Wake Forest landed its fourth linebacker in the class of 2017 on Monday by getting a commitment from Jeffery Burley of Jackson, Ga.
Best decision of my life ‼️‼️‼️ pic.twitter.com/eikTPs1uuH
— 〽️aze‼️ (@JefferyBurley32) July 19, 2016
Burley is unranked by many recruiting services, although he has multiple Power 5 offers. He’s ranked No. 50 in the class at inside linebacker by 247 Sports.
Wake Forest offered Burley early in the process, and the recruiting job by assistants Clark Lea and John Hunter held up as the offers rolled in. The other schools in Burley’s final five were Mississippi State, Minnesota, NC State and Central Florida. He also had offers from Louisville, Southern Miss and Illinois, among others.
Burley visited campus in April and told 247 Sports that he was impressed: “I liked their family environment and I really fit in well on that visit. Wake Forest stood out to me a lot after that visit.”
Burley measured 6-2, 208 pounds and ran a 4.63-second 40-yard dash at NC State’s camp in June. He’s light for an inside linebacker, so he either can bulk up or he can use his speed, athleticism and long arms to move outside. Although he’s not known as a coverage linebacker now, his speed gives him a chance to move to Wake Forest’s rover role, which acts almost like a safety.