Pac-12 recruiting roundtable: Biggest winner, impact players, QB most likely to start (2024)

The 2023 recruiting cycle is all but complete. Three Pac-12 teams signed classes that rank in the top 25 nationally, headlined by No. 8 Oregon.

Ari Wasserman, Grace Raynor, Christian Caple and Antonio Morales of The Athletic’s recruiting staff share their thoughts on some of the most intriguing storylines in the Pac-12. Here are our roundtables on the ACC,Big 12and Big Ten.

Biggest winner

Morales: Oregon. Dan Lanning put together a really well-rounded class with multiple blue-chip prospects at several positions. The Ducks landed four of the top 10 prospects in California, beating USC, their main recruiting competitor, in a few high-profile recruiting battles in the process, too.

Caple: No question that it’s Oregon. Consider that the Ducks signed 19 blue-chip high schoolers, and the rest of the Pac-12 combined to sign 42 — that’s a 31 percent share of the league’s blue-chip talent in the 2023 class. Dante Moore flipping to UCLA was a blow, but Lanning responded by flipping four-star quarterback Austin Novosad from Baylor. There’s more to roster building nowadays than high school recruiting, but there’s no doubt the Ducks are doing it better than anyone else in the Pac-12.

Raynor: It has to be Oregon, yep. All in the same day during the early signing period, the Ducks flipped Novosad, flipped four-star cornerback Daylen Austin from LSU, flipped four-star running back Jayden Limar from Notre Dame, held onto five-star wide receiver Jurrion Dickey and landed top-50 edge Matayo Uiagalelei. The Ducks have as much recruiting potential as any program in the country.

Wasserman: Even if Oregon didn’t wind up landing five-star safety Peyton Bowen — who had one of the oddest finishes to a recruiting cycle I’ve ever seen — the Ducks owned the early signing period and even landed a top-100 defensive back out of Southern California (Rodrick Pleasant) on national signing day last week. Call it NIL. Call it whatever you want. But Oregon proved that it’s more than capable of recruiting at a high enough level to win big. I guess that’s what happens when you hire someone who used to work at Georgia as your head coach.

Most surprising development

Morales: Utah’s rise. The Utes have a well-established identity and recruit/evaluate and develop to it better than anyone else in the league. That hasn’t meant much in the recruiting rankings — Utah usually hovers around the 30s — but back-to-back Pac-12 championships have seemingly given the Utes more access to higher-end prospects. That resulted in them landing their best-ever high school class this cycle, 21st nationally.

Caple: OK, so it’s not surprising that Deion Sanders made an immediate recruiting impact upon taking the Colorado job, but it’s still something to see the Buffaloes sign the fifth-most blue-chippers in the Pac-12 coming off a 1-11 season. Sanders flipped five-star cornerback Cormani McClain from Miami and four-star running back Dylan Edwards from Notre Dame, and assembled a top-30 high school class in the 247Sports Composite. Would have been fun to tell someone that would happen three months ago.

Raynor: USC finishing outside of top 10. The Trojans have everything they need to regularly compete for national championships, including the right head coach, tradition, plenty of resources and a fertile recruiting ground. But they’ll have to recruit like the big boys if they want to be competitive each year. Lincoln Riley did a nice job hitting the transfer portal this cycle, but the high school classes will have to be better in the future. That means signing top five classes and keeping prospects like Uiagalelei, for example, home.

Wasserman: I’m with Grace on this one. Maybe it was shortsighted of me to just assume that Riley would easily take the West Coast by storm and routinely put together top-five classes. But the Trojans not only fell short of that top-five distinction, they finished outside of the top 10 with a very top-heavy class. Yes, the offensive skill talent was off the charts — Riley is, after all, in charge — but the depth of the class was lacking, and there wasn’t enough talent on the lines or on defense. It was a solid class, but nowhere near what I thought it would look like.

Offensive player who will make biggest impact in 2023

Morales: USC’s already deep at receiver but Zachariah Branch is so talented and explosive that it’s difficult to envision him not making an impact. And Riley knows how to utilize his weapons so Branch will be put in a good position to succeed as well.

Caple: Branch is a great pick. I’ll suggest a different receiver: Jurrion Dickey, the five-star Oregon signee from Atherton (Calif.) Menlo-Atherton. He’s 6-3 and 210 pounds, and had a pretty eye-popping junior season at San Jose (Calif.) Valley Christian in 2021: 78 catches for 1,304 yards and 19 touchdowns, plus four interceptions as a safety, including a pick six and two kickoff returns for touchdowns. Dickey’s senior year was cut short by a torn meniscus — he still caught 20 passes for 500 yards and seven touchdowns in four games — but if he’s healthy, he has every physical tool needed to play right away.

Raynor: I’ve had the privilege of seeing Branch at a few Under Armour events and his speed is no joke. But I’m going with Edwards, the former Notre Dame running back commit who flipped to Colorado after Sanders got the job. Edwards won multiple “Fastest Man” challenges at Under Armour’s various events, including besting five-star athlete Nyckoles Harbor in December. Harbor, who signed with South Carolina, has Olympic aspirations on the track. Colorado’s rushing offense ranked 115th nationally last year. Edwards can provide a spark early.

Dylan Edwards edges Nyckoles Harbor for fastest man at @UANextFootball pic.twitter.com/0YzWQMHSEK

— John Garcia, Jr. (@JohnGarcia_Jr) December 31, 2022

Wasserman: I’d like to echo Antonio and go Branch here, but the biggest impact? USC’s receivers room is always going to be loaded, and Caleb Williams will work his magic, but I’m going with Grace on this one because Edwards is going to a place that needs exactly what he brings to the table. I’m not sure how big his role will be, but I can’t imagine Colorado not using some of that “Louis Vuitton luggage” right out of the gate. His speed and playmaking ability is tremendous and Colorado is in dire need of it.

