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Name | Pos. | Height | Wt. | Hometown (High school/Previous school) | KUsports.com Bio |
Peyton Bender | QB | 6-1 | 180 | Fort Lauderdale, Fla. (Cardinal Gibbons HS/Washington State) | Rivals.com’s No. 25 QB in the nation in the Class of 2014, Bender started a game for Washington State in 2015 and spent two years — one as a redshirt — in Mike Leach’s version of the Air Raid offense at WSU before playing a year of junior college and deciding to get back to the FBS level at KU. |
Earl Bostick | OL/DL | 6-6 | 260 | Barnwell, South Carolina (Barnwell H.S.) | Whether 6-foot-6 Earl Bostick plays on the offensive or defensive line for the Jayhawks remains to be determined, but KU O-line coach Zach Yenser liked his attitude, length and footwork. |
Antonio Cole | CB | 6-1 | 190 | Edmond, Oklahoma (Edmond North H.S. / Highland C.C.) | Rated a three-star junior college cornerback by Rivals, Cole spent his 2016 season playing for Highland Community College, where he recorded 44 total tackles, made four interceptions and broke up six other passes for H.C.C. as a sophomore. |
Hasan Defense | DB | 6-0 | 175 | Kilgore, Texas (Kilgore College) | After also receiving offers from Cincinnati, Central Florida, Utah and others, Defense chose KU after spending time with many of the players and staff during the aftermath of the Jayhawks’ overtime win against Texas in November of 2016. |
Jay Dineen | LB | 6-2 | 225 | Lawrence, KS (Free State H.S.) | A younger brother of Kansas linebacker Joe Dineen, Jay decided to stick with his hometown college football program, too. A two-star linebacking prospect, the younger Dineen was recruited by another Lawrence native, Clint Bowen. |
Joey Gilbertson | OL | 6-4 | 290 | Wichita (Wichita Northwest H.S.) | When KU lost a couple of important offensive lineman commitments in the Class of 2017, O-line coach Zach Yenser and recruiting coordinator Kenny Perry quickly looked to offset the setback by landing Gilbertson, an in-state tackle who attended KU’s Friday Night Lights camp. |
Quan Hampton | WR | 5-8 | 165 | Texarkana, Texas (Texas H.S.) | The three-star prep wide receiver previously committed to Texas State. However, after visiting KU in January, just ahead of National Signing Day, the 5-foot-8 receiver with a reported 40-inch vertical leap committed to the Jayhawks and head coach David Beaty. |
Octavius Matthews | RB | 6-1 | 200 | Stevenson, Alabama (North Jackson H.S. / Itawamba C.C.) | An unexpected 2017 signing day addition, the three-star running back went with KU — home of juco teammate Peyton Bender — instead of Auburn or Louisville. |
J.J. Holmes | DT | 6-2 | 310 | Chipley, Fla. (Hutchinson C.C.) | Sought after as a freshman at Hutchinson, Holmes returned for his sophomore season after receiving offers from Kansas State, Iowa State, Missouri, Kentucky and other programs. Then committed to Kansas after his second juco season. |
Kerr Johnson | WR | 5-11 | 180 | Santa Rosa, Calif. (Santa Rosa J.C.) | A late addition, Kerr Johnson got on board with the Jayhawks mere hours before signing. As a sophomore this past fall, he was named to the California All-State junior college team. The Santa Rosa, Calif., native caught 50 passes for 894 yards and 11 touchdowns in 10 games before signing on with Kansas. |
Kyron Johnson | LB | 6-1 | 195 | Arlington, TX (Arlington Lamar H.S.) | Shortly after KU’s first Friday Night Lights camp of 2016 came to a close, Johnson accepted a scholarship offer. The two-star linebacker, who was offered a spot before the camp, ran a 4.39-second 40-yard dash earlier that day. |
Liam Jones | K | 5-9 | 165 | Chocktaw, Okla. (Chocktaw HS) | Jones first landed on KU’s radar during a satellite camp in his home state in the summer of 2016. There the specialist got to kick under the watchful eyes of KU special teams coordinator Joe DeForest. |
Travis Jordan | WR/Ath. | 6-1 | 185 | Marrero, Louisiana (John Ehret H.S.) | A dynamic athlete, Jordan became the first player landed by new KU running backs coach Tony Hull, a former high school coach in New Orleans. |
Willie McCaleb | DE | 6-3 | 250 | Grenada, Miss. (Northwest Mississippi C.C.) | Rated a three-star juco defensive end by Rivals, McCaleb had interest from both Troy and Kansas and visited both programs in December, 2016. The addition of McCaleb to the 2017 recruiting class filled a void created when defensive lineman Jamie Tago backed out of his commitment. |
Cooper Root | LB | 6-3 | 215 | Wichita, Kansas (Collegiate H.S.) | In spring of 2015, Root attended the Rivals camp in Kansas City, and was named the most valuable linebacker. The Wichita native reportedly had interest from Kansas State, Northern Colorado and Colgate, as well as KU. |
KeyShaun Simmons | DL | 6-3 | 270 | Poplarville, Miss. (Pearl River Community College) | Rivals.com hasn’t assessed any stars to Simmons, who also had offers from Jackson State, Murray State, Tennessee-Martin and Texas Southern, as well as some interest from Memphis. |
Kenyon Tabor | WR | 6-4 | 215 | Derby, Kan. (Derby HS) | Both KU and rival K-State sought to bring in the pass-catching threat from Derby, but Tabor (recruited by Kenny Perry) chose the Jayhawks, citing a pitch from KU coaches on the multiple ways they could involve him in the Air Raid offense. |
Shakial Taylor | CB | 6-1 | 180 | Lakeland, Fla. (Mesa C.C. [Arizona]) | When Taylor, rated a three-star juco cornerback by Rivals, arrives in Lawrence and steps foot on the Memorial Stadium turf, it won’t be the first time. Before playing at Mesa C.C., he spent his freshman year at South Dakota State, and actually played in the Jackrabbits’ 41-38 victory at Kansas, in Beaty’s debut as head coach. |
Robert Topps | DB | 6-2 | 182 | Chicago (Marist H.S.) | Without first visiting KU’s campus, three-star defensive back Topps committed to the Jayhawks and his lead recruiter, defensive coordinator Clint Bowen, after Bowen informed the prep DB he reminded him of Aqib Talib. |
Dominic Williams | RB | 5-9 | 186 | Dallas (Parish Episcopal) | A three-star running back who committed to Kansas in the fall of 2015, Williams has been clocked under 4.3 seconds in the 40-yard dash. He also had offers from TCU, Baylor, Arkansas, Mississippi State and others. |
Takulve Williams | WR | 5-11 | 180 | New Orleans (St. Augustine H.S.) | Williams, a two-star receiver, cited his relationship with KU assistant Tony Hull during his recruitment process as a key reason for choosing KU over offers from Ball State, Memphis, Troy and others. |