The AAC may have lost some firepower with SMU now in the ACC, but there are numerous wide receivers worth knowing entering the 2024 season. From Memphis’ Roc Taylor to FAU’s Marlyn Johnson, here are the 2024 AAC WR Rankings.
AAC 2024 WR Rankings
10) Dante Wright, Temple Owls
It’s been a long road for Dante Wright. He began his career with a bang, hauling in 57 receptions for 807 yards and four scores as a true freshman at Colorado State. But that wasn’t all, as he recorded 214 yards and two TDs on the ground and 135 more yards on punt returns. However, Wright has been chasing that success ever since.
Injuries and a pandemic-shortened season limited his output over the next two years, causing him to redshirt and enter the transfer portal in 2022. Operating as Temple’s WR3, Wright produced 507 yards and four scores on 39 receptions, adding 58 yards as a punt returner.
With a new QB, a new WRs coach, and five new WRs, there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding Wright in 2024. He returns as the team’s top WR, returner, and leader in all-purpose yards, and with 13 of 19 players in the positon group owning zero snaps at the FBS level, he’ll be tasked with carrying the unit.
Drops have been an issue, but the Owls also utilized Wright in a role he hadn’t played before. At CSU, he spent the majority of his time from the slot and did a significant amount of his damage after the catch. But last year, Temple deployed him on the outside, which isn’t the best spot for a 5’9″ and 180-pound WR.
9) De’Corian Clark, UTSA Roadrunners
De’Corian “JT” Clark suffered a non-contact torn ACL in November 2022. Last summer, the star pass catcher and the coaching staff seemed optimistic he’d be able to suit up at some point during the 2023 season.
Clark didn’t see a down outside of a handful of snaps in Week 6, and his outlook for 2024 is unclear. When asked about Clark’s status for the season opener, Traylor said it’s to be determined, but the WR is in a much better physical and mental place than last year.
Last November, Clark underwent a second surgery on his ACL following setbacks. After the news broke, Traylor said the senior’s recovery timeline was “10 months at a minimum,” which would be this September.
The sixth-year senior is by far the most experienced and largest WR on the roster, standing 6’3″ and 215 pounds. He proved to be a consistent perimeter threat from 2021-22, generating 50+ receptions, 740+ yards, and 7+ TDs each year. If Clark is able to regain his prior form, the Roadrunners will have one of the deadliest WR duos in the conference.
8) Winston Wright Jr., East Carolina Pirates
There’s a bit of a trend with the bottom of the top 10 in the 2024 AAC WR Rankings: older athletes with immense potential but no guarantees. Following three years at West Virginia, Winston Wright Jr. transferred to Florida State in 2022 and was expected to feature heavily in the offense. Yet, a car accident that March crushed his aspirations, as he suffered a season-ending leg injury.
Wright missed the 2022 season, and although he battled his way back to full speed in spring 2023, he fell too far down the depth chart. With four receptions for 36 yards under his belt through the first five games, Wright stepped away from the team and ultimately landed with East Carolina in December.
Across 33 games and 16 starts with the Mountaineers, Wright caught 129 passes for 1,388 yards and seven TDs while returning 50 kickoffs for 1,236 yards and two scores. Now two years removed from that production, how much does Wright — more specifically, his body — have left in the tank?
Assuming health, he could be one of the most dangerous WRs on the gridiron in the AAC with his pure speed and elusiveness. But until we see it, Wright isn’t even the best WR on his team.
7) Mario Williams, Tulane
Mario Williams may be coming off the least productive season of his three-year career, but there’s a reason he made the Shrine Bowl 1000 watch list. He initially flashed his playmaking ability with Oklahoma in 2021 but followed head coach Lincoln Riley and QB Caleb Williams to USC.
His first season in Southern California was his best, as he took 40 catches for 631 yards and five TDs. Yet, after starting the first few games and struggling with drops in 2023, Williams was relegated to a rotational role and finished with a 29-305-2 receiving line.
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Now, with Oregon transfer Ty Thompson and former Troy offensive coordinator Joe Craddock at Tulane, Williams is primed to explode. In Craddock’s first season as OC with the Trojans (2022), the team ranked fourth in the nation with nine passes of 50+ yards.
And last year, Troy finished second in the Sun Belt in passing yards per completion (13.30) while winning back-to-back conference titles — the only ones in program history.
6) Devin McCuin, UTSA Roadrunners
Jeff Traylor has yet to win fewer than seven games across his four years in San Antonio, but with longtime QB Frank Harris gone, it will be difficult to keep the streak alive in 2024. Harris isn’t the only notable member of the passing attack who is no longer on UTSA’s roster, with last year’s leading WRs (Joshua Cephus and Tykee Ogle-Kellogg) also gone.
