Recruiting News for Ranked 2025

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's the latest and hottest recruiting news for the ranked players in the Top 100 recruiting ranks of the 2025 class. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1573155' first='Braydon' last='Hawthorne'] - By now everyone is aware Hawthorne has bolted out of the WVU commitment, understandably, and looked elsewhere. A coaching change at WVU certainly unraveled ties in Morgantown and allowed other coaches to creep in on the 6'9" wing who's had one of the fastest ascents through the national rankings (top 50) we've ever seen. Kentucky, Indiana, Marquette, Dayton, Kansas State, Virginia, Memphis, Virginia Tech, Michigan, Oklahoma State, Arizona State and likely WVU all are in the mix with the caveats being former WVU coach Chester Frazier has left Morgantown and landed at VT and Hawthorne's younger brother, [player_tooltip player_id='2114433' first='Zyon' last='Hawthorne'] has also received an offer from LaSalle so its hard to rule that option out. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1801877' first='Cedric' last='Taylor'] - Taylor is a teammate of the above mentioned Hawthorne and has seen his recruiting take a serious turn since November. Taylor has scored over 1000 points which is incredible considering the amount of offensive talent he's played with and the high level of opponents he's faced. Taylor has current offers from Old Dominion, Middle Tennessee, Pepperdine and Charlotte which are all great mid-major options, but we'd expect at least one P4 offer before time is up or just after the smoke clears from the portal closing. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2208821' first='Caleb' last='Thomas'] is a huge and heavy target for many schools, predominantly high level D2's such as West Liberty, Fairmont State and Cal U (PA). Thomas was impressive at the WVSSAC State Tournament and seems to be gaining recruiting interest by the minute. Fork Union Military Academy in Virginia has also named Thomas as their top target in WV and a move to their post grad program would certainly give Thomas a clear avenue to a Division I opportunity. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2208827' first='Navi' last='Hewitt'] certainly drummed up some interest following the state tournament after a stellar performance. Hewitt got the full court press recruitment from Potomac State (JUCO) and has remained a top target of theirs. Previously Hewitt had only had offers from Albright College and BlueChips Nation Post Grad, but a solid JUCO offer could open options up in more ways than one. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2324788' first='Loakkhae' last='Uth-Smith'] has turned some heads in the last month showing some high level athleticism during Spring Mills championship run. Showing enough it kickstarted some recruiting activity for the bouncy and athletic guard/wing. Potomac State as well as MEC conference D2 Concord have both shown strong interest. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2241497' first='Keshaun' last='Cheek'] received his first offer to Huntington Expressions Prep Post Grad program. Cheek had a stellar year capped off by being named to the WVSWA All State list. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2410034' first='Phoenix' last='Sickles'] is yet another West Virginia player with an offer from Fork Union Military Academy, and head Coach Bob Williams was in Charleston to see the senior wing play all three games at the WVSSAC State Tournament where his high school team won the championship division in AAA while Sickles was named MVP. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2364913' first='Britt' last='Beasley'] recently picked up a couple more offers from William Penn University in Iowa as well as Belmont Abbey, a D2 in North Carolina. Beasley certainly has some excellent choices. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1412065' first='Trevan' last='Bonner'] has recently picked up traction from some D3's in Pennsylvania with visits to Bethany and Waynesburg. The 6' combo guard led his team to the state championship just after receiving an offer from BlueChips Nation Post Grad coach Ronnie Nuzum. Look for Bonner to claim a couple more offers soon as he's playing for Nuzum's WV Reign Elite AAU program as an unsigned senior currently. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2241493' first='Demarcus' last='Bandy'] pulled in his first offer from Lebanon Valley College, a Pennsylvania D3. Bandy who likely has D2 level athleticism has been a bit behind developmentally due to injury last year. Great chance the recognition of the Morgantown High School program helps his exposure and has him on many watchlists. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1578750' first='Jayden' last='Bryant'] has had some activity we're told from three different MEC schools with potential offers. Bryant likely has the luxury of supplementing any athletic scholarship with academic money which certainly opens many more doors. We'd expect several offers to roll in very soon as D2/D3 coaches are assessing their 2025-2026 rosters with the need for sizable wings. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2382654' first='Garrett' last='Wilfong'] received his first official offer from BlueChips Nation Post Grad this week. Wilfong had a gem of a state tournament in March while playing through injury for the semifinal and final. Wilfong also playing with high school teammate Bonner on WV Reign Elite unsigned senior squad and could very easily land another offer. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1578756' first='Max' last='Moore'] recently received an offer from Experience Prep in Tennessee. Moore previously had been offered by PSU-Fayette and NAIA Bluefield State. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2304715' first='MJ' last='Patton'] received his first round of offers from Appalachian Bible College as well as Concord and strong interest from Pensacola Christian College in Florida. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">COMMITS</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>D'arrae Goodwn (San Diego), [player_tooltip player_id='1309597' first='Xavier' last='Kirk'] (Lebanon Valley), [player_tooltip player_id='1413972' first='Isaac' last='Meddings'] (Oakland City), [player_tooltip player_id='2208851' first='Ethan' last='Blackburn'] (Waynesburg), [player_tooltip player_id='2295581' first='Elijah' last='Pendleton'] (Alice Lloyd), [player_tooltip player_id='2208839' first='Nate' last='Rodriguez'] (Franciscan), [player_tooltip player_id='2208831' first='Troy' last='Anthony'] (Franciscan)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->