3 Recruits Cincinnati Must Land on National Signing Day

National Signing Day is nigh upon us, so let the high school senior worshipping commence! Most kids will sign their National Letter of Intent unceremoniously, but you will be sure to see plenty of the best prep players in the country announcing their college decision live on ESPNU tomorrow.

If you’re a fan of the Cincinnati Bearcats, and I’m assuming you are since you are reading this, I wouldn’t really bother with the TV tomorrow, unless you want to see a bunch of five-star players committing to the Alabamas, Ohio States and Florida States of the college football world.

UC figures to have another solid class coming in for 2015. It will be full of three-star recruits, and its final ranking will probably fall somewhere in the late 50s to mid-60s which should almost certainly be one of the top few in the AAC. Tommy Tuberville and his staff are looking to secure key building blocks for the future while also trying to plug a few immediate needs for 2015. With three JUCO players signed and 22 hard commits, Wednesday is more likely to be a day of formalities than surprises for Cincinnati. But, I guess you never know until the signed letters officially come in.

So, what three players are key to a successful 2015 recruiting class for the Bearcats? Well, here are my thoughts below, and it’s a mix of current and future needs for the boys in red and black.

1. Marquise Copeland, DE/OLB, 3-Star: Cincinnati is losing a ton of production in its defensive front seven, and considering the way the defense struggled last season, that’s even more of an issue than it normally would be. Arguably the biggest loss for the Bearcats overall, defensive end Terrell Hartsfield is heading for the NFL draft, and he is taking his AAC-leading 9.0 sacks with him. Two other key contributors on the d-line, Brad Harrah and Jerrell Jordan, are moving on as well. Copeland played both on and off the line of scrimmage in high school, and with his size and speed at 6-2/230, he should find a way onto the field in 2015 as at least a situational pass rusher.

2. Matthew Draper, OLB, 3-Star: Jeff Luc and Nick Temple combined for 247 tackles and 9.5 sacks last season, so needless to say, the Bearcats are going to have to do quite a bit of rebuilding at the linebacker position ASAP. Landing Draper would be a great start.While Draper may be likely to redshirt his freshman season, his athleticism and ability to play sideline-to-sideline are exactly what Cincinnati needs. 2015 Junior College signees Antonio Kinard and Jaylyin Minor are likely to mix in with younger but talented players like Kevin Brown and Eric Wilson for immediate snaps at linebacker. However, Draper is 6-2/214 and oozes with skills that previous UC SAM and WILL linebackers have lacked. Whether he redshirts or sees the field on special teams or as a rotational player, Draper would be a key signee to develop for the future.

3. Ross Trail, QB, 4-Star: I said it before the 2014 season began: Gunner Kiel is a stud. Tuberville tried to play the “competition game” with him and Munchie Legaux before the season, but it was evident that if he was healthy, Kiel had the job. His health became an issue in 2014, and his value was never more evident than when he was knocked out of the Military Bowl and Legaux wasn’t available to play with an injury of his own.The cupboard is pretty bare behind Kiel on the QB depth chart right now, and especially so if Jared Evans isn’t welcomed back to the team. Plus, with just two years of eligibility left for Kiel (and NFL draft eligibility at the end of the 2015 season), now is the time to groom a successor. Trail is a must-have for Tuberville, and it could work out to be a seamless transition between him and Kiel when his time at Cincinnati is up.Like Kiel, Trail is known for his pocket-passing abilities, and he has good size at 6-3/200. He throws an extremely catchable and accurate ball, and appears able to deliver it with some zip or touch. During his senior season, Trail completed 204 of his 302 attempts for 3,093 yards, 32 touchdowns and eight interceptions while adding 13 rushing touchdowns.Ideally, Trail could redshirt this season and spend it learning the offense and fine-tuning his game as he waits for the reins from Kiel. However, if Evans does not return to UC or if Tuberville isn’t able to bring in any JUCO players to provide some experienced depth behind Kiel, Trail could end up as the primary back-up depending on his progression in camp.