National Signing Day drama, don’t you just love it, college football fans?
Four days ago, the Colorado State Rams were jumping for joy as David Porter, an outside linebacker/defensive end committed to play for the Rams. The 3-star pass-rusher showed power, an explosive first step off the line, ferocity when playing the position in high school. Simply, he looked like a man playing against mere boys.
Porter, on Sunday, announced, his decommitment from Colorado State and his commitment to the University of Arkansas, an SEC school and one which is close to home for the Little Rock native.
https://twitter.com/davidporter184/status/825765048240975872
And just before Porter made his announcement, Jamal Gates, let everyone know he will not be attending CSU, but staying in Florida to play at Florida International.
— Mal (@G_mal12) January 29, 2017
These losses are huge, because each were 3-star players, and they were both suited to play that pass-rushing, outside linebacker position a team can never get enough of.
With Kevin Davis leaving due to being a senior, the Rams will lose their best pass-rushing linebacker heading into 2017. While Arjay Jean showed promise as a true freshman defensive end last year with 2.5 sacks, he will need help on that outside when it comes to pressuring the passer.
In this class, the Rams are bringing in 2-star defensive end Corte Tapia out of Windsor High School, as well as 2-star JUCO end Christian Howard.
Of course, decommitments just before NSD are a simple reality of the business side of college football. And with them bring more commitments, as CSU needed to fill those voids.
The Rams picked up the commitment of Barry Wesley, a Bear Creek offensive lineman who stands 6’6″ and 290 pounds, Sunday.
I'm very honored to be officially part of the CSU Football team. Thank you to my family, friends, teachers and coaches for their support! pic.twitter.com/qsIrVVhBjO
— Barry Wesley (@barry_jwesley) January 29, 2017
Rams fans are fond of Bear Creek offensive linemen, with Jake Bennett holding down the CSU line as the team’s starting center the last two years. Bennett will be a center and a focal point of the line in 2017, and he’ll likely look to aid in Wesley’s development.
Then, in the evening, Colorado State landed a 2-star defensive back in Darius Campbell:
https://twitter.com/lah_deee/status/825906640125825024
Campbell played multiple positions in high school, including safety, defensive back and wide receiver. He shows superb athleticism, great ball skills and a nose for the end zone. He’s smooth in his backpedal when playing receivers and has a good acceleration through the ball for interceptions. Plays with some ferocity, letting receivers know who’s in charge.
At 5’10” and 170 pounds, Campbell is a bit undersized, but his speed is clear. And with those ball skills, maybe Bobo will look to use him as a punt/kick returner as well as in the defensive backfield.
Of course, as always, nothing is set in stone until the names are signed on the paper. Those announcements will begin early in the morning on Wednesday, Feb. 1 and they’ll keep going until Colorado State fills their 25-man class. Currently, the Rams have 24 commits for 2017 and rank No. 64 overall by 247sports.com while Scout.com ranks the Rams at No. 60 overall.