Fret not, Roadrunner fans, as Devin McCuin is only getting started. As a true freshman, he racked up 546 yards and three touchdowns on 42 receptions, showcasing the skill set that drew the interest of Traylor and Co. With McCuin lining up across from Clark, new QB Owen McCown should be able to keep the Roadrunners on track.
5) Chase Sowell, East Carolina Pirates
Chase Sowell entered the collegiate ranks as a three-star recruit at Colorado in 2022, but after tearing his labrum, he redshirted the season and transferred out with a new coaching staff coming in. He chose East Carolina as his next home, and although the team suffered its worst record since 2003 (2-10), Sowell found success on the field.
After riding the pine in the first two games of the year, he cemented his place as the team’s WR1. Despite Alex Flinn, Mason Garcia, and Raheim Jeter combining for a 53% completion rate and a 7:14 TD-to-INT ratio, Sowell led the team in receptions (47) and receiving yards (622).
He only entered the end zone once in spite of his TD-friendly 6’4″ frame, but with former Missouri and Miami QB Jake Garcia in place, Sowell and the pylon should become familiar quickly in 2024.
4) DeMeer Blankumsee, Memphis Tigers
DeMeer Blankumsee tortured the MAC in his final season at Toledo, and Memphis reaped the benefits of his transfer last year. He forced missed tackles off of screens and took the top off of defenses from the slot en route to a 53-901-7 receiving line, highlighting an immediate connection with QB Seth Henigan.
Blankumsee rose to the Tigers’ most formidable opponents, generating two catches for 76 yards against Iowa State, nine for 114 against SMU, six for 142 against USF, and six for 108 against Tulane. Speed kills, and Blankumsee knows when to unleash his burners and when to throttle down to attack weak spots in zone.
3) Kamdyn Benjamin, Tulsa Golden Hurricane
Quarterback play was not Tulsa’s strong suit last season, with four passers taking snaps under center. The result? A 56.8% completion rate, 7.4 yards per attempt, 20 TDs, and 19 INTs. But Kamdyn Benjamin didn’t mind, as he exploded for 727 yards and eight scores on 47 receptions.
He was far and away the most effective pass catcher for Tulsa and ended the season on fire: 6-143-1 against East Carolina, 8-93-1 against North Texas, and 8-157-2 against Tulane. Benjamin isn’t a contested-catch connoisseur or a broken-tackle bandit, but he knows how to get open and has the speed to work all three levels of the field.
The craziest part? Benjamin had just three catches in his four years prior. Safe to say, the Golden Hurricane uncovered a diamond in the rough.
2) Sean Atkins, USF Bulls
Alex Golesh engineered one of the greatest one-season turnarounds in his first year at the helm for USF. The Bulls went from 1-11 to 7-6 and won their first bowl game since 2017. Most of the team’s success falls on the offense’s shoulders, especially WR Sean Atkins.
After operating in a bit part for the first four years of his career, Atkins erupted for program records in receptions (92) and receiving yards (1,054) while reeling in the second-most single-season TDs (seven).
The former walk-on is undersized at 5’10” and 183 pounds, but he meshes perfectly with Golesh’s scheme in the slot, devouring from the middle of the field.
1) Roc Taylor, Memphis Tigers
The Tigers had one of the best aerial assaults in the country in 2023, ranking ninth in passing yards per game (306.5) and 11th in passing TDs (33). Thus, it’s not surprising they have two players in the top 10 of the 2024 WR AAC Rankings, three in the top 20, and they could have four if Jyaire Shorter returns to his 2022 form.
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Roc Taylor is the best of the bunch, standing 6’3″ and 215 pounds, with the ability to win anywhere on the field. He became just the fifth player in Memphis history to amass 1,000 receiving yards in a season (69-1,083-4) and earned second-team All-AAC honors for his efforts. The only nitpick in the do-it-all playmaker’s game is his lack of TDs, but he should enjoy positive regression there entering Year 2 with Henigan.
2024 AAC WR Rankings | 11-20
11) Damon Ward, North Texas
12) Amare Thomas, UAB
13) Naiem Simmons, USF
14) Jeremiah Ballard, Tulsa
15) Justin Olson, Isaiah Myers, and O’Mega Blake, Charlotte
16) Koby Drake, Memphis
17) Landon Sides and Blair Conwright, North Texas
18) Landon Ransom-Goelz and Rawson MacNeill, Rice
19) Zae Baines, Temple
20) Marlyn Johnson, FAU
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