The three of the four Ivy League Schools in New England recently announced their 2023 recruiting classes two weeks ago. I decided to watch film on some of the top prospects in class. Here are my thoughts on each class and who some of the impact players are to watch for.
Brown
Jackson Bennett, RB – 6’0 – 205 – Windermere, Fla. – Windermere Prep
Kyai Cook, WR – 6’0 – 195 – Duncan, S.C. – Byrnes
Brady Dever, QB – 6’2 – 185 – Rosenberg, Texas – Fort Bend Christian Academy
Tyler Emans, RB – 5’11 – 200 – St. Cloud, Fla. – Harmony
Kai Faucher, OL – 6’5 – 265 – Los Angeles, Calif. – Harvard Westlake
Tyson Holloway, OL – 6’3 – 275 – Rockingham, N.C. – Richmond Senior
Charlie Hines, OL – 6’3 – 265 – San Diego, Calif. – Lincoln
Pierce Leverett, TE – 6’4 – 230 – Houston, Texas – St. John’s
Levi Linowes, TE – 6’3 – 210 – Atlanta, Ga. – Riverwood Int’l Charter School
Michael McGhee, RB – 5’11 – 190 – Greenwich, Conn. – Rye Country Day (N.Y.)
James Murphy, QB – 6’4 – 190 – Reading, Mass. – Reading Memorial
Michael Nesbit, WR – 6’4 – 185 – Charlotte, N.C. – South Mecklenburg
Charlie Pietrosante, OL – 6’5 – 275 – Bloomfield Township, Mich. – Brother Rice
Najih Rahman, WR – 5’11 – 195 – Red Bank, N.J. – Red Bank Catholic
Ben Taylor, TE – 6’4 – 230 – Lake Oswego, Ore. – Choate Rosemary Hall (Conn.)
Danny Thompson, OL – 6’4 – 295 – Scituate, Mass. – Scituate
Nico Bossi, DL – 6’3 – 220 – Clarks Summit, Pa. – Abington Heights
Karell “Cap” Davis, DB – 5’10 – 170 – Cincinnati, Ohio – Archbishop Moeller
Tommy Dunn, LB – 6’3 – 210 – Shaker Heights’ Ohio – Phillips Exeter Academy (N.H.)
Kalyl Lindsey, DB – 5’11 – 185 – Framingham, Mass – The Rivers School
Max Malo, LB – 6’2 – 220 – Bellingham, Wash. – Sehome
Stefano Montella, LB – 6’0 – 215 – Long Valley, N.J. – West Morris Central
Jamari Myers, DB – 6’1 – 185 – Allen, Texas. – St. Paul’s (N.H.)
Ike Odimegwu, DL – 6’3 – 215 – Coppell, Texas – Coppell
Karl Schmalz, DL – 6’4 – 245 – Carol Stream, Ill. – Notre Dame College Prep
Camryn Williams-Dalton, DB – 5’11 – 170 – Charlotte, N.C. – West Charlotte
Thoughts: James Perry and his staff brought in a solid class headlined by quarterbacks Brady Dever and James Murphy who will both add to an already talented quarterback room. Dever will play both football and baseball. The 6-2 190 signal caller out of Fort Bend Christian Academy can sling and he is a good athlete who has dual threat potential. Murphy was a four year starter at Reading and has great size at 6-4 190. He has room to grow and develop into a possible starter down the road. Offensive line was also a focal point and the Bears added five newcomers with a lot of upside. Scituate’s Danny Thompson could end up playing offense or defense in the future. Love the wide receiver and tight end additions. Impressed with all of them on film.
Fortifying the defense was also a priority and the Bears did that by bringing in several high level defenders that can play sooner than later. Cap Davis, Kalyl Lindsey, Camryn Williams Dalton and Jamari Myers could find themselves in sub packages as early as this fall. Adding to the pass rush was a priority. Ike Odimegwu, Nico Rossi and Karl Schmalz all have high upside as pass rushers. The Bears like edge guys that are undersized but have length and juice off the ball. All three bring it to the table.
Overall, this is a solid class that can contribute in the near future. The Bears continue to recruit at a high level.
