Twenty-seven of the eighty-two players that represented Hillsborough County caught our attention immediately on Sunday, and we’ve barely scratch the surface. The initial breakdown of BCP’s E7TC Spring Edition rolls along as we highlight Hillsborough’s massive representation. Overall, Hillsborough produced three of the nine MVP’s on the day with one school taking home the distinction of having two representatives in that regard.
Starting things off is the contingency from Durant that showed very strong. Tight end Steven Witchoskey and DE Xavier Lyas (both 2017’s) were MVP’s of their respective groups while ’17 CB Jaden Garrett–recently picking up his first two offers from UCF and Central Michigan–was extremely technical in his performance and competitive in all phases of the day. Witchoskey and Lyas were MVP’s for a reason. Witchoskey’s strength and route-running are superb and his ball skills are right there as well. Lyas was 5’10” less than 18 months ago, and his now 6’5″ and at 200-pounds.
A pair of Durant linebackers were as solid in their performances as ’17 Brandon Guido and ’17 Jacob Ross are both pushing the 5-11/6-0 and 200-pound threshold in their frames and are coming off extremely productive seasons. Combine Garrett, Ross and Guido’s tackles from last season and you get 200+ and 100+ of those solo. Another member of the Cougars’ crew that we’re going to be keeping our eyes on is ’18 QB Carlton Potter–the young man threw for 1,000 yards as a sophomore and was pretty efficient in his 4:1 TD-INT ratio.
Strolling on down the road to their rivals from Plant City, the Raiders had a strong group of players showcase their talents on the day. There was the ultra-competitve effort from ’17 LB Steven Ogletree–who in recent weeks has picked up offers from McNeese State, Appalachian State and Middle Tennessee–was virtually in every camera shot by nature of his not-wanting to take a single rep off. Ogletree posted 138 tackles in addition to nine sacks for the Class 7A regional finalists.
Defensive Tackle Corey St. John showed his strength very well after a nice season with 25 tackles for the Raiders. Listed at 6-1/240, the ’17 DT looked the part and perhaps might be a little bigger than his listed dimensions. Tight End Austin Elridge–a transfer from Strawberry Crest during the offseason–was very crisp in his routes and ball skills during drills while DB/WR Antoine Thompson was highly-impressive with his performance. The young man can play either side of the ball and is working to get himself ready after picking up his “dream” offer from the University of Miami just recently.
Plant’s representation was solid as always with LB Thomas Allen taking home MVP honors for the position group, but QB Dane Frantzen had himself a very solid day at camp while ATH Whop Philyor was extremely consistent in his ball work and routes. ATH Juwan Burgess got some run on both sides of the ball, but really showcased his 4-star status with his play along the defensive side of things in drills. Another tight end putting in some very solid work was Judge Culpepper and is ability to use his frame and his ball skills to create obvious mismatches for defenders.
Gaither’s trio of Estafano Feliciano (’17) and Matthew Wood (’18) in the linebacking corps along with ’17 running back Tim Williams Jr all showed reasons for deserving to be highlighted. Feliciano and Wood (along with Decalon Brooks) should form one of the most-productive corps in the area if they continue their momentum. Feliciano and Wood combined for 171 tackles, 30 tackles for loss, and nine sacks alone last season of the Cowboys. Both prospects are 6-feet plus and 200-pound plus and possess really good body control and change of direction in addition to their strength. Williams showed some flashes with his speed and change of direction that if those can translate to the pads–you can expect him to go well-past his 391 yards and three touchdowns he posted last season.
We can’t forget about Class 3A Player of the Year finalist Austin Sessums from Tampa Catholic. Along with his brother Grant, who is a freshman this year at Wiregrass–it was a good day for the Sessums Family to say the least. Austin showcased his characteristic arm strength in a big way and looks poised to take a run at beating that 2,700-yard mark he posted for the Crusaders in 2015. Along with Sessums, another regular camper that’s probably enjoying his best phase yet in his development is Jesuit’s Malik Davis. The ’17’s running back is Hillsborough County’s leading returning rushier and the development in his foot speed alone is amazing to watch, but Davis seems to also be working on his strength in pass protection as well.
Speaking of pass protection, that’s exactly why we are highlighting the efforts of Hillsborough’s Duran Bell Jr and his ability to keep linebackers away from his “quarterback” during drills. Bell Jr. rushed for 592 yards and three touchdowns last season for the Big Red and we expect an even bigger contribution this season to go with those other phases. Staying with his teammate Armand Chalk, the ’17 linebacker was as solid as they come and showed why he’s going to be highly-valued as a prospect as the year progresses. Chalk is coming off a 2015 season in which he posted 3 tackles and 3 hurries in addition to getting some work at the running back spot with ten carries totaling 86 yards.
A pair of Gryphons are next up in the form of WR/DB Anthony Quintana (’17) and Class of 2018 CB Tim’arcus Simpson. Quintana is highly-dependable contributor on the offensive side and a very productive DB for Sickles during the season–as evidenced by his 600+ total yards and eight touchdowns as a receiver and his 25 tackles, three interceptions and 7 passes defensed. Quintana’s best moments at camp on Sunday came with his 1-on-1’s as a DB and his ability to manhandle smaller receivers at the line of scrimmage. Simply put–if you blink, you might miss Tim’arcus Simpson and once he starts getting takeaways on a regular basis the next two seasons, you can expect him to also put up some gaudy yards-after with his shifty moves and that aforementioned speed.
Steinbrenner OL Kyle Back was very solid in his performance with the big fellas on Sunday and was one of the main competitors during the final “King of the Ring” event holding his own against some very-talented DT’s/DE’s. Back is listed on the Warriors Roster at 6-3/290 and he looks every bit of those dimensions. Tampa Bay Tech’s Quintin King (’18) was a beast in spurts in his drills and at 6-4/280 is going to be tasked (along with his line-mates) at keeping the Titans’ Michael Penix Jr. upright and clean while Alonso’s Phillip Jackson (’17) is another big fella along the offensive line you’ll need to keep eyes posted on.
Another prospect that certainly performed well was Robinson’s hybrid DE/OLB Eli Morris. The young man is listed at 6-1/250, but moves much quicker and shows really good instincts in pass coverage. Morris posted 70 tackles, five sacks and two caused fumbles for the Knights last season. Also noticeable was Brandon’s James Miller. Just an ’18, the defensive end was lauded by his coaches during the same drills that guys like Lyas and Largo’s Jaquaze Sorrells were taking a part in. Miller posted 97 tackles for the Eagles last season while adding four sacks, an interception and a blocked punt for the young man that’s listed at 5-11/200, but playing much stronger and bigger than that.
Rounding out the initial observations, two (young) QB’s that certainly provided intrigue for the future are Alonso’s Shaye Scott (’19), Durant’s Carlton Potter (’18) and Bloomingdale’s Jerson Singleton (’19). All three young men had good moments that certainly will have us taking a closer look as the reps continue to build.