Eleven 2022 college football freshmen primed to make an immediate impact
Let's see which incoming college freshmen will steal the spotlight in 2022
I spend most of my time in this newsletter discussing the NFL and college football players eligible for the draft. We’re going to step a little out of my comfort zone today and examine 11 highly recruited incoming freshmen who could make significant impacts in their debut college campaigns.
While we love breakout players and old, reliable veterans, there’s arguably no more exciting archetype in college football than the star freshman. Fanbases know they have that player for at least three years (barring interruption from the transfer portal), all scouts can do is drool until the young gun becomes pro-eligible, and every media outlet alive will pitch that prospect as a Heisman Trophy candidate. We love the cycle.
Below are 11 incoming freshmen with very promising futures in college football. It won’t be disappointing if it takes a year or two for them to get their footing, but these high school graduates have the pedigree and situations to see significant action early in their careers. We could be raving about them by the end of the fall.
Subscribe for free to receive updates on my latest posts, and follow me on Twitter @Sam_Teets33 to access all of my sports content.
*All player rankings and grades are accurate as of May 25
*All recruit heights and weights come from 247Sports
*All statistics come from MaxPreps
Travis Hunter, CB Jacksonville State
247Sports Composite: Five-star, No. 1 overall
247Sports: Five-star, No. 1 overall
Rivals: Five-star, No. 1 overall
ESPN: Five-star, No. 2 overall
Jacksonville State head coach Deion Sanders has a chance to help Hunter develop into a future first round selection. Hunter was by far the most sought-after recruit in the 2022 class, and his decision to shun programs like Alabama and Florida State for Jacksonville State turned heads. It’s an unconventional path to the NFL, but Hunter should see immediate action with the Gamecocks.
Hunter dominated statistically during his high school career at Collins Hill in Georgia. Over his final three years in high school, the consensus top recruit in the nation hauled in 271 receptions for 3,949 yards and 48 touchdowns as a receiver while averaging 116 receiving yards per game in 2020 and 2021 according to MaxPreps.
However, Hunter plans on primarily playing cornerback in college. He and Sanders should get along, considering the incoming freshman generated 19 inteceptions since the beginning of 2019. I wouldn’t be shocked if Jacksonville State lets Hunter see snaps on both sides of the ball early in his career.
247Sports lists Hunter at 6'1", 165 lbs.
Luther Burden III, WR Missouri
247Sports Composite: Five-star, No. 3 overall
247Sports: Five-star, No. 14 overall
Rivals: Five-star, No. 4 overall
ESPN: Five-star, No. 5 overall
Missouri lost 2021 starting quarterback Connor Bazelak to Indiana in the transfer portal, leaving former three-star recruit Brady Cook at the helm. Even with Bazelak, the Tigers didn’t have a player produce over 600 receiving yards in 2021, and no Missouri players crossed the 500-yard threshold in 2020 or 2019. You have to go back to Drew Lock’s final season (2018) to find a productive Missouri passing attack.
Missouri’s 2021 leading receiver (Chritauskie Dove) is returning for another season, but his running mate Keke Chism is out of eligibility. Chism and Dove were the only wide receivers for the Tigers to produce more than 250 yards last season. Burden should step into Chism’s role and take over his 64 targets.
MaxPreps credits Burden with 71 receptions for 1,174 yards and 20 touchdowns in 13 games during his senior season. The East St. Louis product enters college listed at 6'0", 200 lbs., already showing signs of NFL bulk to compete against SEC defensive backs.
Cade Klubnik, QB Clemson
247Sports Composite: Five-star, No. 6 overall
247Sports: Five-star, No. 13 overall
Rivals: Five-star, No. 3 overall
ESPN: Four-star, No. 29 overall
Klubnik became the varsity quarterback at Westlake High School in 2020, and he quickly flashed star potential. Over his final two seasons, the Clemson commit threw for 6,746 yards, 78 touchdowns, and six interceptions. He also ran for 1,054 yards and 37 touchdowns.
Klubnik has decent size for an incoming freshman at 6'2 1/2", 186 lbs., but he needs to get to at least 200 lbs. quickly to avoid getting crushed.
The Tigers open their 2022 season with games against Georgia Tech, Furman, and Louisiana Tech before their schedule escalates dramatically. Klubnik should see playing time when Clemson builds a significant lead in at least two of those first three games. If Clemson’s starting unit and incumbent starter D.J. Uiagalelei can’t build substantial leads against those programs, fans will begin to wonder why Klubnik is still on the bench.
Uiagalelei won’t give away the starting job easily. He was a five-star recruit and the No. 10 recruit in the country in 2020 according to 247Sports’ Composite board. Uiagalelei has tremendous arm talent, but his general accuracy, ball placement, and decision-making remain worrisome.
