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When a player doesn't have a ranking from three of the four major recruiting sites and is a 2 star on the only one where he is ranked, that's usually not a player who is likely headed to a school in a Power 5 conference. Jay Tyler has beat those odds though by being offered and then committing to Stanford, the only Power 5 school that offered him a scholarship. He's an intriguing under the radar prospect.
What is Stanford getting in Jay Tyler?
Jay Tyler - 2 star athlete
The first reason Tyler is a player who never showed up on too many radars is that he is undersized. Listed at 5'9" and 175, it looks like that may be generous based on his film. The second reason is that he played wearing two different numbers during the season. That's always a bad idea for recruits because that just makes the recruiter's job more difficult to find you. The third reason is that he lines up at multiple positions for his high school team, Isadore Newman, and recruiters may have had a tough time to finding a position for him.
Regardless of those facts, Tyler showed enough on film to prove to me that he is underrated. He's a good athlete with solid speed and very good lateral agility. He lined up at quarterback, in the slot, as a running back, and also a returner, but the common theme at all of those positions was that he made people miss in the open field. He had a couple of jump cuts that would have made Lesean McCoy smile. He'll more than likely be a returner and slot receiver for Stanford and his game is a nice contrast to most of the other big body receivers they have on their roster.
Because he's been a jack of all trades type for his high school, he has a long way to go as a route runner and the other finer details of playing receiver, but I don't believe he should be written off because of his lack of offers. I think he could eventually emerge as a nice offensive piece for Stanford in certain packages if they choose to open up their offense a bit and also could compete as a returner as early as next season.