In the 100 days leading up to signing day 2015, RecruitingNation will be looking back at our ESPN recruiting rankings from 2006 to the present and count down the best player of the past 10 years at each ranking position, No. 100 to No. 1.
Eugene "Geno" Smith, No. 97 in 2009 class
Smith was a star as a junior and senior at Miramar High, playing for former West Virginia quarterback Damon Cogdell. When the Broward County 2007 Player of the Year picked the Mountaineers over Alabama, LSU and Florida State, it did not come as a surprise because of the close relationship between Smith and Cogdell. Smith was recruited to Morgantown by then-West Virginia assistant Doc Holliday.
At West Virginia, Smith developed into one of college football’s top quarterbacks. After appearing in five games as a freshman, he started all 13 games as a sophomore, throwing for 2,763 yards and 24 touchdowns and becoming the first Mountaineers quarterback to throw for more than 2,500 yards since 1998.
As a junior, he again started all 13 games, culminating with a 2012 Discover Orange Bowl MVP award after West Virginia’s 70-33 lopsided win over Clemson. He set five Orange Bowl records and tied three NCAA all-time bowl records with a 407 yards passing, 433 total yards, six touchdown passes and seven total touchdowns. He was also named first-team All-Big East as he threw for 4,385 yards and 31 TDs.
As a senior, Smith again threw for more than 4,000 yards and 42 touchdowns in 13 games, closing out his stellar college career with 39 consecutive starts and 11,662 passing yards and 98 touchdowns. West Virginia was 26-13 with Smith as the starter.
He was selected in the second round of the 2013 NFL draft by the New York Jets and was the starting quarterback until this week.
Honorable mention: Isiah “Juice” Williams. Williams was No. 97 in the Class of 2006. Williams threw for 8,037 yards and 56 touchdowns and rushed for 2,557 yards and 18 scores in four years at Illinois. A former Chicago high school star, Williams was second-team All-Big Ten in 2008 and honorable mention All-Big Ten in 2007 and 2009. He is a four-year veteran of the Continental Indoor Football League.
Several prospects ranked No. 97 were drafted and played in the NFL. Cornerback Curtis Brown, No. 97 in 2007, played at Texas and was a third-round selection in the 2011 draft by the Pittsburgh Steelers and has played in 34 career games. Wide receiver Chris Harper (2008) played at Oregon and Kansas State and was a fourth-round selection in the 2013 draft by the Seattle Seahawks. He played in four games last year for the Green Bay Packers.