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HOLLYWOOD, FL– We are at the half-way point of the High School Football season across the country and it’s been a pretty exciting season up to this point. Several teams have emerged as powerhouses and players have been leaving their mark on the field in an effort to bolster their college football prospect resumes.
As this is my tenth season covering football, I’ve been thinking about ways to provide the best value with this platform that we created some 8 years ago in August of 2011. I’ve made the decision to promote and expose the talents of two types of athletes this year; those that are currently recognized as having talent and share my perspective on what they do best but also those that are under scouted and underexposed.
So I turned to social media and asked athletes that were interested in being evaluated and potentially promoted to drop their highlight film links. I’ve reviewed the first batch and here are my thoughts:
High School Football student-athletes, drop your Mid-Season highlights below: #hotbedworld
— Brandon Odoi (@Brandon_Odoi) September 23, 2019
Let’s begin with the trenches and the most important position on the field, defensive line.
DT’s/DE
Shemar Stewart, 2022 DE, is the bell of the ball out of Miami Garden’s Monsignor Pace High. At 6’6, 236 lbs he already has the size for a sophomore that college recruiters love. I thought it was extremely humble of him to submit his highlights (because you can’t get higher than being ranked tops in your class), so I’m in love with that. Having met him briefly, it carries over in real life. I wasn’t in love with his mid-season highlight film. But thankfully, I got a chance to see him play in person against Miami Jackson to start the year and can confirm it doesn’t truly show how good he is (there needs to be a class on making Hudl highlights). He’s a real headache. He’s long, physical and loves to get after the quarterback. You don’t see the aggressiveness he has on his film and you also don’t see how he regularly gets double teamed. He makes a ton of plays by just being on coach Mario Perez’s defensive line. Because he dictates what opposing teams can do. So he’s worth his salt in that regard already. I agree with the assessment of him as a top prospect and think he could be scary good by the end of his senior year.
Richard Landes, 2020 DE, is a player out of Delray Beach’s American Heritage Plantation High School. He’s someone I’m familiar with dating back to his youth days as a Boynton Beach youth football player. I distinctly remember him practicing with a cast on and hiking the football as he was the 12U team’s center many moons ago. Now he’s a senior and he’s at Heritage after transferring from Atlantic. I like his mid-season film. He’s tough as nails, but it doesn’t really show. He takes good angles on the ball and gets to the ball-carrier. His biggest strength is his instincts, he needs to improve his speed but that’s natural after a leg injury to continue to be working on that. He could benefit from being more aggressive as we know he’s tough but his length is undeniable and his biggest asset. That’s actually why I liked him as a tackle prospect. He’s got to put on weight still but he’s a solid prospect and got the potential to play at the college level. Grades are rock solid. He’s a member of the #hotbedworld family as he played in our inaugural Freshman All-American game.
Andre Crawley, 2020 DT, from the Richmond, Virginia area was in the same Freshman All-American game that Landes was as a Defensive Tackle and offensive guard. His future in college is on defense. He’s a solid defensive tackle prospect with okay size (6’2) and girth (280) that you want. He stood out in that game many years ago and he’s continued to show success. When you pop open the film, he’s regularly taking on double teams and getting to the ball-carrier. He’s the kind of gem a team can find late in the 2020 recruiting cycle. #hotbedworld family.
Jahiem Webb, 2020 DT/LB, this young man is one of the reasons you write articles like these. I have never heard of him, but his coach (Roger Dowell) submitted his film on my twitter feed and I’m glad he did. I see a great prospect. He’s playing DT for American Heritage Plantation, but he’s a linebacker at the next level. One of the coolest plays on his mid-season film is him getting cut blocked, standing back up and making the tackle against a tough and top-ranked Trinity team out of Jacksonville. Wow, I’m impressed with this kid. Coach Darryl Porter has a secret weapon on his defense at Heritage. And did I mention he was strong?
Christopher Innocent, 2020 DT, at Dillard High School is another gem submitted by coach Roger Dowell via Twitter. He’s got a fast get-off and he’s gifted with speed that most tackles don’t have. He tackles with a “pop” and really drives into the player while securing the defensive stop. He’s making a lot of plays on film, but the competition isn’t what it will be later in the season. I’m placing a bookmark on his hudl profile and I’ll be sure to return to see how he closes out the season. I’ll also be there to check him out in person very soon as he’s a Fort Lauderdale Dillard attendee. A traditional South Florida power.
Jonathan McCall, 2020 DT, is a Florida Panhandle senior tackle that has some great attributes. He pops at the point of attack at the tackle position. I’d like to see more speed and athleticism out of him but he’s tough, which is what you need at the position. The other things can be developed, even this late into his career in high school. I first saw him at one of our middle school camps in Atlanta during his 8th-grade season. He’s improved a lot and now has a recruitable size. He’s 6’1 275 and will continue to develop throughout the season. #hotbedworld family.
Jertavis Black
Jertavis Black, 2021 DT, wow this kid is mean and nasty! A real dog. I love it. Some of his better plays are later on in his highlight, which he should immediately fix because he’s probably going to get some looks of his mid-season tape. But good grief, he really hits hard and takes on double teams well and runs pursuit angles at a good pace and with precision. He seems to line up along the line at either the tackle or end spot so that versatility is good. Size is currently his only issue. He’s listed at 5’11 so he’s probably not quite that tall. But if he gains an inch or two more, lookout. Wow. Coach Montiel at Cardinal Gibbons has a nice piece to work with for the next year and a half. I love this kid.
EVALUATIONS TO COME:
2020 Wallace Harding DE
2021 Davis Malachi DL
