WSU football recruiting: 2021 commits

First-year Washington State Cougars coach Nick Rolovich has had a tall task in front of him: Assembling his first full class amid a global pandemic that has made on-campus visits impossible.

While the 2021 class got off to a slow start — not seeing its first pledge until the beginning of May — Rolovich and his staff have since stepped up in a huge way, filling the class with the kinds of players that made his predecessor so successful.

The current top consensus player in the class is junior college transfer CJ Moore, a former four-star receiver with the Oklahoma State Cowboys who should be expected to step in immediately on the outside — he’s got a silky-smooth glide when he runs that will remind fans of former WSU receiver Tavares Martin Jr.

Behind him is quarterback Xavier Ward, whose stock has been on the rise among evaluators since his commitment to WSU. Ward, from southern California, committed on the heels of a strong performance at a scouting camp. He’s young (just 16 heading into his senior season) and has raw tools for days that he’s still growing into.

Behind them is Jaden Hicks, a physical safety prospect from powerhouse Bishop Gorman in Las Vegas, and right behind him is wide receiver commit Tsion Nunnally (who holds an offer from the Washington Huskies).

One of the other top prospects is defensive lineman Xavier Young out of Tallahassee, Florida — he holds offers from Maryland and Virginia Tech. Also highlighting the class is defensive lineman Andrew Edson, who is the top in-state recruit in the class and a late riser out of Mt. Si High School, which advanced to the state 4A semifinal in 2019.

WSU also has added a trio of transfers to the class, each of whom has the ability to contribute immediately thanks to the NCAA’s relaxed transfer rules this year. They’re led by former Tennessee quarterback Jarrett Guarantano, a former 4-star recruit with plenty of SEC starts under his belt who should challenge incumbent Jayden de Laura for the starting spot this year. Joining him are linebacker Ben Wilson, a western Washington native who was a high-three-star recruit in high school and had been at TCU, and defensive back Chris Jackson, another high-three-star high schooler who had been at Michigan State.

There have been a few defections:

• Cornerback Elisha Lloyd (✯✯✯/0.8552/flipped to Utah)
• Linebacker Jayhvion Gipson (✯✯✯/0.8464/flipped to TCU)
• Wide receiver Joseph Manjack (✯✯✯/0.8424/flipped to USC)
• Linebacker Fred Thompson (✯✯✯/0.8407)

Who else will join them? This table is updated as commitments, decommitments and national letters of intent happen, as well as when rankings change. Click on the player’s name to read our story on their commitment; click on the stars to see the player’s profile at 247Sports: