Been a while since I've done one of these. Have been able to do some digging in recent days, and this list is based on some of what I've heard. I'm not quite as solid with information on a few of the key defensive prospects, so I'll try to put something together covering that side of the ball in the next few weeks after I make a few more phone calls.
The reality of doing a best guess recruiting list in April is that, well, it will be very difficult to get more than 50-60 percent of the final class correct. That's because, if history is any indication, a large chunk of the players who will end up in the class on Signing Day don't currently have offers. So, it would be impossible to project the non-offered prospects in the class at this point in time. (Stanford's going to have a higher yield on their early offers this year than in '14 and '15, but there will still be several camp offers/commits.)
With that in mind, this is more of a realistic best-case scenario class than a best guess class at this point. I believe Stanford is in the top 2/3 for all of these guys, but I don't think they're necessarily the leaders for all of them. (I.e. I think Notre Dame is probably the team to beat for Javon McKinley, but I believe Stanford has a better shot than I previously thought.)
So here's the list.
Feel free to ask questions below and I will do my best to further explain my reasoning on individual prospects.
QB - K.J. Costello (commit)
FB - TBD (likely camp offer)
RB - Brandon Stephens (he doesn't talk much, but I've heard things continue to go well)
RB - Trevor Speights (recent offer, but right in the game)
OL - Matt Farniok (visiting in mid-May)
OL - Clark Yarbrough (things have looked good since April Junior Day visit)
OL - Devery Hamilton (visited for April Junior Day)
OL - John Raridon (Parker Braun is another candidate here - Stanford's chances recently got a bit of a bump with him. Could end up being a camp offer as well - interior OL isn't a huge need, but I do think they'll probably take one guard in this class.)
TE - Kaden Smith (commit)
WR - Simi Fehoko (LDS mission, probably close to committing, April Junior Day)
WR - David Long (Stanford was basically his dream offer.)
WR - Josh Imatorbhebhe (Stanford's way up there. I think it comes down to the Cardinal and USC.)
WR - Javon McKinley (Visiting in mid-May. Should have a better sense then, but so far going reasonably well, I think. Potentially a very good fit. Notre Dame, maybe USC are probably the other contenders.)
WR - Demetris Robertson (Stanford has a chance, but a long way to go.)
(*Note: It was brought to my attention there was a recent report in which 2016 ATH Zion Echols claimed a Stanford offer. Did a bit of poking around and while there is some mutual interest, this is not the case.)
The reality of doing a best guess recruiting list in April is that, well, it will be very difficult to get more than 50-60 percent of the final class correct. That's because, if history is any indication, a large chunk of the players who will end up in the class on Signing Day don't currently have offers. So, it would be impossible to project the non-offered prospects in the class at this point in time. (Stanford's going to have a higher yield on their early offers this year than in '14 and '15, but there will still be several camp offers/commits.)
With that in mind, this is more of a realistic best-case scenario class than a best guess class at this point. I believe Stanford is in the top 2/3 for all of these guys, but I don't think they're necessarily the leaders for all of them. (I.e. I think Notre Dame is probably the team to beat for Javon McKinley, but I believe Stanford has a better shot than I previously thought.)
So here's the list.
Feel free to ask questions below and I will do my best to further explain my reasoning on individual prospects.
QB - K.J. Costello (commit)
FB - TBD (likely camp offer)
RB - Brandon Stephens (he doesn't talk much, but I've heard things continue to go well)
RB - Trevor Speights (recent offer, but right in the game)
OL - Matt Farniok (visiting in mid-May)
OL - Clark Yarbrough (things have looked good since April Junior Day visit)
OL - Devery Hamilton (visited for April Junior Day)
OL - John Raridon (Parker Braun is another candidate here - Stanford's chances recently got a bit of a bump with him. Could end up being a camp offer as well - interior OL isn't a huge need, but I do think they'll probably take one guard in this class.)
TE - Kaden Smith (commit)
WR - Simi Fehoko (LDS mission, probably close to committing, April Junior Day)
WR - David Long (Stanford was basically his dream offer.)
WR - Josh Imatorbhebhe (Stanford's way up there. I think it comes down to the Cardinal and USC.)
WR - Javon McKinley (Visiting in mid-May. Should have a better sense then, but so far going reasonably well, I think. Potentially a very good fit. Notre Dame, maybe USC are probably the other contenders.)
WR - Demetris Robertson (Stanford has a chance, but a long way to go.)
(*Note: It was brought to my attention there was a recent report in which 2016 ATH Zion Echols claimed a Stanford offer. Did a bit of poking around and while there is some mutual interest, this is not the case.)
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