Dartmouth
| Godson Ajoku | OL | 6-6 | 315 | Cantebury School (Conn.) | Nigeria |
| Cameron Alston | CB | 6-3 | 195 | Conway | Conway, S.C. |
| Jorden Barnes | CB | 6-0 | 185 | Brentwood Academy | Nashville, Tenn. |
| Andy Belles | LS | 6-3 | 200 | Houston HS | Germantown, Tenn. |
| Francisco Caballero | OL | 6-3 | 270 | Gulliver Prep | Miami, Fla. |
| Cam Davenport | OL | 6-5 | 330 | Ben Davis | Indianapolis, Ind. |
| K.J. Edwards | ATH | 6-1 | 170 | East/Phillips Andover (Mass.) | Rochester, N.Y. |
| Joshua Johnson | DE | 6-3 | 230 | Statesboro | Statesboro, Ga. |
| Harrison Keith | S | 6-1 | 195 | Choate | Fairfield, Conn. |
| Cameron Lee | LB | 6-4 | 205 | Bishop O’Connell | Arlington, Va. |
| Nick Lemon | WR | 6-0 | 180 | Cardinal Gibbons | Raleigh, N.C. |
| Max Livingston | OL | 6-5 | 275 | Grapevine | Colleyville, Texas |
| Jonathan Nelson | WR | 5-10 | 175 | Bridgeland | Cypress, Texas |
| Colin O’Garro | RB | 6-1 | 205 | Iona Prep | New Rochelle, N.Y. |
| Keoni Perkins | DE | 6-3 | 230 | Grand Prairie | Grand Prairie, Texas |
| Will Prince | OL | 6-5 | 260 | Avon Old Farms | West Hartford, Conn. |
| Woods Ray | QB | 6-2 | 200 | Homewood | Homewood, Ala. |
| Chris Roper | RB | 5-11 | 190 | Adairsville | Cartersville, Ga. |
| Grayson Saunier | QB | 6-3 | 200 | Lafayette HS | Lafayette, La. |
| Max Schlager | LB | 6-1 | 195 | Trinity HS | Camp Hill, Pa. |
| Ian Scott | WR | 5-10 | 165 | Brentwood Academy | Brentwood, Tenn. |
| Steve Simpkins | LB | 6-2 | 220 | Summerville | Summerville, S.C. |
| Samuel Washington | DB | 6-2 | 190 | Martin Luther King | Detroit, Mich. |
| Matisse Weaver | PK | 5-10 | 190 | Lander | Lander, Wyo. |
| Bruce Williams | DE | 6-2 | 235 | Huron | Ann Arbor, Mich. |
| Taysire Williams | TE | 6-6 | 230 | Jimtown | Elkhart, Ind. |
| Owen Zalc | PK | 5-10 | 155 | Green Hope | Cary, N.C. |
Thoughts: Godson Ajoku headlines the group for me. I think he has the potential to develop into an all Ivy Leaguer and a future NFL prospect. Offensive line was a point of emphasis. Cam Davenport played in a good program at Ben Davis and has upside as either a guard or tackle. West Hartford, Connecticut’s and Avon Old Farms alum Will Prince has a great frame and he can put another 25-30 pounds and still be effective. K.J Edwards is going to be a playmaker. He can impact the game both as a runner and receiver. He will also make a difference in the return game. Jonathan Nelson is also an effective slot receiver who can play the X or the Z as well. Woods Ray really impressed me on film with his deep ball accuracy and ball placement. He has good size and is strong in the pocket and as a runner. He could be a steal in this class for the Big Green.
Dartmouth loves their long corners and they got three of them in this class in Cameron Alston, Jorden Barnes and Samuel Washington. Washington can play safety as well. It is a versatile group that gives the Big Green some flexibility on the back end. Joshua Johnson and Bruce Williams are two long, athletic EDGE types that can rush the passer but have the ability to drop in a curl flat zone as well.
The Dartmouth staff once again added a lot of quality and their in-roads down south really paid off as they added a handful of impact players from the region.
Harvard
Dylan Almeyda, WR | 6-foot-4 | 185 lbs. | North Port, Fla. | North Port
Xaviah Bascon, RB | 5-foot-9 | 190 lbs. | Nahant, Mass. | Swampscott
Win Byerley, Punter/Kicker | 6-foot-4 | 205 lbs. | Charlotte, N.C. | Myers Park
John Chung, DB | 6-foot-1 | 185 lbs. | Hillsborough, Calif. | Sacred Heart Prep
Jack Crowley, DE| 6-foot-4 | 230 lbs. | Milton, Mass. | Milton Academy
Jake Darling, DE | 6-foot-4 | 250 lbs. | Boerne, Texas | San Marcos
Dominik Di Filippo, OG | 6-foot-3 | 315 lbs. | Pierrefonds, Quebec | Williston Northampton School (Mass.)
