Odom’s first recruiting class lays groundwork for UNLV football

By Mike Grimala (contact)

Thursday, Feb. 2, 2023 | 2 a.m.

If you had to boil down Barry Odom’s blueprint for UNLV football to its simplest terms, it might read something like this:

SEC defense, gadget offense.

That’s obviously a little more reductionist than Odom would like, but the general idea is backed up the coach’s first recruiting class, which he introduced during a National Signing Day news conference on Wednesday.

A look at how the incoming class fits into Odom’s vision for the program.

Defensive overhaul

It has been decades since UNLV fielded a respectable defense, and Odom went to work bolstering that side of the ball, with a focus on proven athletes from power conferences.

The most exciting additions are in the back seven. The secondary and linebacking corps figure to be completely revamped in 2023, with a number of college transfers stepping in and playing right away.

In the defensive backfield, Odom’s priority was athleticism and versatility. He said UNLV could field as many as six defensive backs in certain alignments, and he wants DBs who can play across the spectrum.

“Whether they’re a nickel or a boundary corner or a field safety, a lot of those spots in how we’re going to play are going to be interchangeable,” he said.

One of Odom’s most important signings is 6-foot-2 safety Jaxen Turner. He was a full-time starter as a senior at Arizona last year, racking up 79 tackles and two interceptions against Pac-12 competition. Jalen Frazier is a former Top-100 cornerback from the Class of 2019 who has battled injury throughout his career, but he appeared in 10 games at NC State last season. And College of the Canyons cornerback Quentin Moten is a former BYU recruit who snagged four interceptions in 2022.

At linebacker, the flashiest addition is LSU transfer Zavier Carter, a former 4-star prospect who figures to line up all across the formation for UNLV. He played sparingly for LSU as a sophomore in 2022, but at 6-foot-4, 205 pounds, he is a dynamic athlete who can make plays on the ball.

Odom compared Carter to Drew Sanders, who he coached last year as Arkansas' defensive coordinator. Sanders transferred from Alabama after his sophomore season and flourished in Odom’s system, lining up all over the formation and posting 9.5 sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss in 2022.

Carter could be in line for a similar breakout.

“He can be a defensive end, an edge rusher, he can be a linebacker, he can be a Jack into the boundary,” Odom said. “You find out the skill set of what your players can do, then you build the defense schematically around them.”

Offensive fit

While Odom and defensive coordinator Mike Scherer loaded up on experienced power-conference talent, the offensive braintrust took a different approach to signing day.

With OC Brennan Marion installing his Go-Go system, the offensive additions appear to be more about fit than proven track records or recruiting-star hype. Marion needs players who can operate in his peculiar offense, which features heavy run-blocking lineman, deep-threat receivers and versatile runners.

The Scarlet and Gray made additions in all three areas on signing day.

UNLV lost top receiver Kyle Williams to the transfer portal (Washington State), but instead of dipping into the portal themselves for a replacement, Marion and Odom were content to sign two high school receivers and a 5-foot-7 juco wideout.

Neither of the two prep receivers — Corey Thompson (Lincoln, Calif.) and Rashawn Jackson (Venice, Calif.) — are ranked coming out of high school, and Jacob De Jesus of Modesto JC isn’t a big name, either. But they are fast, all-purpose types who could compete in the return game as well, which is the kind of profile Marion wants at the position.

And though UNLV lost workhorse running back Aidan Robbins to the portal as well (BYU), there are no proven replacements coming in. Two only additions in the backfield are true freshmen Darrien Jones (Park Hill, Mo.) and Jai’Den Thomas (Westlake, Ga.); both are under 200 pounds, but once again they fit Marion’s mold, as they are explosive in space.

The one area where Marion and Odom went for reliability was the offensive line. UNLV has to replace starting center Leif Fautanu after he left for Arizona State, so they brought in senior transfer Jack Hasz from Buffalo to step in and man the middle. Odom also secured a signature from former Arkansas lineman Jalen St. John, who checks in at 6-foot-5, 320 pounds.

Hasz has one year of eligibility remaining, while St. John has two.

“This is going to be a line-of-scrimmage program,” Odom said. “The quickest order to do that is, you’d better be really good up front. Whether you have the people to do it or you have the schematics to do it, you have to blend those things together and find a way to creatively run the ball. You’ve got to establish your identity on how important that is within our program.”

Looking forward

All told, UNLV ended up signing 25 players in Odom’s first recruiting cycle. But given that he was hired late in the process, it’s likely that the 2024 class will be more indicative of how he wants to build the program going forward.

Fourteen of the 25 signees for 2023 came from the high-school ranks. Odom wants to increase that ratio in the future, with more of an emphasis on long-term development and less reliance on transfers with limited remaining eligibility.

And he wants those high-school players to come from Las Vegas.

“In 2024 recruits, we’re going to sign a great number from city of Las Vegas,” Odom predicted. “There are some high-level, elite players in this city in next year’s signing class, and we’ve had almost every one of them on campus in January. That’s just the relationship part of starting the building process of recruiting them, but I want to be relentless in the city. That’s where it starts. It’s easy to talk about, and now we’ve got to go do it.”

UNLV signed one local prospects this time around, with offensive lineman Ed Haynes (Liberty) carrying the torch. He initially committed to Marcus Arroyo in September and stayed true to the Scarlet and Gray through the coaching change.

Look for the 2024 class to feature a lot more local ties.

Mike Grimala can be reached at 702-948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Mike on Twitter at twitter.com/mikegrimala.