FAU, SMiss Top 1100 recruit
Cam'Ron Dabney ATH/DB 5'11" 175 lbs 3* Gainesville, GA Syr, ASU, BG, Cin, CSU -
James Wright ATH/DB 6'1" 195 lbs 3* Sumter, SC ECU, Army, Char, Tem, WKU -

After a 2020 class heavy on defense, it makes sense that this one would lean more toward offensive players. Reminder that these are verbal commitments only, and can change at any time.

Local product Devin Neal at Lawrence High is the highest rated recruit on the board. If the commitment holds, Neal will arrive in Lawrence in time for Pooka Williams’ potential senior year. However, the Jayhawks also have Velton Gardner (who saw PT as a freshman last year) and Amauri-Pesek Hickson on the roster, so as is usual at Kansas, competition at that spot will be tough.

The other player I want to highlight is LB Andrew Simpson, who reportedly had an offer from Oregon prior to his commitment to KU.

Outside of these two guys, the class is a “typical” KU recruiting class, full of three-star players with mostly G5 offers. However, I have much more faith (or is it hope?) in this coaching staff than with the previous three regimes to eventually turn these guys into serviceable D1 college football players. It’s a solid foundation so far, and just a couple of higher-ranked players at key spots could set KU up very nicely for the future.

Obviously there is still a long ways to go, and Kansas looks to add about 14 or so more players to this class. I for one am excited to see if the Les Miles effect on the recruiting trail is real, or if we’ve all just been blown a bunch of smoke.

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