Spencer Doan, OL | 6-foot-7 | 260 lbs. | Lawrence, Kan. | Lawrence Free State
Jack Donahoe, DB | 6-foot-3 | 200 lbs. | White Plains, N.Y. | Archbishop Stepinac
Josh Fedd, DE | 6-foot-4 | 230 lbs. | Baltimore, Md. | Dunbar
Seamus Gilmartin, TE | 6-foot-4 | 215 lbs. | Hillsborough, Calif. | Junipero Serra
Austin-Jake Guillory, DB | 6-foot-1 | 180 lbs. | New Orleans, La. | Isidore Newman
Damien Henderson, DB | 6-foot-0 | 170 lbs. | Tampa, Fla. | Berkeley Preparatory School
Kyle Johnson, RB | 5-foot-10 | 215 lbs. | Bethlehem, Pa. | Freedom
Owen Johnson, LB| 6-foot-1 | 220 lbs. | Bethlehem, Pa. | Freedom
Isaiah Kacyvenski Jr., DB | 5-foot-10 | 180 lbs. | Weston, Mass. | Buckingham Browne & Nichols
Sean Line, LB | 6-foot-0 | 230 lbs. | Stockholm, N.J. | Pope John
Jacinto Lopez, DT | 6-foot-5 | 250 lbs. | Middletown, N.J. | Middletown North
Ryan Mooney, WR | 6-foot-4 | 170 lbs. | Rochester Hills, Mich. | St. Mary’s Preparatory
Jon Mould, OL| 6-foot-6 | 290 lbs. | Wellesley, Mass. | Xaverian Brothers
Thomas O’Brien, OL | 6-foot-6 | 295 lbs. | Reading, Mass. | Reading Memorial
Peter O’Mara, OL | 6-foot-8 | 300 lbs. | New Providence, N.J. | Pingry School
Logan Reaska, TE | 6-foot-5 | 215 lbs. | West Seneca, N.Y. | St. Francis
Langston Rogers, DB | 6-foot-0 | 180 lbs. | Memphis, Tenn. | Lausanne Collegiate School
Stephen Scourtis, DE| 6-foot-4 | 245 lbs. | State College, Pa. | State College Area
Derek Thompson, OL| 6-foot-2 |280 lbs. | Danville, Calif. | De La Salle
Dante Torres, QB| 6-foot-3 | 195 lbs. | Massapequa, N.Y. | St. Anthony’s
Conor Walsh, DB | 6-foot-2 | 200 lbs. | Charlotte, N.C. | Charlotte Catholic
Conway Zhang, DE | 6-foot-1 | 280 lbs. | Carmel, Ind. | Brebeuf Jesuit Preparatory School
Thoughts: Harvard always recruits well at home and abroad. At home, the additions of offensive tackles Jon Mould and Thomas O’Brien were big scores literally and figuratively. Mould had multiple Power 5 offers so to get a commitment from him speaks to the Harvard brand and the coaching staff. Xaviah Bascon will be the next productive Harvard back. Reminds me a lot of Aidan Borguet. Similar size and running style. Quarterback Dante Torres is a good athlete and brings a dual threat element to the offense. He threw 35 touchdown passes his senior season and rushed for 13. He should be a good fit in the Harvard offense. Dylan Almeyda and Ryan Mooney give the offense some more size on the outside. Harvard likes bigger receivers that can win in contested catch situations.
Two local products could develop into impact players defensively. Defensive end Jack Crowley out of Milton Academy has the size and the length to develop into an effective edge player. Isaiah Kacyvenski Jr out of BB&N can play slot corner or safety and offers some return potential as well. He was dynamic as a receiver in high school. Austin-Jake Guillory and Damien Henderson are both long corners who also offer scheme versatility in that they can play inside or over the top depending on the coverage call. Replacing Truman Jones production will be key. Defensive end/EDGE was an area of need and the staff addressed it in this class. Crowley aside, they also brought in Stephen Scourtis, Jake Darling, Josh Fedd and Conway Zhang as swing end/tackle to fortify the front four.