Football Hotbed’s Future 4 Shines At National Middle School Showcase

Posted on May 1, 2019 by Marcus Benjamin

Fort Lauderdale, FL – Football Hotbed has grown to become one of the premier national platforms when it comes to showcasing talent on the youth level. The Future 4 and National Middle School Showcase is in its fifth year and has become bigger than ever. This year the annual event was held over a course of two days with the first at the University of Miami in Coral Gables and the second at Cardinal Gibbons High School in Fort Lauderdale.

During the first day, participants took part in position drills and one on one competitions with their peers in the new indoor practice facility for the Miami Hurricanes. Head Coach Manny Diaz spoke in the team meeting room introducing his coaching staff to the with the young athletes.

Director of Recruiting for the Hurricanes David Cooney was present for the entire event and is looking to continue to solidify the pipeline from South Florida as well as other areas to “The U.”

“The event gets bigger and bigger every and it’s always well received by UM,” said Brandon Odoi Executive Director of Football Hotbed.  “We want to thank the staff and the coaches at the University of Miami for an amazing partnership.”

Former head coach Mark Richt was the first coach to really embrace the idea of the annual camp, and under Richt’s regime the camp moved to Miami’s campus in Coral Gables. In that year, current high school standouts like four-star Jacorey Brooks (Miami Booker T. Washington), three-star Amari Daniels (Miami Central), four-star Hayden Conner (Taylor, TX), and Miami commit Laurence Seymour (Miami Central) were offered by the Miami Hurricanes after their performances at the showcase.

“The event has grown into the best middle school event in the country and for these kids, it’s a priceless experience at a world-class facility,” said Odoi.

The camp is open to all positions however there is a high emphasis put on the quarterback position. The Future 4 is a quarterback competition starting on day 1 of the camp and is completed on day 2 at Gibbons High.

Oklahoma quarterback Spencer Rattler (Pinnacle, AZ) was the first winner of the Future 4 competition during former head coach Al Golden’s tenure. Rattler went on to win the Elite 11 which is considered the premier national competition for high school quarterbacks.

Previous winners of the Future 4 include Georgia Tech commit Tucker Gleason (Tampa Plant) and Nick Vattiato (University School, Davie FL). This years winner was Dante Moore out of Detroit, Michigan.

Dante Moore and Brandon Odoi

“It’s actually a very good camp,” said Moore.  “[Players] should look forward to going to it.  The coaches are pretty strict on the players making sure they get to the college level.”

The eighth-grader stands at 6’2 and weighs in at 165 pounds and already has offers from Michigan, FAU and Morgan State. Rounding out the Future 4 for 2023 was Colby Lamberth, Dylan Rick, and Collin Hurst.

From Left to Right: Colby Lamberth, Dante Moore, Dylan Rick, and Collin Hurst

The Hurricane coaching staff evaluated quarterbacks Moore and Lamberth in a recorded session during the camp.  Drew Phillips known as the QB engineer and director of the Phillips QB Academy has a series of algorithms to determine the best quarterbacks during the competition.

“We measure completions to receivers, throws to physical targets, and combine drills and we take the averages of the scores from each to determine our Future 4,” said Phillips.

Future 4 quarterbacks for other classes:

2024

From Left to Right: Alessio Milivojevic, Russ Osborne, Knox Dyson, JJ Harding

 

2025

From Left to Right: Gavin Sidwar, Cooper Parker, Anthony Miller, TJ Wilcox

 

2026

From Left to Right: Connor Quintero and Savvy Meassick

 

 

Award winners in Other Positions:

Best Overall Player

Santana Fleming

 

Best Athlete

Conrad Hussey

 

Best Wide Receiver

Lamar Seymore

Best Linebacker

Willie Reed

 

Best Defensive Back

Isaiah Hardge

 

Best Running Back 

Jamari Ford

Jamari Ford, USF’s Johnny Ford’s little brother is a varsity player for Miami Christian.  The eighth grader. had a strong camp and earned an offer from Marshall Tuesday.

Best Overall Lineman

Lashaun Stephen

 

See Photos From the Future 4 and National Middle School Showcase

About Marcus Benjamin

Marcus Benjamin works as the senior writer and editor for FootballHotbed.com. He attended Florida A&M and Florida Memorial University completing a bachelors degree in communications in 2010. He's covered high school football in the South Florida area since 2010 for the Miami Herald, Miami Sports Tribune and ShawSports.net. He is married and lives in Fort, Lauderdale, FL.
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