Defensive player who will make biggest impact in 2023

Morales: Cormani McClain has already made an impact by becoming the first five-star high school prospect to join Sanders at Colorado, which sets the stage for more talent to join in the future. He probably needs to mature physically to be a true impact player on the field, but off it, his impact has already been made.

Caple: McClain has to be the answer, and he should have every chance to earn a starting job from Day 1. His arrival is complemented by Jackson State transfer Travis Hunter, the No. 1 player in the 2022 class who should start at corner and also make plays at receiver. (Did you know that Pac-12 schools signed only 11 top-100 recruits in the 2023 class and only four of them play defense? The SEC signed 46 top-100 prospects — 26 of whom signed with either Alabama or Georgia — and 26 of those 46 SEC signees play defense.)

Raynor: McClain is probably the right pick, but to mix it up, I’ll take Stanford cornerback Jshawn Frausto-Ramos. Frausto-Ramos isn’t necessarily a flashy pick, coming in as the nation’s No. 414 prospect and No. 43 corner in the 247Sports Composite, but he plays an area of need for the Cardinal. Stanford had four cornerbacks play in double-digit games in 2022: Kyu Blu Kelly, Ethan Bonner, Salim Turner-Muhammad and Nicolas Toomer. Kelly declared for the NFL Draft, Turner-Muhammad transferred to Purdue and Toomer transferred to Indiana. Bonner returns, but there’s room for young players to step up if they’re ready. Frausto-Ramos played at the highest level of high school football, winning a national championship with St. John Bosco in Southern California.

Wasserman: My gut told me to pick McClain because who wouldn’t pick a five-star cornerback teaming up with Hunter at Colorado? But there is going to be a developmental curve with him as he gets into the weight room and builds on his 165-pound frame. My pick is Uiagalelei, who signed with Oregon over USC and Ohio State. He’s already a 6-5, 270-pound beast who can change a game. Pass rushers like him are present on all the elite teams, and the Ducks got a gem.

QB most likely to start a game in 2023

Morales: It’s difficult to say anyone other than Dante Moore at UCLA because the Bruins will have an open competition. Other high-profile QBs who joined the conference this recruiting cycle will be behind entrenched starters, making their path more difficult. Even then, I think Moore might be someone who doesn’t start until later in the season.

Caple: It has to be Moore, with so few starting jobs open in what appears to again be a quarterback-rich conference. I’m curious to see how Jaden Rashada fits in at Arizona State, but expect Notre Dame transfer Drew Pyne to win the starting job. I’m just as curious to see if late-rising four-star Aidan Chiles can make some noise at Oregon State, but the Beavers added Clemson transfer DJ Uiagalelei. Chiles’ day will come, though.

Raynor: I like where your head’s at Christian, regarding Chiles, and I don’t think it’s impossible for him to beat out Uiagalelei at some point. Perhaps a fresh start will be just the thing Uiagalelei needs to compete at the highest level, but the former Clemson quarterback would be the first to admit that he still has plenty to prove. Chiles committed to Oregon State in June, long before Uiagalelei ever entered the portal, and is the Beaver quarterback of the future. Why not let him get some experience early if Uiagalelei struggles?

Wasserman: Some analysts think Moore is the best quarterback in the 2023 cycle, and he’s going to a program that has an open competition? How is the answer anyone else other than the talented freshman from Detroit?

Most intriguing non-blue-chipper

Morales: Stanford quarterback signee Myles Jackson was a four-star prospect as recently as November — in the 2024 recruiting cycle. He reclassified in December, which is one thing. Then he committed to Stanford when it didn’t have a coach, which was surprising as well. It’s a year earlier than expected, but this is a good get for first-year Cardinal coach Troy Taylor. If Jackson develops early, that’s an added boost for a Stanford program in desperate need of one.

Caple: I’ll go with cornerback Leroy Bryant, the three-star Washington signee from Fairfield (Calif.) Angelo Rodriguez. You wouldn’t know from watching his senior year highlights that he only started playing football as a sophom*ore. He was widely considered among the top high school players in his region, starring both at receiver and cornerback. Bryant is one of five high school DBs the Huskies signed in this class, so there will be plenty of competition, but he’s an under-the-radar guy who could see the field sooner rather than later.

Raynor: Three-star UCLA defensive lineman Tre Edwards is an interesting candidate. Edwards’ recruitment started out hot: USC was his first offer in 2020, then Notre Dame, Oregon and Texas A&M, among others, followed in 2021. UCLA didn’t offer until January 2022, when it seems like Edwards’ recruitment may have slowed down. But his high school stats align with someone who could make noise early: 96 tackles, 17 tackles for loss and six sacks in 2021 as the San Diego Section CIF Defensive Player of the Year. In 2022, he had 77 tackles and 12 tackles for loss.

Wasserman: I’m intrigued by three-star safety Genesis Smith of Chandler (Ariz.) Hamilton, who signed with Arizona. The Wildcats defense was a dumpster fire a year ago, and they need to repair it quickly. Jedd Fisch signed four defensive backs in the 2023 class, and Smith, an in-state prospect, has the most upside. It’ll be interesting to see what Arizona does in the transfer portal, but if it doesn’t add a defensive back, I think it’s possible Smith could get snaps as a true freshman.

(Top photo: Tom Hauck / Getty Images)