BC Football Summer Preview: Incoming Freshmen
· Yahoo Sports
Boston College’s 2026 recruiting class may have been slow to materialize, but has come together beautifully, 25 members strong. It’s not easy for a freshman to make a major impact, especially in the transfer portal era, but between injuries and performance, a handful always do. Last season we saw meaningful contribution from receiver Dawson Pough, defensive backs Ashton Cunningham and Marcus Upton, offensive lineman Robert Smith IV, running back Bo MacCormack III, QB Shaker Reisig, and specialist Andy Quinn. The headliner, of course, was freshman All-American tight end Kaelan Chudzinski.. So who has a chance to break through in year one?
Defensive Line: Mason Leak, Demetrius Thompson, Dominic Funke, Mac Fitzgerald, Gavin Neil, Cameron McGee, Jackson Carlisle
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The highest rated players in the class are Mason Leak and Demetrius Thompson, a pair of four-star edge rushers from Connecticut and Missouri respectively. Both were among the top players in their respective states and will look to carve out roles in Ted Roof’s new defense or at least on special teams. That said, BC added portal help up front, so immediate snaps won’t come easy. Still, given how much the defense struggled last season, there’s opportunity. Dominic Funke is the third defensive end in the class, a top-10 player out of Xaverian Brothers staying home. Inside, local product Mac Fitzgerald, Chicago’s Gavin Neil, Georgia native Cameron McGee, and Alabama native Jackson Carlisle join a group tasked with fixing a run defense that one of the ACC’s worst.
Quarterbacks: Femi Babalola, Anthony Coellner
Quarterback is as always the main draw of the class, and ever more given the turnover on that front. The name to watch is Femi Babalola, a 6-4, top-25 national recruit out of Tennessee. Babalola excels at extending plays and has a talented arm, showcasing well over spring practices in March. He’s a solid runner but can quickly get the ball out. Indiana native Anthony Coellner is the second QB in the class, a very accurate passer who comes from a winning background. With transfers Mason McKenzie and Grayson Wilson ahead of them, it may take time—but Babalola in particular feels like a name to watch sooner rather than later.
Running Backs: Sedric Addison, Billy Barrett
Elsewhere on offense, Sedric Addison arrives as a versatile, do-it-all back and made a strong impression this spring. He’s joined by Billy Barrett, a late addition out of New Jersey. On theme, BC had one of the worst run games in the conference and lost Turbo Richard to Indiana. They bring in some workhorses from the transfer portal ahead, but expect Addison to get in the mix. O’Brien has not been shy about playing his young backs over the past few seasons.
Wide receivers Kelvin Brown Jr., and DJ Biggins
The Eagles lost a lot of production on the receiving front, among the few bright spots. Both incoming freshmen are on the smaller side, but there are snaps to be won. Biggins is a top 5 prospect out of New England, while Brown is a 5-10 speedster from Jacksonville.
O-Line: Dean Ruksnaitis, Marek Jin, Lawrence Iyalekhue, Marc Antunes Jr., Bruno Werner
Antunes and Werner stand out immediately. Both are an enormous, 6’8 and 6’9. Antunes is a local kid from Catholic Memorial and a four-star prospect, top-5 in state, and top-75 nationally. Werner meanwhile hails from the NFL Academy originally from Germany. He was a top rated international prospect and joins a nice pipeline the Eagles have going with the the international academy. This is another area hard done by graduation, so it won’t take much to see the field.
Defensive Backs:Gerald Green Jr., Da’Jon Green, Xavier Myers, Jordan Rodriguez
The defensive backfield usually has the most likely immediate contributors. The additions of Da’Jon Green and Xavier Myers are the freshmen most likely to push for early snaps. Both have good size and should get early special teams work along. Rodriguez at safety got on the stat sheet with an interception late in the spring session.
Linebackers: Callen Beveridge, Steve Klein
This is probably a more difficult position to break through early. Both Beveridge and Klein bring a little more size than BC’s current crop of linebackers, but they’ll need more time to bulk up. Klein comes in as a top-15 prospect out of Jersey and played both sides of the ball.
Specialists: Jonathan Hewitt
We wrap things up with kicker and punter Jonathan Hewitt. The Ohio native was a top 10 kicking prospect in the country. While Luca Lombardo was nearly perfect on his scoring duties and Andy Quinn largely took care of kickoffs, the punting position is more open (although Quinn took a couple last year and was more specialized on that front coming in). Hewitt could pretty quickly takeover kickoff duties, and if there’s any mental blocker on field goals and extra points, O’Brien will be quick to make a change.