Georgia Tech Recruiting: Meet the Recruits - Wide Receiver Christian Philpott

As a Recruit:

Christian Philpott committed to Georgia Tech out of North Florida Christian High School in Tallahassee, Florida. He played wide receiver, safety, and returned kicks. Listed as 6'3", 203 lbs. by 247 Sports, Philpott is another physical receiver that should have the ability to fit Paul Johnson's offense perfectly.

Philpott has a three-star, 5.7 rating according to Rivals. He committed in June of 2014 over offers from numerous Power-5 conference schools including Louisville, Ole Miss, NC State, Penn State, Virginia, and Wisconsin. That is a very strong list that proves Georgia Tech should be excited to get a guy that so many schools coveted.

Film:

The first handful of plays tell you most of what you need to know about Philpott. The first highlight is a quick screen pass that he takes for a touchdown. That's a play we saw Demariyus Thomas make a killing with during his time at Tech and a play that CPJ used sparingly last season with DeAndre Smelter and Darren Waller. It's huge to have a guy that can repeatedly make teams pay for lagging off of the receiver and focusing on the run. It seems like Philpott could be the guy. The next few plays show Philpott going up and making plays on the ball on deep passes. The biggest key here is that he catches the ball at the top of his jump and doesn't even let the smaller corners have a chance to break it up. That's another thing Smelter was great at and could be missed if another receiver doesn't step up. We also noted that incoming freshman Harland Howell seemed to excel at that as well. Both of these guys have very similar abilities and could be a dynamic duo in the years to come.

What to Expect:

Due to Smelter and Waller's departures, the wide receiver position is very open for the Yellow Jackets. Micheal Summers is the only returning receiver with much experience, while guys like Ricky Jeune and Antonio Messick have seen very limited time on the field. Summers figures to see plenty of playing time this season due to good blocking and knowing the offense, but he isn't exactly a big time threat catching the ball. I've liked what I've seen from Messick as a threat, but Philpott has a legitimate chance to see the field his freshman season. Between him, Howell, and Brad Stewart, two of them could easily avoid a redshirt and make an impact in 2015. Either way, Philpott looks to have a promising career as a Jacket as a playmaker receiver - whether it's this season or further down the road.

Welcome to Atlanta, Christian! We all look forward to watching you play on Saturdays for a long time!

What do you think of Christian's senior year film? Should he be given a chance to play as a freshman? Will he continue the tradition of Wide-Receiver-U?