Colorado State and Mike Bobo highlighted National Signing Day with the announcement of 26 new student-athletes Wednesday. While seven offensive linemen make up a solid part of the bunch, Bobo found three wide receivers that could all factor into game action as soon as next season.
Let’s start with E.J. Scott, a 6-1, 189-pounder from McEachern High School in Georgia. The three-star receiver committed to the Rams in mid-October before going on to win a conference title during his senior season.
Physically, Scott fits the bill perfectly in terms of what Bobo wants on the outside.
“He can play safety or receiver, but we targeted him as a receiver,” Bobo said. “He’s another big body with length.”
If Scott’s size looks familiar, you may be thinking of Michael Gallup, who’s listed at 6-1, 195 pounds. Gallup put together an extraordinary first season with the Rams as he recorded 76 catches for 1,272 touchdowns and 14 touchdowns.
CSU quarterbacks will have an even bigger target when they look to 6-5, 208-pound Warren Jackson. The three-star receiver played his high school ball at Bishop Alemany in Mission Hills, Calif. Scout.com ranks Jackson as the 12th best receiver in the state.
“He (Jackson) is a guy out of California who we targeted probably two years ago,” said Bobo. “We were one of his first offers. In his recruiting process, we just continued to recruit and continued to try to build a relationship with him. And we were able to get him on a visit a couple weeks ago with him and his dad. They really fell in love with the place and when he saw not just what we had to offer athletically but as a university, he fell in love with the place and we were able to get him in the fold.”
Former Tennessee product Preston Williams caps off the receivers in the 2017 recruiting class for the Rams. Williams, a former five-star recruit, has both the natural ability and size at 6-4, 209 pounds to be a force in Bobo’s offense.
It’s evident the talent will be there with this group, but how does Bobo get them all involved? Gallup and Johnson can be penciled in on the outside, but everything else looks to be up in the air.
With the loss of reliable slot receiver Robert Ruiz, Bobo explained that he expects more offensive production out of Dietrich Clark.
“He (Clark) started to come on at the end of the year and he’s going to be a senior,” Bobo said. “He was more of our speed-sweep guy, a little bit of a return guy on kickoff returns. He still has not developed into the receiver that we need him to be. It’s a big year for him to step up a role and possibly play in the inside slot receiver and replace Ruiz.”
It may not necessarily be a bad thing if none of these three new receivers make an immediate impact. But should Johnson or Gallup miss any time, Bobo has the depth at receiver that he didn’t have a season ago. Not to mention, the Rams head coach encourages his players to battle for playing time every day in practice.
Plus, Bobo wants his skill players to be explosive. Whether that’s a running back being his own blocker and picking up a big gain or a receiver taking a screen pass to the endzone, Bobo emphasized the importance of adding potential playmakers.
“We’re always trying to get weapons,” said Bobo. “I firmly believe you need as many weapons as possible. You need competition at that position.”
Click here to check out the rest of CSU’s signing class.
