UCF's sluggish recruiting for 2016 took a clear leap forward once Scott Frost was in as head coach. On Sunday it took another step forward with the commitments of Jawon Hamilton and Nate Evans.
Hamilton especially is a
tremendous pick-up for the Knights. The 5-foot-9, 185 pound Hamilton is
an exciting prospect, one whom I believe will be vastly better than his
three star ranking suggests. This season, the South Dade High Prospect
rushed for 1,259 yards on 131 carries (9.6 ypc!) and 16 touchdowns.
Those stats come against strong competition, by the way. Also promising,
Hamilton recently won the South Florida Player of the Year Award[1] (which went to a guy named Dalvin Cook in 2013, by the way). And his highlights on Hudl are full of I-can't-believe-the-guy-has-not-gone-down moments:
Hamilton clearly fits this
staff's mold of pursuing fast, in-state players. Of the Knights' 13
commits, he's the seventh from Florida and the fourth from south Florida
(joining Dontay Mayfield, Bryon Brown, and classmate Boman Swanson).
There's an excellent chance
that Hamilton competes immediately for playing time at UCF. He just may
be our next great Knights running back (I know, I know: I said this about Will Stanback, but I really think I'm right this time).
I'm certain to sound too bullish on Hamilton, and I get that. But the
guy's the real deal and should make Knights fans cheer for years to
come.
His commitment came to be
expected, especially once he de-committed from the University of Miami
(having previously also de-committed from FIU). Frost made it clear that
Hamilton was a priority for this class - Hamilton was the first recruit
that Scott Frost called in December and (seemingly) the first offer he
extended. Hamilton's commitment is solid: though he had official visits
to Syracuse and Louisville scheduled, the Orlando Sentinel quotes Hamilton as saying he's now "done visiting" and "locked in" to UCF.
Three star linebacker Nate
Evans also pledged the Knights on Sunday. A 6-foot-one, 230 pound inside
linebacker from New Orleans, Evans was one of the first recruits
contacted by defensive coordinator Erik Chinander. Evans pledged at the
conclusion of his visit to UCF. Evans had previously taken an official
visit to AAC Champion Houston.
These two commitments continue
the big strides that Frost and company are making at UCF. The Knights
get better on both sides of the ball with RB recruit Jawon Hamilton and
ILB Nate Evans. Hamilton, in particular, may be someone the Knights lean
on early.
[1] . . . From the "Warren Henry Auto Group and Tournament of Champions, Inc." Dang that's a mouthful.
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