12 FWAA 2024 All-Americans were three stars or less out of high school
Written by Ryan Wright
Twitter: @RyanWrightRNG
Everyone wants to be recognized for their hard work and effort, especially in sports. Athletes at all levels pour blood, sweat, and tears along with countless hours into their given sport with an outcome that is not always guaranteed. For some high school football players, a reward can be a ranking by recruiting services… but not all recruiting services are the end all be all of their domain.
The Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) released their 2024 college football All-Americans. Of the 22 first team position players on offense and defense, 12 were rated as three-stars or less with three receiving no stars at all coming out of high school.
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Covering the entire country on the gridiron is a daunting task; it is reported there are over 15,800 high schools with football programs in the U.S. But the recruiting process can get squeezed down to more manageable numbers with 134 Football Bowl Subdivision teams. Yet, not all of the players making the move from the prep field to FBS classification get ranked.
One of the bigger black eyes for recruiting services is seeing Ashton Jeanty as a two-star. For other players, some arguments can be made about being a late bloomer, but Jeanty was a standout for Frisco Lone Star.
Jeanty scorched Texas competition during his senior year compiling 1,835 yards on the ground with 31 touchdowns. To further emphasize the point, he also caught 41 passes for 810 yards with 10 more touchdowns and took 10 kicks back for 229 yards.
The former Class of 2022 talent produced one of the greatest seasons ever for a tailback in 2024 leading the nation with 2,497 yards rushing and 29 touchdowns on his way to being a Heisman Trophy finalist.
Out of the 2022 class, Harold Fannin Jr. received zero stars. The McKinley (Canton, OH) product produced 123 tackles, 94 solo, with two interceptions on defense and pulled in 36 passes for 601 yards during his senior season. Fannin’s junior season with Bowling Green produced 1,342 receiving yards off 100 receptions with nine touchdowns. The reception and receiving yard totals are second best in the nation behind Nick Nash (San Jose State).
Speaking of Mr. Nash and his national leading 104 receptions for 1,382 yards with 16 touchdowns, a two-star in high school. Some leeway given here; Nash played quarterback during his senior year for Woodbridge (Irvine, CA). Worth noting, Nash passed for 1,728 yards and 18 TDs while rushing for 1,269 yards going into the end zone 17 times.
Another player to highlight is cornerback Nohl Williams. Williams signed with UNLV out of Pacifica High School (Oxnard, CA) in the 2020 class before making his way to Cal. Flashback to the 2019 season – Pacifica won a 2A state championship then posting a 12-1 record; the Tritons were a team of note. Helping bring a trophy back to the school was their three-way athlete.
Williams took 12 punts back for 165 yards and caught 21 passes for 330 yards with four touchdowns. Where he shined was on defense credited with 74 tackles, 15 pass deflections, and a mind-blowing seven interceptions… here are your two stars.
From James Madison to Indiana, Aiden Fisher has been that punisher in the box since his high school days with Riverbend (Fredericksburg, VA). Part of the 2022 recruiting class, Fisher received zero stars after being named All-Region Defensive Player of the Year in 2021 and second team Region 5A running back.
With the Hoosiers in 2024, Fisher tallied 108 stops against Big Ten competition. Fisher also received first-team Big Ten honors from both the coaches and media. Before leaving James Madison, Fisher was third-team All-Sun Belt as a sophomore.
The last no-star – Shaun Dolac. Dolac could steal a Rodney Dangerfield line, “I get no respect”, and it would be understandable. Out of West Seneca East Senior (NY), Dolac spent a season at Milford Academy before enrolling at Buffalo. His senior run with the Trojans earned the Class of 2020 prospect Buffalo News Player of the Year and first-team All-WNY honors.
The years of hard work for Dolac started coming to fruition in 2022 producing 147 tackles for Buffalo earning first-team All-MAC honors. An injury in 2023 held Dolac to four games, but an epic comeback saw the first-team All-American lead the country with 159 stops in 12 games.
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The 2024 overlooked All-Americans coming out of high school
Offense
2022 RB Ashton Jeanty – Frisco Lone Star – 2-star
2022 LB Harold Fannin Jr. – McKinley – 0-star
2022 QB Nick Nash – Woodbridge – 2-star
2020 TE Tyler Warren – Atlee (VA) – 3-star
2019 OL Addison West – Cary Grove (IL) – 2- star
2020 OC Seth McLaughin – Buford (GA) – 3-star – Alabama to Ohio State
Defense
2020 DE Kyle Kennard – Riverwood (GA) – 3-star
2022 LB Aiden Fisher– Riverbend – 0-star
2020 LB Jay Higgins – Jesuit Prep (IN) – 3-star
2020 CB Jahdae Barron – Connally (TX) – 3-star
2020 Nohl Williams – Pacifica – 2-star
2020 LB Shaun Dolac –West Seneca East Senior – 0-star
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2024 FWAA All-America Team
FIRST TEAM OFFENSE
QB Dillon Gabriel, Oregon (6-0, 200, Sr., Mililani, Hawaii)
RB Ashton Jeanty, Boise State (5-9, 215, Jr., Jacksonville, Fla.)
RB Kaleb Johnson, Iowa (6-0, 225, Jr., Hamilton, Ohio)
WR Harold Fannin, Bowling Green (6-4, 230, Jr., Canton, Ohio)
WR Nick Nash, San Jose State (6-3, 195, Sr., Irvine, Calif.)
TE Tyler Warren, Penn State (6-6, 261, Sr., Mechanicsville, Va.)
OL Kelvin Banks Jr., Texas (6-4, 320, Jr., Humble, Texas)
OL Will Campbell, LSU (6-6, 323, Jr., Monroe, La.)
OL Wyatt Milum, West Virginia (6-6, 317, Sr., Kenova, W. Va.)
OL Addison West, Western Michigan (6-3, 305, R-Sr., Cary, Ill.)
C Seth McLaughlin, Ohio State (6-4, 305, Gr., Buford, Ga.)
FIRST TEAM DEFENSE
DE Abdul Carter, Penn State (6-3, 252, Jr., Philadelphia, Pa.)
DE Kyle Kennard, South Carolina (6-5, 254, Sr., Atlanta, Ga.)
DT Mason Graham, Michigan (6-3, 320, Jr., Mission Viejo, Calif.)
DT Walter Nolen, Ole Miss (6-3, 305, Jr., Powell, Tenn.)
LB Shaun Dolac, Buffalo (6-1, 225, Gr., West Seneca, N.Y.)
LB Aiden Fisher, Indiana (6-1, 233, Jr., Fredericksburg, Va.)
LB Jay Higgins, Iowa (6-2, 232, Sr., Indianapolis, Ind.)
DB Jahdae Barron, Texas (5-11, 200, Sr., Austin, Texas)
DB Caleb Downs, Ohio State (6-0, 205, Jr., Hoschton, Ga.)
DB Malaki Starks, Georgia (6-1, 205, Jr., Jefferson, Ga.)
DB Nohl Williams, California (6-1, 200, Sr., Oxnard, Calif.)
FIRST TEAM SPECIALISTS
K Collin Rogers, SMU (6-4, 219, Jr., Prattville, Ala.)
P Alex Mastromanno, Florida State (6-1, 241, Sr., Melbourne, Australia)
KR Keelan Marion, BYU (6-0, 195, Jr., Atlanta, Ga.)
PR Kaden Wetjen, Iowa (5-10, 196, Sr., Williamsburg, Iowa)
AP Travis Hunter, Colorado (6-1, 185, Jr., Suwanee, Ga.)
*It is about where you end up and how hard you work, not about where you start off or the love you’re not getting.
Photo credit: Sports Illustrated