Evan Stewart, WR Texas A&M
247Sports Composite: Five-star, No. 11 overall
247Sports: Five-star, No. 6 overall
Rivals: Five-star, No. 33 overall
ESPN: Five-star, No. 13 overall
The Aggies have one player returning in 2022 (Ainias Smith) who produced more than 270 receiving yards last season. Tight end Jalen Wydermyer (515) led the team in receiving yards last year, followed by Smith (509) and running back Devon Achane (261). Achane and Smith should see their roles expand in 2022, but there’s plenty of slack for Stewart to pick up as a freshman.
Other returning Texas A&M wide receivers could keep Stewart out of the lineup, including Chase Lane (409 yards in 2020) and Jalen Preston (255 yards in 2021). However, Stewart could provide the offense with a spark and has the most potential among the fringe starters on Jimbo Fisher’s roster.
Stewart had an unconventional end to his high school career. The Liberty High School product decided to forego the remainder of his senior year three games into the season to focus on preparing for college. During his three appearances, Stewart amassed 22 receptions for 487 yards and three touchdowns. He’s listed at 6'0", 175 lbs., but he had time in the weight room this past fall to bump that number up.
Chris Marshall, WR Texas A&M
247Sports Composite: Five-star, No. 25 overall
247Sports: Five-star, No. 24 overall
Rivals: Four-star, No. 48 overall
ESPN: Four-star, No. 22 overall
Everything I said about Stewart applies to Marshall. A pedestrian passing attack has handicapped the Aggies in recent seasons. Things might not get much better this year, considering the frontrunners to win the starting job are Max Johnson, Haynes King, and freshman five-star Conner Weigman. Regardless of who wins the starting job, Texas A&M needs to find more high-end contributors to buoy its passing attack.
Listed at 6'3", 195 lbs., Marshall already has the size to create mismatches against SEC defensive backs, and he’ll be ahead of many other freshmen in the weight room. Physical traits are great for getting high school players recruited, but it’s polish that usually gets young players on the field. We’ll see how quickly Marshall becomes a weapon for the Aggies.
Jeadyn Lukus, CB Clemson
247Sports Composite: Five-star, No. 30 overall
247Sports: Four-star, No. 39 overall
Rivals: Four-star, No. 41 overall
ESPN: Four-star, No. 35 overall
Andrew Booth Jr. and Mario Goodrich took home both positions on the All-ACC First-Team’s defense in 2021. The two college stars departed for the NFL about a month ago, leaving a massive void in Clemson’s secondary.
The Tigers already have some in-house options to fill their starting cornerback roles. Many analysts and fans expected senior and former four-star recruit Sheridan Jones to break out last year, but Goodrich became a starter instead. Jones gets his final shot at glory this season, accompanied by junior Fred Davis II and sophomore Nate Wiggins, who both played just over 100 defensive snaps in 2021.
Jones will surely win a starting role in 2022, but the other outside cornerback spot remains up for grabs.
Lukus appeared in six games in each of the past two seasons. He finished 2021 with two interceptions and five passes defensed. During his three years that we have statistics for, Lukus totaled 97 tackles, four interceptions, and 17 passes defensed. He occasionally played wide receiver in 2019 and 2020 but wasn’t highly productive at the position.
Lukus joins his home-state Tigers listed at 6'2 1/2", 185 lbs. That’s excellent size for an incoming freshman.
Toriano Pride, CB Clemson
247Sports Composite: Four-star, No. 80 overall
247Sports: Four-star, No. 40 overall
Rivals: Four-star, No. 85 overall
ESPN: Four-star, No. 150 overall
Pride benefits from the same situation as Lukus. The two incoming freshmen will have chances to steal snaps from more experienced college players. They couldn’t have arrived in Death Valley at a better time to see playing time early in their careers. With his size, Pride might even get a chance to take snaps in the slot away from junior and former four-star recruit Malcolm Greene.
Stats were hard to find for Pride and East St. Louis High School. He played minimal snaps at wide receiver in 2021 and was productive on defense, posting 84 tackles and three interceptions. Pride joins the Tigers listed at 5'11", 185 lbs. That’s good muscle bulk for a sub- 6'0" defensive back.
Tetairoa McMillan, WR Arizona
247Sports Composite: Four-star, No. 51 overall
247Sports: Four-star, No. 37 overall
Rivals: Five-star, No. 12 overall
ESPN: Four-star, No. 144 overall
Arizona recently received Washington State transfer Jayden De Laura in the transfer portal, improving the program’s passing totals. While in Washington State’s 2021 air raid offense, De Laura threw for 2,798 yards. In comparison, Arizona’s quarterbacks combined for 2,716 passing yards in 2021.
Stanley Berryhill III, who went undrafted this year, was the only Arizona receiver with over 330 yards last season. Wide receivers Brian Casteel (326 yards) and Bobbie Curry (233 yards) left the program via the transfer portal while UTEP star and redshirt junior Jacob Cowing transferred in. Tayvian Cunningham (299 yards) is also no longer with the Wildcats since last season marked his final year of eligibility.
