UCF’s Chance to Capitalize on Recruiting is Now!

Gus Malzahn and the Knights need to hit the home run with high school recruits in 2023, starting with the Hometown Hero Event.

Author:
Brian Smith
Publish date:
Jan 27, 2022 12:58 PM EST

ORLANDO - Year two of a coaching staff’s tenure often produces the best recruiting class for those same coaches. They are fired up to be at that school, they are putting in the work on the recruiting trail, and prospects are generally curious about a new coaching staff. That’s no different with UCF and Head Coach Gus Malzahn and his entire coaching staff.

They worked tirelessly to bring in the 2022 prospects already signed, and the foundation for the class of 2023 was already under construction with three separate high school camps this past June at the Nicholson Fieldhouse with prospects across Dixie coming to UCF to compete for scholarship offers. Now, with the Hometown Hero Event, there needs to be some expectations laid down for the not so distant future as it relates to prospects actually committing to UCF, as well as setting up official visits for this spring and summer. Here we go.

Be Selective

Recruiting is a long process. UCF showed excellent patience with the class of 2022 to bring in the top prospects that it did, and that same standard of finding quality over quantity will be needed for every class that comes to Orlando. That’s why the next category is absolutely imperative.

Find the Right Fits

Watching the talent from a specific recruit play on the gridiron is one thing, seeing the transcripts is yet another. So is asking people around them like coaches, a member of their church, or anyone else that knows a recruit what that young person is like off the field. That’s the biggest factor.

Will this possible signee represent our institution well? That's the bottom line. In an age of Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and all the other social media platforms any given recruit likes to dabble with, how the individual conducts his business away from the gridiron is just as important as the number of touchdowns being scored. Never forget that.

College coaches, UCF included, make sure that backgrounds are checked very closely. They absolutely have to do so. Every recruit represents the UCF brand, point blank.

Who’s the Big Dog that UCF Discovers?

It’s amazing the number of out of the blue recruits that come from Florida. Some are track kids that came to football later, some just developed later, but overall, the Sunshine State is known for under the radar prospects that develop into elite studs.

Gabriel Davis, anyone? Before becoming a star for the Knights, Davis was a lowly ranked three star prospect with few offers. Can UCF find a few more gems like that in the class of 2023? UCF built its Football program off of raw speed and athletes that were coached up. No reason that should not continue, and Coach Malzahn already showed the propensity for that with recruits from the 2022 recruiting class with linebackers like Kameron Moore and T.J. Bullard. Coach them up, and then allow their physical gifts to take over. That’s Moore and Bullard, and that’s UCF Football historically. There's still room for those players moving forward.

Which Recruit Will Other Recruits Follow?

This category is definitively defined by not only the top guy on the board at a critical position, but also a player that other recruits will literally follow to UCF to play with him. This is a “Dude” on and off the gridiron. Respected; this is the young man television cameras run to after a college game concludes.

Will UCF sign that type of player in the class of 2023? The podcast below defines the list of a few players that are definitely in that range. For now, know that quarterback Malachi Singleton from Kennesaw (Ga.) North Cobb is one of those players.

He’s a big-time recruit that UCF had down to camp last year. More about him and a few other prospects in the podcast that could change UCF’s Football program in a heartbeat.

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