Fast Start Out Of The Blocks

If you have not been keeping tabs on MTSU"s recruiting for the 2025 cycle, you will probably be stunned when you pull up the GoMiddle commitment list to see that there are 15 known commitments in the boat for the Blue Raiders.

It was not too long ago when Middle Tennessee State was sitting with three or four pledges by the time the actual regular season rolled around.

The initial commitment out of the gate for the Blue Raiders came from local mid-state product, receiver Ben Hubbard, out of Ravenwood High School.

The most recent pledge came from Micah Smith, an Ensworth High School product who projects to be a linebacker at the next level but is listed as an "athlete" due to the fact that he is a two-way player for the Tigers, playing tailback and linebacker.

Smith is one of two guys that Rivals has dubbed as "athletes." The other is a home grown product in Dominic Taylor.

After those two: eight of the guys in the fold are projected to be offensive pieces when they get to Murfreesboro.

They are:

- Kyle Larkin. Offensive Line. Brentwood, Tennessee.

- Otto Van Rensburg. Offensive Line. Seveirville, Tennessee.

- Neo Clifton. Wide Receiver. Brentwood, Tennessee.

- Wilson Hodges. Tight End. Montgomery, Alabama.

- Rai Chandler. Running Back. Shelbyville, Tennessee.

- Stanley Anderson-Lofton. Quarterback. Orlando, Florida.

- Bo Bryan. Offensive Lineman. Rockvale, Tennessee.

- Ben Hubbard. Wide Receiver. Brentwood, Tennessee.

You may have noticed, but of those eight offensive players, six of them are from the state of Tennessee.

Then there is the remaining five guys that are pegged as purely defensive players.

- Darnell Malpress. Defensive End. Jacksonville, Florida.

- Taylor Lawrence. Defensive back. Thompson Station, Tennessee.

- Camari Hall. Defensive back. Hollywood, Florida.

- Anthony Smith. Defensive Tackle. Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

- Joel Lowenberg. Linebacker. Chattanooga, Tennessee.

When you factor in that Micah Smith and Dominic Taylor are in-state guys, that adds up to make 10 overall commits for the 2025 class.

Building The Wall

At his opening press conference when he was announced as MTSU's newest head coach, Derek Mason vowed that he and his staff would put emphasis on the in-state and local kids when it comes to recruiting.

Fortunately for Blue Raiders fans, these were not just empty words. Mason is backing up his talk with real results on the recruiting trail. There was a whiff of skepticism by fans in reaction to Mason's pledge. Those doubts have dissipated, given the fact that he has already locked up 10 commitments for 2025 and the season has not even begun.

We will touch on this in a second, but Mason is not just adding in-state guys for he sake of just adding in-state guys. He is reeling in guys that other quality Division One, FBS programs want and covet. Many of the guys committed come from prestigious High School programs and are standouts on those respective teams.

Swimming With Alligators

The Blue Raiders coaching staff is not just dishing out offers and targeting random Joe Schmo's. They have won some fist fight recruitments with winning division one programs.

Just peruse the offer list from the committed players and you will see what I am talking about.

Let's take a couple guys for instance.

***Anthony Smith. DT***

His offer list indicates he possesses offers from schools such as:

- MT

- Arkansas

- Georgia Tech

- Indiana

- Liberty,

- Miami

- Missouri

- Nebraska

- Oregon State

- Syracuse,

- Texas A & M

- West Virginia

***Dominic Taylor. Athlete***

His offer list indicates offers from:

- Western Michigan

- Western Kentucky

- Vanderbilt

- Tulane

- Memphis

- Marshall

- Liberty

- Indiana

- Charlotte

- Buffalo

- Auburn

- Arkansas

These two guys are not just outliers. Most of the guys committed picked MTSU over quality Division One, FBS schools.

For instance, MTSU has won multiple recruiting battles against in-conference foe, Liberty.

Look For a Strong Finish

Barring a complete, implosion on the field, I look for Middle Tennessee State to close out the 2025 class with a bang. Obviously they have 15 prospects in the fold, and will look to sign in the ballpark of 23-25 guys prior to hitting the transfer portal in the offseason.

I expect the class to be one of the top classes in Conference USA for this recruiting cycle.

Middle Tennessee State may not light the world on fire on the gridiron this season, but after a couple of solid recruiting classes, look for the Blue Raiders to be a force in Conference USA.