By Alec Nederveld
TJ Lateef
Orange, CA (Orange Lutheran)
#238 NAT, #17 QB, #23 CA
Before today, only four blue-chip quarterbacks remained uncommitted. Time is ticking to acquire a top signal caller, and Nebraska acted before it was too late. TJ Lateef chose the Cornhuskers over 15 offers from schools like Georgia, Miami, and Ole Miss.
Coach Matt Rhule has been building a strong culture and one that is especially appealing to quarterbacks. The allure was strong enough to attract five-star QB Dylan Raiola in 2024 and it has continued to the next class.
With Lateef’s commitment, Nebraska’s class moves up to the 30th in the country. The 6’1.5”, 185-pound QB is the top recruit in the Cornhuskers’ class and only four-star. He is also the first recruit from outside the Midwest to commit to Nebraska.
Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng
Bradenton, FL (IMG Academy)
#69 NAT, #9 LB, #9 FL
The four-star LB has set four official visits over the upcoming weeks. Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng will visit USC on May 31st, Notre Dame on June 7th, Ohio State on June 14th, and Michigan on June 21st. Originally, Owusu-Boateng planned to officially visit South Carolina on May 31st, Stanford June 7th, and Georgia June 14th.
This news comes off of unofficial visits to Ohio State (5/11), USC (5/4), and Michigan (4/27) which must have changed his mind. The 6’0.5”, 205-pound LB is a priority target for all of these schools and will have a lot to look at. Owusu-Boateng started his career at Maryland’s DeMatha Catholic and has racked up a total of 42 offers.
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I would give Notre Dame the early advantage based on Brother Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah, who developed into a Butkus Award-winning LB with the Irish. Still, this battle looks to go on for a while. Owusu-Boateng stated he is “pushing to make a commitment sometime in the season, if not in December”.
Cobey Sellers
Pearland, TX (Shadow Creek)
#157 NAT, #19 CB, #27 TX
Mike Elko and the Aggies strike again with Cobey Sellers. Elko’s first class now sits at 10th nationally, tops in the Lone Star State, and only behind LSU, Oklahoma, and Alabama in the SEC. Sellers meanwhile had a large collection of offers, 26 to be exact. This includes Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma, and Texas, the latter two holding official visits.
Outside of cornerback, Sellers is a dynamic kick and punt returner. The 5’11.5”, 175-pounder also played quarterback for Shadow Creek, throwing for 17 touchdowns with only one interception. Lastly, Sellers runs track, recording a 21.8 in the 200m as a sophomore.
Sellers is the 11th commit for Texas A&M and the ninth from the great state of Texas. That number already tops the seven Texas recruits to commit from the 2024 class. The priority for any Texas school should be keeping talent home, and Elko has done a great job at that so far.
So is Elko and company out recruiting other major programs because they have an amazing recruiting system in place or because of his defensive history?
Is A&M recruiting itself and coach just needs to take advantage to bring in top talent?
CB Cobey Sellers was widely coveted. https://t.co/h5MDTK5tqx
— Kyle Lovinggood 🌵👍🏼 (@kloveaggs) May 13, 2024
Chuck McDonald
Santa Ana, CA (Mater Dei)
#88 NAT, #9 CB, #8 CA
Chuck McDonald cut his 26 offers to four. The 6’0”, 180-pound CB is down to Alabama, Georgia, Oregon, and USC. All are premier schools and will go on official visits soon. First Alabama on May 31st, Georgia on June 7th, Oregon on June 14th, and finally USC on June 21st.
Alabama has had plenty of success with Mater Dei prospects, including Heisman winner Bryce Young and teammate Abduall Sanders has already committed to Alabama for the class of 2025. Georgia meanwhile has an edge in DB development and on-the-field success. USC has the final visit and hometown advantage, while Oregon can almost always pull a recruiting upset. This one can go in so many ways.
2025 4-star CB Chuck McDonald (@Chuck20fficial) recently listed Alabama as a finalist in his recruitment. The other finalists include Oregon, Georgia, and USC.
McDonald has not made a trip to Tuscaloosa since the new coaching staff was put in place. However, he does plan on… pic.twitter.com/VXWygmhYIS
— Brody Smoot (@BrodySmoot) May 13, 2024
Thomas Blackshear
Savannah, GA (Calvery Day School)
#323 NAT, #46 WR, #39 GA
Georgia had a productive month of April, landing three commitments, and are on the board in May with Thomas Blackshear. The four-star accumulated 20 offers, including from Alabama, Auburn, and half of the SEC. Alongside Georgia, SEC’s Tennessee and Florida State made his top three.
Past the football field, Blackshear follows the trend of track-runners and plays basketball for Calvery Day School. At 6’1”, 197 pounds, he’s got good size for the position and can be a weapon in space. He’ll need some time to develop behind a loaded Bulldog WR room, but the potential is absolutely there for Blackshear.
