Prize and Size: Picked the Buffs over 19 reported offers, including offers from mid-tier Power 4 schools (NC State, Oklahoma State, Indiana, Pitt) and most of the MAC. McPherson was listed at 6’5.5’ and 240 pounds on most recruiting sites. CU has his official size at 6’4” 250 pounds. The Colorado altitude shrinks most players about an inch and a half.
High school: Transferred to IMG Academy in 2023 after finishing his sophomore season at Matin County in Port St. Lucie, Florida. IMG Academy is a powerhouse football program and, for the record, is no longer the Nick Bollettieri Tennis Academy.
The Scooooooop
This is an interesting one. There is a material gap between McPherson’s recruiting rankings and his productivity at IMG Academy in 2024 (although, to be fair, rivals.com revised their rankings and McPherson shot up to the #31 defensive lineman in the nation). This past season he led IMG Academy in sacks and tackles for loss — with 9 sacks and 14 TFLs — while racking up 52 tackles while playing on a very, very salty defensive team.
McPherson led IMG in TFLs and sacks while playing on a team that is a collegiate farm team with teammates including fellow Buff (and 4 star player) London Merritt, LB Gavin Nix (signed at Oregon), LB Nathaniel Owusu-Boateng (signed at Michigan), Dylon Worthen (signed to play at East Carolina), as well as 2026 4 stars Jake Kreul and Cameron McHaney — among others! You may know IMG because it produced current CU left tackle, and future 1st round draft pick, Jordan Seaton as well as current CU center, and future ATM, Cash Cleveland.
McPherson didn’t play much football his junior year at IMG – only 1 game — which probably explains why he was relatively under-recruited relative to his productivity. He committed this Summer to Oklahoma State, which may have further limited recruiting interest. While this may not amount to a lot, there were some rumblings out of Mount Champions’ Center that McPherson more than held his own during bowl week practices and that he might be further along than originally thought. That’s a BuffsBlog.com scoop for you!
Run the tape! http://www.hudl.com/v/2QRVFY
McPherson is a bit of a tweener – not quite big enough to be a #WarDaddy on the inside, and not agile enough to be an stand-up OLB. Most analysts believe that his future is probably as a 3 technique, and I suspect that’s where he ends up at Colorado after putting on 30-40 pounds.
While McPherson’s status as a bit of a tweener may have limited his recruiting, I think Colorado believes he can be a 3-technique after putting on some weight and be a difference maker on the defensive line.
But how will he fit into the CU multi-verse? Apparently pretty well. McPherson is already well prepped for the CU limelight, having made his commitment official on Shannon Sharpe’s and Chad Ochocinco’s “Nitghtcap” show. I didn’t see it, because I assume “Nightcap” airs after my 9:30 pm.
Overall Excitement Level: Three Stars (out of 5). It’s probable that McPherson is at least one year away from meaningfully contributing as he needs one more year to put on weight before he’s ready to be a 3-tech #WarDaddy. In the “old system” of college football he’d probably be headed for a redshirt season. However, in the current “why diet when the comet is fast approaching?” world of college football where we don’t think much beyond the next 6 months, I suspect he’ll play some this fall. The early chatter out of Dal Ward is another positive sign that he’ll outperform his recruiting rankings.
-John