Jake Lawler to UNC: Tar Heels Land 4-Star DE Prospect

Jake Lawler didn't wait until national signing day to make his decision. He's headed to the North Carolina Tar Heels. The 4-star defensive end made his announcement Sunday in a Twitter post:

Lawler later shared a video of his commitment:

Lawler, who stars at South Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte, North Carolina, is the No. 185 player in the Class of 2017, per 247Sports.  

He ranks ninth among weak-side defensive ends and is the third-best player in the state of North Carolina overall. The Tar Heels were considered the leader in the pack throughout the process, with 60 percent of 247Sports experts predicting he'd land in Chapel Hill. His commitment came a day after attending North Carolina's Junior Day. The Duke Blue Devils and South Carolina Gamecocks also received consideration.

Lawler made 72 tackles and had 13 sacks during his junior campaign. 

“Jake is a special kid—not just in the way he plays, but in the way he does everything," South Meck head coach Rocky White said, per Don Callahan of Scout. “He comes to the early morning workouts. He comes to 2:30 workouts. If we had midnight workouts, Jake would be there. He’s a true road warrior in the weight room… If you had 100 Jake Lawlers, you’d go undefeated. He has good size. He has a fast get-off and uses his hands well.”

He'll return as a senior looking to make more improvements to his size than anything. Listed at 6'3" and 225 pounds, Lawler doesn't have the strength to play defensive end at a major program yet. His speed off the snap is exceptional, but he'd get overpowered by ACC offensive linemen at this point. It's possible Lawler could move to outside linebacker if the additional bulk slows him down; we'll just have to wait to see how he develops over the next 12 months.

As it stands, North Carolina is off to a stellar start with its 2017 class. Lawler is the fourth recruit to give his verbal, with all four ranked as 4-star players. Offensive tackle Jonah Melton and wide receivers Tyler Smith and J.T. Cauthen are already signed up to play for head coach Larry Fedora. Lawler's commitment should see North Carolina push its way close to top-10 status among 2017 classes, as it was already 12th.

Comparatively, the Tar Heels arguably have a better class in place for 2017 than they do for 2016. Heading into signing day, they've landed only one 4-star recruit among 25 players and sit 34th in 247Sports' rankings.

Fresh off an 11-win season and with the ink still drying on a fat new contract, Fedora seems to have his program on an upward swing. Lawler's commitment is just the latest piece of evidence. 

Follow Tyler Conway (@jtylerconway) on Twitter