College Football Recruiting 2012: Top 5 Sleeper Recruits With Huge Potential

Potential. It's a word that can be a gift and a curse, as it always raises enormous expectations. Some players realize, achieve and reach theirs, while others falter and decline. Every player has it, but some have more amounts than others.

With this piece, we're going to take a look at some "sleeper" or underrated players and tell you the very best five that have the most potential to become stars in college. Don't forget, some of the best players we have seen in college football were not 5-star or mega hyped recruits.

Ask Justin Blackmon.

5. Travis Blanks, DB

Before most of the rankings and lists came out, when I watched Blanks' tape, I was convinced he'd be a highly ranked recruit. He's a 6'1", 195 pound DB that can play safety or corner, and I have him as one of the most physical cover men in the country.

Blanks has great length and uses his long arms and jamming ability to bully receivers on the perimeter upon their release. He's a tremendous athlete and has great hips and coverage instincts and is adamant about playing corner.

Scout.com has him only at No.162 on their list, but I think he should be moved higher.

He favors a top seven of USC, Florida, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Auburn, Nebraska and Alabama.

4. Timothy Cole, LB

Cole has a big red flag in my book, as watching his tape, I question the consistency of his natural instincts. But in my scouting and evaluation litmus test, he does have one of the imperative traits overall as Cole has solid play speed.

With his instincts, I wonder if he will be helped by the factors of good college coaching, experience, reps and film study. If so, then combine that with his range, 6'2", 220 pound frame, athleticism and speed and you may have a diamond in the rough type of player.

Watching how he develops at Texas will be very interesting throughout his career.

3. Ty Darlington, OC

6'3", 275 pounds, Darlington knows he is not the biggest lineman in the world, so he gets it done via agility, toughness and technique. Scout.com has him ranked No. 202 out of their top 300.

He's a sleeper who I think can play guard, but will likely develop into a solid center. He shows the athleticism, toughness and smarts to play the pivot and his film shows a trench man with great foot quickness.

Darlington shows easy movement and can be used on pulls and traps from the center position. He's underrated in my opinion and has a chance to be a great college player for either Oklahoma, Iowa, Auburn or Miami.

2. Malik Gilmore, WR

I went and saw Gilmore workout at the LA Under Armour combine in the winter, and he was the most impressive WR there. He stands easily in the 6'3"-6'4" range and weighs around 200 pounds.

He won't wow you with tremendous burst, but he has a long stride to eat up cushion quickly, above average speed and tremendous length. In fact, it's his length that gives him such a high ceiling.

Gilmore has solid hands and a huge strike zone, allowing him pluck and snatch everything out of the air and he high points everything in traffic. I imagine him being a solid No. 2 type of receiver in college, working the intermediate passing game and being an endzone terror on fade routes.

1. Ishmael Adams, CB

Adams plays a bit of running back for his high school team, but many project him to become a college corner. A hair under 5'10" and 180 pounds, Adams is a very good athlete with a skill set I love for a cornerback and won DB MVP at the LA NIKE Camp this spring.

He's ranked No. 251 for Scout.com out of 300, but watching him on tape shows a future starter at corner. He has very quick feet, loose hips, transition quickness out of his backpedal and solid coverage instincts. All of these equal the traits of a very, very good corner.