UNC Recruiting: Big weekend for UNC football

Football

There is a lot of anticipation surrounding the upcoming weekend for UNC football, as several of Larry Fedora’s most highly rated recruits are all coming for their official visits. The list of recruits coming in is long and, at least the part of that’s available to the public, heavy on trench players, which will come as welcome news to UNC fans who have been disappointed by the team’s offensive and defensive lines’ ability to make a mark on the other side.

The most high-profile recruit on the list is offensive tackle William Barnes, a four-star prospect from Apopka, Florida who 247 Sports rates as the 5th best offensive tackle in his class. He may come in a package deal with 3-star teammate Ed Montilus (offensive guard), who will join Barnes in visiting UNC’s campus this weekend. They will also be joined by offensive tackle Joshua Ezeudu, also a 3-star recruit. Getting all three of these players would be a huge shot in the arm to a 2018 class that has lost some shine from what it looked like several months ago.

Defensive lineman Jamarcus Chatman will also be in Chapel Hill this weekend. Chatman is a 3-star rated as 247’s 27th-ranked defensive tackle, although he has the athleticism to play on the outside as well. Chatman, from Rome, Georgia, has a host of offers, including from Florida, Florida State, Louisville, Louisiana State, and many other powerful programs. Other than UNC, he has also scheduled official visits with Michigan State, Florida, and Florida State.

Rounding out the recruits who have been publicly confirmed to be attending this weekend is wide receiver Antoine Green. Wide receiver seems to be in decent hands for the moment, between the emergence of Anthony Ratliff-Williams, the promise of Beau Corrales, Dazz Newsome, and Rontavious Groves, and the already committed Jordyn Adams and Dyami Brown, but you can never have enough playmakers, and Green, the 58th-ranked receiver in his class, is certainly that.

There are definitely others coming to UNC this weekend, likely including some running back prospects such as Kavosiey Smoke. Due to several recruits’ lack of public media availability, this is not confirmed, but it would not be surprising to see. After missing on Zamir White early this recruiting cycle, Larry Fedora and his staff would love to get a running back in this class to join Javonte Williams and Devon Lawrence.

Basketball

There are two notable new stories in UNC basketball recruiting. The first is that a new name has appeared on UNC’s radar for the class of 2019: Precious Achiuwa, a 6’9’’ wing player from New York. Roy Williams watched him play on Sunday, the first time the Heels’ head coach has seen Achiuwa play in person. UNC only has one scholarship offer out for a small forward in the 2019 class, and it belongs to Wendell Moore. As Moore’s recruitment seems to be cooling down, it would not be surprising to see scholarships offered to players such as Achiuwa and Alonzo Gaffney at the same or similar positions (Gaffney being a stretch-four) in the coming weeks. Achiuwa is rated by 247 as the #14 prospect overall and the #2 small forward in the class of 2019.

The second story is that Raleigh-area point guard Marque Maultsby, who plays for Garner High School, has been offered a preferred walk-on spot at UNC for the class of 2018. Maultsby impressed the coaches at the John Wall Invitational, helping his team beat Coby White’s Wilson Greenfield squad on the way to winning the David West Bracket. Maultsby told Inside Carolina that he has drawn some Division 1 interest, including offers from Army, The Citadel, and UNC-Greensboro, but that UNC’s winning pedigree and academic strength make it a strong contender even if he wouldn’t be a scholarship player. Were he to join the Tar Heel family, Maultsby could follow in the ranks of Walker Miller, KJ Smith, Shea Rush, Luke Maye, and Jackson Simmons, all of whom were recruited as preferred walk-ons and the last three of whom earned scholarships before their senior years.