Colorado State picks up a pair of verbals from versatile defensive prospects

FORT COLLINS — Colorado State has recruited the West Coast and Pacific Northwest extremely aggressively since Jay Norvell came over from Nevada and so far the results have been impressive. 

On Monday, following the final weekend of official visits for the month of June, the Rams picked up two more defensive commitments for the 2023 cycle, one from Oregon and one from California. 

Richie Anderson was the first to announce his intent to sign with CSU, doing so on Twitter at roughly 7:30 p.m. MT. 

I am extremely excited and proud to say I have Committed to Colorado State University! Go Rams! @CSUFootball @coach_buddha @CoachJayNorvell @Adam_Pilapil @TeamAlpha_7on7 @TualatinHSFB @DY_Lee11 @WellsCaleb51 @RCarterTV pic.twitter.com/m05UragusD

— Richie Anderson (@R11_Anderson) June 28, 2022

The 6-foot-4, 230-pound prospect out of Tualatin, Oregon is being recruited to play EDGE for the Rams by defensive coordinator Freddie Banks and linebackers coach Adam Pilapil. He currently plays tight end and long snapper as well, though. 

CSU initially offered Anderson at the end of February and he visited campus for the first time at the end of April, too. After taking his official visit this past weekend, though, Anderson was sold enough to pledge his future to Norvell and Co. 

According to 247Sports, Anderson also holds an offer from Montana State and Portland State, however, his Twitter page shows unofficial visits to Oregon State and Arizona State.

Disappointingly, the MaxPreps page for the Tualatin Timberwolves is not up to date with complete stats for Anderson or his teammates. That said, there are a couple of things we can take away from his Hudl film, including that he plays with an extremely high motor. While he appears to still be pretty raw when it comes to his technique, Anderson never stops pursuing and on a couple of occasions he shows this off by running down a ball carrier 20+ yards from the line of scrimmage. 

I also like the angles he takes while rushing the quarterback in the backfield — Anderson demonstrates a strong sense of how to use the space to his advantage — and you can see the way it overwhelms QBs when he’s coming straight at them. As he gets coached up by the defensive staff, Anderson can refine his technique. Heart and hustle are characteristics you can’t really teach, though. Fortunately, Anderson appears to be a real “dawg” out there. 

pic.twitter.com/4KhXwD0G3m

— Kenyon Agurs (@Kenyon_Agurs) June 28, 2022

CSU’s second commitment of the night came courtesy of Kenyon Agurs, a 6-foot-5, 235-pound defensive end out of Inglewood High School. What’s unique about Agurs, though, as reported by 247Sports, is the fact that he’s never actually played a down of high school football. Agurs has played basketball and participated in track and field for Inglewood HS but never officially played for the football team. As he told 247Sports, Agurs wanted to try out for the team his freshman year but it was impacted by COVID-19. This past spring he decided to give the sports a chance again and after participating in a showcase, Agurs was offered by CSU, UNLV and Idaho on the spot. 

Agurs is obviously a unique situation given his lack of football experience. Freddie Banks (DC) has said multiple times, though, that if you want to build an elite defense as a school outside of the power five, then you are going to have to be willing to work harder on the recruiting trail. You occasionally even have to get creative. 

“If you dig hard enough, you can find some dudes that can run and are physical. We want athletes,” Banks told the local press back in January. 

Banks continued, explaining that if you look at most college rosters, a lot of the guys playing defensive back at the D1 level were not corners during high school. High School coaches tend to put their best athletes at quarterback, running back, wide receivers, etc. That’s why it’s up to Banks and the defensive coaches to identify players with the traits they need and not necessarily the positional experience. While he was referencing defensive backs in this particular example, it also applies to any other position on the field. When Banks was at Montana State he was able to help develop a former QB Troy Anderson into a second-round draft pick at linebacker. 

“I think there’s enough to go around but you’ve gotta recruit, you’ve gotta work at it,” Banks said. “They may not walk in the door being that but they’ll leave out the door ready to go.”

2023 Commits 

QB Jackson Brousseau | 6’5 | 215 lbs | Lehi, UT 

WR Stephon Daily | 6’4 | 175 lbs | Tolleson, AZ

DE Andrew Laurich | 6’5 | 250 lbs | Yorkville, Ill 

OT Tanner Morley | 6’5 | 280 lbs | Littleton, CO 

DE Kennedy McDowell | 6’4, 200 lbs | Frisco, TX

DB TJ Crandall | 6’1 , 185 lbs | Sammamish, WA

DE Richie Anderson | 6’4, 230 lbs | Tualatin, OR 

DE Kenyon Agurs | 6’5, 235 lbs | Inglewood, CA