Friday was filled with rampant speculation about the next player that would join the Tar Heels 2021 class following an active night on Twitter from a group of currently committed recruits on Thursday night. On Saturday morning, that suspense finally came to an end as the Tar Heels added their eighteenth commitment of the 2021 cycle and addressed one of their few remaining needs in the class.
Shortly after 10:00 AM, 2021 3✮ OLB Trevion Stevenson announced his commitment to Carolina via social media. This completes what appears to be a flip from ACC Coastal rival Pittsburgh, the school that Stevenson decommitted from on Thursday afternoon. He was also committed to Old Dominion back in November, but decommitted in January following Bobby Wilder’s firing. Stevenson also held offers from Pittsburgh, Mississippi State, Texas and others.
As a junior last year at Phoebus High School in Hampton, VA, Stevenson finished with 85 total tackles, 16.0 tackles for a loss and 15.0 sacks, earning an All-Peninsula District honorable mention and landing on the All-757 junior first team. While his stats aren’t available beyond his junior season, Stevenson did earn All-757 Freshman/Sophomore first team honors at linebacker as a sophomore in 2018.
While Stevenson may only be a low-end 3✮ according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, throw on the film and you’ll see why he has as many offers as he does. For one, his length and athleticism is impressive and makes him the perfect fit for the RUSH end position in the Tar Heels current defensive scheme. He uses his long arms extremely well on tape, rarely allowing offensive tackles to get their hands inside on him. While he might not be the most powerful pass rusher, his hands do appear to have a little bit of pop to them, meaning he is not a player who has to win battles purely based off of his speed. Stevenson is a player that will be looked at as a bit of a project based on his size and limited run-stopping ability, but there is a lot of upside here. This is a strong addition for this staff, especially at a position of need where they just lost a expected commitment from the weekend prior.
With the commitment, the Tar Heels currently have eighteen commitments in the 2021 class. With Jordan Hancock’s decommitment from Clemson the other day paired with this commitment, the Tar Heels currently have the No. 2 overall class in the 2021 cycle according to 247Sports Composite team rankings, trailing only Ohio State’s historic class. The class also currently ranks as the top class in the ACC.