According to ancient lore (and 247Sports), the highest rated recruit to ever breathe sweet Jonesboro air was Le-Undo Adams, a four-star linebacker in the class of 2003. Adams recorded a couple tackles as a freshman in an epic 55-0 loss to Ole Miss. After that, Adams’ trail goes cold for me. I can’t find him on a 2004 roster. He just vanished. Was he injured? Did he hang up his spikes? Twenty years later, Le-Undo remains the A-State recruit ratings champ, and I wish him the very best, wherever he may be.

Meanwhile, of Arkansas State’s top 20 highest rated recruits of all time, eight currently huddle on Butch Jones’ roster. What does that mean? Who the [cuss word] knows? Some will see their careers follow the Le-Undo Trajectory. If we’re lucky, we’ll see one or two rise to the level of the Red Wolves’ third-highest rated recruit, Brandon Joiner, a two-year letterman for the Red Wolves and Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year who helped lead the program to the 2011 Sun Belt Conference championship.

Fact is, most legends come out of nowhere. Guys like Ryan Aplin, DeMario Davis and Omar Bayless don’t crack the All Time Top 20 Recruits. Grant Gill (Class of 2010) does. Life’s but a bingo cage, and we’re just balls waiting our turn.

#20 DeAndra Burns Jr. WR (.8558), Class of 2023

ESPN rated the 5’10” prospect from El Dorado as the #105 wide receiver in the nation, and he’s among a number of solid in-state acquisitions Butch Jones and his staff have landed in recent years.

#18 Brian Alston, DL, (.8585), Class of 2023

ESPN’s #109 defensive end in the country, the 6’2″, 262-pound freshman may see some action this season, considering how shallow defensive line appears to be.

#16 Keyon Crawford, DE, (.8607) Class of 2022

Crawford has already dialed up 13 tackled in 10 games in his freshman season. Now bigger and wiser, Crawford projects to become the program’s next Director of Disruption.

#14 Clyde Curry, WR (.8619) Class of 2023

Curry was the cherry atop Butch Jones’ recruiting all this off season. The 6’2″ wideout was a 3-star recruit by 247Sports, which listed him as the #94 wide receiver in the nation

#8 Jaxon Dailey, QB (.8681), Class of 2022

Currently embroiled in a three-way QB fight, Dailey was the prize of Butch Jones’ crop in 2022. The southpaw was rated as the #43 quarterback in the nation and #7 overall player in the state of Iowa according to 247Sports’ composite rankings.

#7 Elijah Zollicoffer, OL (.8685), Class of 2022

Easy, big fella! The 6’5″ 330-pound sophomore will likely be seeing plenty of reps this season. Named ESPN’s #79 offensive tackle nationally as a prospect, Zollicoffer was also a standout on the defensive line.

#6 Miller McCrumby, TE, (.8704) Class of 2022

Like Zollicoffer and Crawford, McCrumby looks to be one of those “Class of ’22” guys who shine in 2023. As a prospect, 247Sports cited McCrumby as the #36 tight end in the nation, and at 6’3″ 225-pounds he makes for a big QB target to hit.

#4 Cam Jefferey, LB (.8741) Class of 2021

Jefferey hasn’t missed a game since arriving to Jonesboro, appearing in all 24 contests. Linebacker is a deep position for A-State this season, but with veteran Jaden Harris departing the team, we may see more of this highly-touted talented delivering hits for the Red Wolves.

GRAPHIC: Some help from the A-State Roster Page