Jackson State, South Dakota Extend Offers to Top 2027 Defensive Prospects

FCS programs are hunting early in the 2027 class, and the latest wave of offers puts a pair of defensive prospects squarely on the radar. Jackson State extended a scholarship to Marcus Muse, a 6'3", 280-pound defensive tackle out of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, after defensive line coach Raekwon Bethea made the call. South Dakota went after Cash Coleman, a 6'1", 180-pound cornerback from LaGrange Park, Illinois, with the offer coming through defensive coordinator Billy Kirch.

Both programs are moving at the kind of pace that signals genuine interest rather than volume offers. A defensive tackle with Muse's size at this stage of high school development is exactly the prospect FCS programs need to identify early before the FBS pipeline gets involved. Coleman's 6'1" frame at cornerback gives him the length to match up against bigger receivers, which is premium currency in the Missouri Valley and its conference neighbors.

Lindenwood was equally busy, and head coach Jed Stugart made his mark on two prospects who had never held a Division I offer before. Kevin Gilyard, a 6'5", 328-pound offensive tackle from St. Louis, earned that first offer after a conversation with Stugart. So did Teddy Graff, a 6'5", 220-pound tight end from Nashville, Tennessee. Getting to two prospects at their first Division I offer is exactly how programs build relationships that actually convert into commitments.

Murray State head coach Jody Wright offered Aidden White of Moody, Alabama, listed at 5'9" and 160 pounds as an athlete. The designation is worth noting: "athlete" at this stage often signals a program sees positional flexibility before settling on a specific role.

The junior day circuit is also generating buzz. Kearney, Missouri quarterback Carter Temple, 6'3" and 215 pounds, already holds offers from North Dakota, South Dakota, Illinois State, and Western Illinois, with planned visits to Missouri and Northern Illinois still ahead. After attending South Dakota State's junior day, he was direct in his assessment: "I like how they have a really good winners mentality, and I can see that they are going to win this year," Temple said. Waukee Northwest offensive lineman Gabe Winter, 6'3" and 255 pounds out of Waukee, Iowa, came away from the same event equally impressed. "I think the SDSU football program is a great, well-run operation, and they are going to stay at the top of FCS for a long time," Winter said.

For programs like Jackson State and South Dakota, landing a phone call in a recruit's sophomore year is the opening move. The offer to Muse and Coleman is the first entry on a two-year ledger that will tell us far more about where both prospects eventually sign.