Sophomore former three-star recruit Dorian Singer and Cowing should be the only players pushing McMillan for snaps in 2022.
McMillan had one of the broadest range of rankings among the websites I surveyed. The Servite High School product was one of the program’s most notable athletes in recent history. McMillan produced 179 receptions, 2,640 yards, and 34 touchdowns in his final 27 games with Servite. His senior year included 88 receptions, 1,302 yards, and 18 touchdowns in 13 appearances.
McMillan was a two-way player in high school. He intercepted eight passes and amassed 35 tackles on defense as a senior. The California native is 6'4", 185 lbs. He needs to add significant muscle to his frame, but his height should create plenty of mismatches early in his career.
Nicholas Singleton, RB Penn State
247Sports Composite: Five-star, No. 31 overall
247Sports: Five-star, No. 19 overall
Rivals: Four-star, No. 42 overall
ESPN: Four-star, No. 57 overall
The Nittany Lions haven’t had a 600-yard rusher since 2019 and a 1,000-yard rusher since current Philadelphia Eagles running back Miles Sanders stepped out of Saquon Barkley’s shadow in 2018. A career-ending heart condition prevented Journey Brown from being the next Penn State running back to carry the torch, which now falls to Singleton.
Not many obstacles stand in Singleton’s way. Penn State’s second-leading rusher in 2021 and former four-star recruit Noah Cain transferred to LSU. The team’s third-leading rusher (John Lovett) went undrafted a month ago. That leaves former four-star recruit and returning lead rusher Keyvone Lee and infrequently used senior Devyn Ford as Singleton’s main competition.
At 6'0", 210 lbs., Singleton has a chance to restore the line of great Penn State running backs that most recently included Barkley and Sanders. He already has the build to play in Week 1, and his statistics at Governor Mifflin High School are jaw-dropping. As a senior, Singleton carried the ball 165 times for 2.049 yards and 41 touchdowns in 11 games. That’s 186 yards and nearly four rushing touchdowns per game.
Domani Jackson, CB USC
247Sports Composite: Five-star, No. 5 overall
247Sports: Five-star, No. 15 overall
Rivals: Five-star, No. 17 overall
ESPN: Five-star, No. 9 overall
USC’s 2021 starting outside cornerbacks (Chris Steele and Isaac Taylor-Stuart) went undrafted in the 2022 NFL Draft. The Trojans, who hired Lincoln Riley as their head coach since the end of last season, found reinforcements in the transfer portal. Redshirt senior cornerback Mekhi Blackmon left Colorado to join USC, and sophomore Latrell McCutchin left Oklahoma to follow Riley.
Blackmon should be an entrenched starter. He played over 950 snaps over the past two seasons. Meanwhile, McCutchin, a former four-star recruit, played a tad under 200 snaps as a freshman. USC’s returning corners didn’t play many snaps in 2021. Joshua Jackson Jr. played about 120 defensive snaps while redshirt freshmen and former four-stars Prophet Brown and Ceyair Wright combined for under 50 live reps.
The Trojans have plenty of talent at corner, but Jackson could have the inside track on Brown and Wright since Riley's staff recruited him. As a consensus five-star, it’s doubtful Jackson redshirts this coming season.
Jackson missed most of his senior year at Mater Dei with an injury. MaxPreps lists six games for Jackson over the past two years. He has two interceptions during that time. The incoming Trojan is a multi-sport athlete who tied the California state high school track and field record in the 100-meter dash last June.
Jackson’s 6'1", 185 lb. frame would benefit from more time in the weight room. Ideally, he’ll stack on five to ten pounds before the start of his freshman campaign. Although, if you watch the 100-meter dash video, it looks like Jackson has a strong foundation.
Will Johnson, CB Michigan
247Sports Composite: Five-star, No. 14 overall
247Sports: Four-star, No. 35 overall
Rivals: Five-star, No. 5 overall
ESPN: Four-star, No. 23 overall
Johnson joined a defensive backfield that lost starting outside corner Vincent Gray, safety Brad Hawkins, and slot corner Daxton Hill to the NFL. The Wolverines have senior DJ Turner and graduate student Gemon Green returning at outside corner. Turner played over 600 snaps in 2021, while Green played over 370 for the second consecutive year.
Based on their experience and strong showings last season, Green and Turner should enter 2022 as Michigan’s starting outside corners. However, they and other members of the Michigan secondary must replace the three athletes who led the program’s defense in snaps played this past year: Hawkins (800 snaps), Gray (811 snaps), and Hill (832 snaps). That creates opportunities for young players like Johnson.
Johnson possesses terrific size for a defensive back at 6'3", 190 lbs. His frame will fill out during his stay in Ann Arbor, which continues to be a pipeline for NFL talent. Johnson played offense, defense, and special teams during his senior season. The Grosse Pointe South product amassed 1,302 all-purpose yards to accompany 45 tackles, one interception, and 12 passes defensed.