92 | Recruiting notebook: OV weekend locks up four prospects

Usually Hoot State’s not much of a recruiting merchant. I live by a strict code of Don’t Tweet at Recruits, and the day-to-day coverage of every single mention/offer feels like overkill to me. I will leave that to the experts and more devoted fans. Personally, I’m a @KSURecruitinfan Guy.

We do need to make an exception after an official visit weekend like that, in which Jerry Mack and his KSU staff jumpstarted the 2027 class with four public commitments. What are we getting from the first four Owls on board?

CJ Peoples - 6’1”, 180 | QB | South Gwinnett HS
Getting a QB as the first member of the recruiting class just feels right. Peoples made a public pledge to Kennesaw after taking his OV over the weekend. Also in the mix for the ‘27 QB: Coastal Carolina, Charlotte, and Liberty, where his dad Cory will coach safeties this season. Peoples also plays baseball, hitting .463 with 23 stolen bases as a switch-hitting middle infielder. A compelling combo: Coach’s son, room to develop physically, and a multi-sport athlete that’s never really been full time on football.

KSU threw a few staff members at him for his in-home visit earlier in May, including OC/QB coach Mitch Militello and WR coach Dan Ellington, who played QB at Georgia State and worked with Cory for a couple years. CB coach James Williams also joined the visit - perhaps I’m reading too much into it but that’s an interesting inclusion.

The quick scouting report from Prep Redzone:

I’m not sure how much I trust MaxPreps stats, but they have Peoples at 905 yards passing and 9 TDs on the season after transferring in from Archer. If the sub-50% accuracy numbers are correct, you wonder how much of that comes from the fact that Peoples was running for his life back there. The velo’s definitely there. For what it’s worth, South Gwinnett played Stephenson in a spring scrimmage and Peoples went 17/22 for 4 TDs.

As for the long-term outlook, expect a shake-up at QB depending on how this season plays out. Everyone currently in the room is potentially eligible to come back in 2027, with at least three years left for everyone but expected starter Rickie Collins. Something’s gotta give, no matter who wins the QB1 battle this fall. That leaves a lot of uncertainty on the horizon, as expected.

Jayden Juniors - 6’1”, 165 | WR | South Gwinnett HS
One of Peoples’ favorite targets also joined him on the “amazing” visit and committed on Tuesday morning. Juniors picked the Owls over offers from UConn, Liberty, Charlotte, and Troy. Peoples calls him one of the most underrated receivers in the state, and Prep Redzone took a similar stance in their scouting report:

A trend among Juniors and the other early commits: Either a little short, a little thin, or both, but guys who will likely take a step physically between now and getting to campus. Not that Juniors isn’t athletic - he’s a pretty good hurdler and jumped a 38.5” at UGA a day before committing to the Owls. I’d love to see what the 40 and shuttle numbers look like, too. With P4s outsourcing a lot of the non-obvious talent evals and development to schools like Kennesaw, Mack’s program can take the guys who might be an auto-pass at the P4 level based on measurables/production.

Receiver’s also one spot where the Owls will be a little heavy on upperclassmen this season, too, so there’s definitely space in Dan Ellington’s room for more takes at the position. Juniors played both outside and in the slot for South Gwinnett and his contested-catch ability will give him a shot even if he doesn't add a ton of weight.

Michai Rowe - 5’11”, 210 | LB | McEachern HS
Kennesaw was the first D1 program to offer Rowe in the fall, pulling the trigger on the linebacker just a few days after his teammate Zakir Abdul-Salaam committed to the Owls. If Rowe was two or three inches taller, we’re having a much different conversation about his college options. I really like the highlight tape that shows a super instinctual player capable of playing all around the box, blitzing effectively, and dropping into coverage. He wastes no movement once he IDs what's going on.

Anytime you can take a productive starter from a program like McEachern, the answer is yes. That’s as close to IMG as a public school can get based on the amount of talent that churns through. This fall Rowe will partner with four-star UGA commit Joakim Gouda, a 230-pound textbook Mike linebacker, which should be excellent prep as Rowe looks like a fit at Will when he gets on campus. Can KSU hang on if Rowe blows up during his senior season in front of all the coaches with eyes on McEachern?

I’m also not sure what else to do with this info: There’s 10-minute highlight video available of Rowe playing as a six-year old. You gotta watch this.

Terry Hilliard - 6’1”, 310 | OL | Luverne HS (AL)

The highest-ranked of Kennesaw’s first wave of commitments, Hilliard’s the #75 ranked interior offensive lineman in the 247 Composite and the #43 overall player in the state of Alabama, which has been a fertile recruiting ground for the Owls. Hilliard typically lines up at tackle but his 6’1” frame means he’ll end up playing inside in college, with ESPN even cutting out the middle man and listing him as the #5 center in America. I will take it. He’s changing schools for his senior year from what I can tell.

Browsing the other colleges in the picture, the Owls have faced off with a few common foes from the recruiting trail this cycle, as you’d expect. Sure, not every “offer" is an offer by the time a player commits, but this first haul gives Mack a few wins over Dell McGee and Jamey Chadwell, whose Flames had Hilliard scheduled for a visit on June 5.

We’re still somewhat digging out of the flexbone transition when it comes to the offensive line, with homegrown talent up front hard to come by. By necessity, the playing time has gone to transfers and JUCO recruits while the younger classes get up to speed. Mack brought in a trio of three-star lineman in the ‘26 - Anthony Cater Jr., Daniel Cepicky, and Chase Richardson - and Hilliard provides a solid foundation for next year’s freshman class.

Turning our eye back toward this year’s team, Lindy’s was the latest preseason magazine to hit newsstands this week, with an Owls preview by Kai Millette of the Owl Chat Podcast. His projected starting lineup for this fall:

Overall, Lindy’s picks the Owls as the #3 team in CUSA and #92 nationally. Baron Hopson and Marcus Patterson received first-team preseason all-conference honors, and Tywon Christopher got a nod on the second team.