Notre Dame Signs WR Deion Colzie
The Notre Dame Fighting Irish have signed wide receiver Deion Colzie.
DEION COLZIE PROFILE
Hometown: Athens, Ga.
High School: Athens Academy
Height: 6-4
Weight: 195
2019 Stats: 39 catches, 867 yards, 22.2 YPC, 13 TD
IB Grade: 4.0 (Top 150 caliber player)
Upside Grade: 5.0
Offers: Notre Dame, Alabama, Georgia, Florida, Auburn, Oregon, Penn State, Michigan, Florida State, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Kentucky, Minnesota, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Duke, Georgia Tech
Recruited By: Del Alexander, Tommy Rees
ESPN: 4-star - No. 75 overall
247Sports: 4-star - No. 116 overall
Rivals: 4-star - No. 144 overall
Composite: 4-star - No. 102 overall
FILM ANALYSIS
The first thing that stands out about Colzie is his tremendous size. He's every bit of 6-4, and his length is just as impressive as his height. Although listed between 190-205 pounds, Colzie has the kind of frame that reminds me a great deal of Miles Boykin, meaning he could end up as a 6-4, 225-pound type of player that can stretch the field and dominate on the outside.
Colzie wasn't challenged much in high school, so he didn't have to use his length and strength to dominate as much due to the low level of opposition. In college he'll either struggle to adjust, or the uptick in competition will cause him to get the most out of his game. If the latter happens he could develop into an outstanding wideout, one as good - if not better - than Boykin. If what I'm told about his character and work ethic is accurate, expect that to happen, and you'll see Colzie's enormous upside (see below) take hold.
Colzie has a natural feel as a route runner, possessing the foot quickness and body control to be precise and clean with his top ends, and once he develops the nuances of the position he'll become a very difficult matchup. Colzie is also athletic enough to do damage after the catch. In that way his game is similar to former Irish star Chase Claypool.
The Athens star has top-notch hands and ball skills. He tracks the deep ball well, can make contested catches, shows supreme confidence in his hands and he is more than willing to work the middle of the field.
NOTRE DAME FIT
Colzie fits ideally into the boundary position in the Notre Dame offense. His speed is above average for his size, but his size allows him to make plays even when covered, which we've seen from Javon McKinley and Boykin.
Colzie is far more advanced as a route runner than McKinley and Boykin were as prep players, and that is an important aspect of the boundary position. It should allow him to work quickly into the rotation, assuming he's given the opportunity.
The question at this point is does he see a jump in explosiveness and speed. If he doesn't he'll be a McKinley/Boykin type of player. That means he'll be good, but not truly a game-changing, dominant player that Chase Claypool and Michael Floyd were.
One thing to consider is that Colzie is young for his class, so I think he has more room to grow from a size and explosiveness standpoint. That is why I gave him a 5-star upside grade.
JOHN GARCIA, SI ALL-AMERICAN ON COLZIE
"Notre Dame always seems to have an alpha-looking WR1 on the edge with great size and physical ability and that's Deion Colzie in a nutshell. 6-4, 200 pounds with as imposing a physical presence as he is dominant against north Georgia competition before or after the catch. He plays with good build-up speed and displays outstanding ball skills and body control in crowds. While he likely will not have a very diverse route tree in college, he has functional athleticism and explosiveness to fit as a vertical threat and back-shoulder specialist at the next level and possibly even beyond."
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