Brandon Heyward – ATH (WR)
Oak Ridge, TN (Oak Ridge High School)
Athlete who played both receiver and corner in High School. Adequate height and poor weight in a thin frame with long arms and legs. Very good release vs. off and bail due to very good acceleration and foot speed, eating ground in a hurry, and opening up hips consistently. Very good separation on all speed cuts, deep and intermediate (Post, Corner, Over), especially vs. Zoned DBs. Knows how to change his speeds to force DB out of backpedal and blow by with very good explosiveness to open up deep throwing windows.
Good separation on high COD routes (Zig, Comeback), sinking his hips with good knee bend and gaining separation after the breaking point due to good COD and foot quickness. Has solid hands at the catching point, good dexterity and tracking to catch the ball around his frame on stationary throws, and very good body adjustments to pluck away the ball and turn upfield quickly due to very good balance. Very good open-field ability, using his acceleration to erase pursuit angles and reduce surface area at the contact point while being able to juke out DBs due to good COD. Good competitiveness blocking, keeping his head on a swivel, and using his lateral agility to get in between smaller DBs and ball carriers.
Adequate release vs. press due to adequate hand technique and lower body strength, allowing longer armed DBs to control his chest and unable to drive through contact leading to delays in timing. Adequate separation vs. man defenders that can stay in phase on linear routes due to adequate upper body and core strength, allowing DBs to push him off his line and minimizing windows.
Very good prospect who fits best as a slot and return specialist at the next level where his playmaking ability and athletic traits with the ball in his hands can lead to immediate success. Trust him to become a starter by his 3rd season, and he can develop into focal point of Power 5 Offense when maxing out his frame more.
https://twitter.com/DCCATVOICE/status/1584329659319169026
Boo Carter – ATH (Safety)
Chattanooga, TN (Brainerd High School)
Athlete who played multiple positions on both sides of the ball and garnered interest from every FBS Conference. Solid height and marginal weight in a lanky frame with good knee bend. Very good range from single high alignment, applying good route recognition to read verticals and reaching sideline to sideline due to elite acceleration and very good foot speed. Very good lateral agility to adjust leverage and keep deep posts in front of him. Very good in man coverage when pattern matching.
From the slot, shows elite COD to stay in phase on high-degree cutting routes consistently and solid core strength to push Slot Receivers off on linear routes. Very good transition quickness downhill due to very good foot quickness and solid knee bend to minimize transition steps. Good ball skills at the catching point due to good tracking and timing, even with his back toward the QB. Has very good hands and concentration to bring in interception opportunities. Solid tackler, using solid knee bend to get leveraged and very good physical toughness and grip strength to wrap up larger ball carriers and generate knock on smaller receivers.
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Adequate angles on underneath or two high zones due to adequate pattern recognition, will need more experience and coaching to leverage zones and funnel crossers into his help defenders. Adequate run support around the box due to average processing of leverage and aggressiveness, leading to him to overplay cutback lanes and allow savvy blockers to get good angles on him and control him through the play.
Overall a very good prospect, who brings very good athletic ability and competitive toughness while also able to contribute on returns early on while sporting elite ceiling when buying into the intricacies of the position, trust him to become a starter as deep zone safety by his 2nd season and could end up as multiple time all-conference in the SEC with right development.
https://twitter.com/RickNymanSport/status/1563379660691734528
Jacob Smith – EDGE
Windsor, CT (Loomis Chaffee School)
Edge prospect who received interest throughout the SEC, twin brother Jerod also plays DL at Loomis Chaffee. Elite height but below ideal weight in a slender, projectable frame with very good arm length. Very good burst off the snap due to excellent quickness and acceleration, able to beat vertical setting OTs to the spot with three long striding steps from his 2-point stance to put stress immediately.
Excellent body lean and good hand timing to apply long arm move and get around the edge with very good agility and good bend to corner from the top of his rush. Good against the run, very good processing to key the run and establish gap leverage front side vs. reach and angle blocks while using good hand placement and solid upper body strength to shed and enter the backfield vs. outside zone plays when gap aligned. Good pursuit, using good vision and excellent agility to maneuver through traffic and applying very good competitiveness to stay with plays and impact runs to the opposing sideline due to good foot speed. Solid tackles, using good aggressiveness, solid form, and upper body strength to bring down smaller runners in the open field and in pursuit.
Adequate pass rush plan when initial move stalled and adequate bull rush when aligned head on. Average core strength limits ability to snap his hips through and generate drive on bull rush vs. bigger tackles and guards. Adequate two-gapping ability due to adequate lower body strength and arm extension to anchor in and shed in time for play to arrive in his gap. Overall very good edge prospect who brings ideal physical dimensions and already boasts very good burst to make an early impact as a pass rusher in an attacking, gap-aligned 4-3 defense. Very good upside when he maxes out his frame more and continues to add to his arsenal has very good chance to develop into 3-down edge for a Power 5 School by his 3rd year at the latest.
https://twitter.com/Jacobsmith162/status/1608182654578622464
Jerod Smith – DL
Windsor, CT (Loomis Chaffee School)
Brother of Jacob Smith and received offers throughout the entire Power 5 landscape as well. Very good height and adequate weight in a more compact frame than his brother while also sporting very good arm length and good strength from the upper half. Good upfield burst from his 3-point stance, both head-on and gap-aligned, due to good acceleration and explosiveness, looking to engage early with good balance. Solid bull rush when applying that burst from head-on alignment, showing very good hand timing and upper body strength to uproot OLs set and get into the chest while showing very good lower body strength and knee bend to transform his speed into power and drive back even bigger guards.
Good against the run, showing good run recognition and using very good lateral agility and good awareness to establish gap leverage on drive and base blocks inside and shed with very good play strength to meet the ball carrier in his gap. Above-average extension and leverage lead to good projection into two-gap scheme when he is able to get his hands into chests constantly. Very good tackler inside his gap, falling off the block and gaining leverage due to very good knee bend and wrapping up with very good arm length and upper body strength to bring down runners of all sizes consistently while creating drive back against smaller ball carriers due to good lower body strength.
Adequate speed rush as he tends to get upright when unable to get into contact immediately. Average placement leads to long arm move shooting wide. Adequate pursuit due to adequate COD and Foot speed, while adequate consistently limit range on open field pursuit situations. Overall very good prospect who projects well into both a 3-4 front with two-gapping responsibilities due to very good play strength and a 4-3 DT with 3-Tech usage where his very good lateral agility and good acceleration can provide good interior pass rush. Athletic ability and play strength should lead to him starting by his 3rd year in a Power 5 defense. Brings All-Conference upside when able to successfully work on his technique and consistent competitiveness.
