{"id":19742,"date":"2018-12-20T18:00:30","date_gmt":"2018-12-20T23:00:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lwosoncfb.ms.lastwordonsports.com\/?p=19742"},"modified":"2018-12-20T12:23:06","modified_gmt":"2018-12-20T17:23:06","slug":"utsa-signing-day-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2018\/12\/20\/utsa-signing-day-review\/","title":{"rendered":"UTSA Signing Day Review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>As signing day nears many high school athletes are trying to turn their dreams into realities. For many, this day could determine the rest of their lives. So, the importance of it is astronomical. UTSA had a less than stellar season and could clearly use some help from incoming recruits. There are many holes to fill on both sides of the ball. UTSA finished the year with a record of 3-9 and are looking to improve on a season in which they substantially regressed.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"qme\" dir=\"ltr\"><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/RowdyBoutIt19?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#RowdyBoutIt19<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/uer3xggmdu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/uer3xggmdu<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; UTSA Football \ud83c\udfc8 (@UTSAFTBL) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/UTSAFTBL\/status\/1075421984006098946?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 19, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\"><p>&nbsp;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<h2>UTSA Signing Day Review<\/h2>\n<p>The Roadrunners finished fifth in the Conference USA-West standings just ahead of UTEP and Rice who won a combined three games. The Roadrunners were clearly overmatched this season. In every aspect of the game, the \u2018Runners looked more than a step behind. Whether this is because of poor coaching or sub-par talent on the field, changes must soon be made. Certain positions are clearly in question and will need revamping with the youthful class of 2019. UTSA Signing Day Review will cover what positions need the most help and the recruits that can be of most value.<\/p>\n<h3>Offense<\/h3>\n<p>UTSA\u2019s offense looked atrocious all year. They struggled to find a consistent quarterback to lead the team on Saturday\u2019s. This is the spot that clearly needs the most help. For the season, UTSA ranked 129<sup>th<\/sup> out of 130<sup>th<\/sup> in points per game. They averaged only 14.2 points in each outing and this can be mostly attributed to poor quarterback play. <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/cordale-grundy-1.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Cordale Grundy<\/a><\/strong> led the team for the majority of the season. However, he never found any success. He passed for less than 1,000 yards in nine appearances and only racked up six total touchdowns to go along with three interceptions. This position needs the most help because an offense is only as good as its quarterback and UTSA has still yet to find that person.<\/p>\n<h4>Quarterback<\/h4>\n<p>UTSA has only one quarterback from the class of 2019 that is signed and that is <a href=\"https:\/\/247sports.com\/player\/suddin-sapien-46038293\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Suddin Sapien<\/strong><\/a>. The 6\u20194\u201d, 221 lb, three-star quarterback from Midland, Texas is hoping that he can produce an instant impact on this struggling offense. Sapien is the 80<sup>th<\/sup> ranked quarterback in this years recruiting class. \u00a0In the 2018 season, Sapien completed 155 passes out of 315 attempts for 2,211 passing yards and 13 touchdowns. His statistics are not too eye-popping, however, UTSA needs any help that they can get at the position. Currently, Sapien would be sitting behind Grundy, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/jordan-weeks-1.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Jordan Weeks<\/strong><\/a>, <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/bryce-rivers-1.html?utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Bryce Rivers<\/a><\/strong>, and the explosive <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/players\/frank-harris-3.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Frank Harris<\/strong><\/a> who was unable to play this season. Sapien will have his work cut out for him, however, with the current quarterback issues for the team, the opportunities are there.<\/p>\n<h4>Running back<\/h4>\n<p>The running back position was also weak in the 2018 season. The leading rusher for the Roadrunners was <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/www.sports-reference.com\/cfb\/search\/search.fcgi?pid=bj-daniels-1,bj-daniels-2&amp;search=B.J.+Daniels&amp;utm_campaign=Linker&amp;utm_source=direct&amp;utm_medium=linker-\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">B.J. Daniels<\/a><\/strong> who only gained 322 yards on 87 rushing attempts. In fact, out of 347 total team rushing attempts, the Roadrunners only gained 1,054 yards. Also, for the year, UTSA had a meager seven total rushing touchdowns. This offense has had relatively zero production from either of its two most key positions. This statistic is frightening for Roadrunner fans and they are hoping for instant impact in their recruits.<\/p>\n<h4>The Explosive Runners<\/h4>\n<p>UTSA signed two three-star running backs in an attempt to add some firepower to their offense. UTSA bagged <a href=\"https:\/\/247sports.com\/player\/sincere-mccormick-86397\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Sincere McCormick<\/strong><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/247sports.com\/player\/ronnie-jackson-46050479\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Ronnie Jackson<\/strong><\/a> in early signing day. McCormick who played at Judson high school in Converse, Texas is hoping to be the missing piece that the \u2018Runners need. In his final season, McCormick had 126 carries and rushed for 1396 yards on his way to 21 rushing scores. He is an explosive and athletic playmaker that will be able to open up the passing game with his abilities.<\/p>\n<p>The Roadrunners also went after and signed <strong>Ronnie Jackson<\/strong>. Jackson is a three-star, 101<sup>st<\/sup> ranked running back in the nation. He attended Edna Karr high school in New Orleans, Louisiana. Jackson rushed for 1,078 yards and 11 touchdowns in his final season. His abilities are often overlooked by his national ranking. However, the buzz surrounding this kid is real and the Roadrunners hope it all pans out.<\/p>\n<h3>Defense<\/h3>\n<p>The Roadrunners unquestionably struggled in the secondary all year. UTSA was constantly beaten by the deep ball down the field and gave up long plays all year. This team was nationally ranked in many defensive statistics in 2017, so this year was a complete regression. In 2017, the team ranked eighth in the nation in opponents\u2019 points\/game, however, this year they ranked 88<sup>th<\/sup>. \u00a0As a result, the \u2018Runners went out and recruited some high-level talent to fill in the holes.<\/p>\n<h4>Safeties<\/h4>\n<p>In an effort to improve their secondary, the Roadrunners signed two three-star safeties and a three-star corner. These players are<a href=\"https:\/\/247sports.com\/player\/rashad-wisdom-46040866\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong> Rashad Wisdom<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/247sports.com\/player\/sean-berry-46053669\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Sean Berry<\/strong><\/a>, and <a href=\"https:\/\/247sports.com\/player\/kenneth-robinson-46055535\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Kenneth Robinson<\/strong><\/a>. Wisdom, who is the 83<sup>rd<\/sup> ranked safety in the nation, is the Roadrunners best signee in terms of his rating so far. Wisdom also went to school at Judson High School, so he will be playing alongside his teammate <strong>Sincere McCormick<\/strong>. The safety out of Converse is an all-around athlete as he played some offensive stats this year, however, his defensive skills are what set him apart. He had a total of 83 tackles in his senior season to go along with three interceptions and one fumble recovery. The stats may not look overly impressive, however, his IQ and athleticism on the field are what sets him apart.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Y&#39;all ready? \ud83d\udc40 More talent from <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JudsonFootball?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">@JudsonFootball<\/a> coming to <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/UTSA?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#UTSA<\/a>. \ud83d\ude24<\/p>\n<p>Welcome to the UTSA family, Sincere McCormick and Rashad Wisdom!<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/RowdyBoutIt19?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#RowdyBoutIt19<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/BirdsUp?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">#BirdsUp<\/a>\ud83e\udd19 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/pGI3cpj2Jn\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/pGI3cpj2Jn<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; UTSA Football \ud83c\udfc8 (@UTSAFTBL) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/UTSAFTBL\/status\/1075398835554402304?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">December 19, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: left;\"><span style=\"font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; color: #222222;\">Berry is an athletic cornerback out of Woodrow Wilson High School in Dallas, Texas. He is the 188<\/span><sup style=\"font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; color: #222222;\">th<\/sup><span style=\"font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; color: #222222;\"> ranked safety in the nation. In 2018, Berry had 51 total tackles, four sacks, and three fumble recoveries. He is someone to look out for as a difference maker for this weak Roadrunner secondary.<\/span><\/p>\n<h4>Cornerback<\/h4>\n<p><strong>Kenneth Robinson<\/strong> was also signed in an attempt to improve the secondary. Although, Robinson is the 231<sup>st<\/sup> ranked corner in the nation he should not be overlooked. In his time at South Grand Prairie High School, Robinson helped lead his team to the playoffs and racked up some district accolades. He is a solid player that can help this struggling defense out.<\/p>\n<p>The Roadrunners were able to secure some solid players in this early signing period. The addition of some key position players on the offense should help improve on their terrible 2018 campaign. As for the defense, adding some talent in the secondary will make the field smaller for opposing offenses as the Roadrunners hope to rely on solid performances from their secondary. Also, with these signees, depth is added in many key positions.<\/p>\n<p><a id=\"2LjPHXa5RZVMv0ofFalTWw\" class=\"gie-single\" style=\"color: #a7a7a7; text-decoration: none; font-weight: normal !important; border: none; display: inline-block;\" href=\"http:\/\/www.gettyimages.com\/detail\/1052651956\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Embed from Getty Images<\/a><script>window.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:'2LjPHXa5RZVMv0ofFalTWw',sig:'2MS2KSHxmEGn5gAtviy8nNLSxy46q0DXxLuqtT4bK8c=',w:'594px',h:'396px',items:'1052651956',caption: true ,tld:'com',is360: false })});<\/script><script src='\/\/embed-cdn.gettyimages.com\/widgets.js' charset='utf-8' async><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>As signing day nears many high school athletes are trying to turn their dreams into realities. For many, this day could determine the rest of their lives. So, the importance of it is astronomical. UTSA had a less than stellar season and could clearly use some help from incoming recruits. There are many holes to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2759,"featured_media":19772,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,10],"tags":[3585,450,3478,2765,3853,4320,4321,449],"class_list":["post-19742","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-conferenceusa","tag-b-j-daniels","tag-conference-usa","tag-cordale-grundy","tag-early-signing-period","tag-jordan-weeks","tag-rashad-wisdom","tag-ronnie-jackson","tag-utsa-roadrunners"],"modified_by":"Jason Rhea","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19742","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2759"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19742"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19742\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/19772"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19742"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19742"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19742"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}