Quite a collection of talent at the Shrine Bowl invite-only workout Friday evening at Randleman (N.C.) High. Here is a breakdown of some of my thoughts separated by position groups:
Quarterbacks: Some very good passers out there. Oklahoma-bound Austin Kendall from Cuthbertson High in Waxhaw was probably the best that I saw. I have always been a big fan of UNC-bound southpaw Chazz Surratt from East Lincoln but he was a tad inconsistent with the throws today when I watched.
NCSU commitment Dylan Parham from Southeast Raleigh High was also inconsistent, but as always the physical tools were there. He struggled with accuracy and throwing a consistent tight spiral, but he did well throwing in one-on-ones.
This was probably the best I have seen Graham High and Wake Forest pledge Jamie Newman throw. Also want to mention Parham look-alike Deshaun Phillips from Overhills High. Phillips was a tall, lanky quarterback with some arm strength.
Running backs: Truthfully, since NC State is not heavily involved here I did not pay them a lot of attention. I did notice Shelby Crest and Virginia commitment Tre Harbison and Morganton Freedom’s B.J. Emmons at times make nice runs during inside run drills. Also saw Wisconsin pledge Antonio Williams from North Stanley High have some moments, but personally feel that Williams needs to lose some weight.
Was told that Southern Durham’s Jordon Brown did well, too.
Wide receivers: May have been the best group out there today. Continue to be impressed with Clemson pledge Cornell Powell from Greenville Rose and may elevate him to No. 2 in the state behind Wake Forest High’s Dexter Lawrence, a defensive tackle.
Recent NC State pledge Bryce Dixon from Cary Green Hope worked out with the receivers. He’s a bit of a long-strider and did not get great separation with defensive backs, but overall it was a solid performance for Dixon. He seemed to catch most everything thrown his way.
Two other guys that really impressed me were Winston-Salem’s Divine Deablo from Mt. Tabor High, who has great size and seemed to move better than when I saw him live in persona last year, and Tahj Deans from Bailey’s Southern Nash High.
Deans, as we mentioned in the War Room, is an ECU commit and absolute steal for the Pirates. Deablo told us that he has a top four of Georgia, NC State, UNC and Virginia Tech, with the latter two recruiting him the hardest.
Tight ends: One guy that looked the part was 6-foot-6, 230-pound Taron Mallard from New Bern High. Mallard is understatedly raw, but he sure does look the part.
Offensive linemen: A lot of attention for us during oe-one-ones with Burlington Williams’ Harrison Gee and Hampstead Topsail’s Joe Sculthorpe. During inside run drills, we saw Gee nearly pancake a defensive tackle from his center position, which is where the Shrine Bowl coaches spent a good amount of time working him.
In one-on-ones, Gee lost his first battle to West Charlotte’s Marlon Dunlap, but he held his own in the second round. Sculthorpe won both of his one-on-ones and drew praises from the offensive line coaches both times.
Landon Dickerson from South Caldwell High in Hickory is about as flexible as you want for a lineman, although he was badly beaten in his one battle. Asheville High’s Pete Leota was solid although a tad stiff and probably more suited to be a right tackle.
Defensive linemen: If Asheboro High’s Nick Coe, Mooresville High’s Jamal Dukes and Dunlap can get their respective transcripts in order, all three are ACC-caliber players. There are rumors that Dunlap could be on the verge of a UNC offer.
One name that drew quite a bit of praise was Emmanuel Ukheligbe from Fayetteville 71st, and Havelock High’s Makai Collins won his fair share of one-on-ones with his quickness.
Linebackers: Recent NCSU commit Garrett Hooker from Thomasville’s Ledford High, Duke-bound Xander Gagnon from Charlotte Catholic, Notre Dame pledge Julian Okwara of Ardrey Kell High in Charlotte and Jonathan Smith from Laurinburg Scotland all were in attendance.
I did not really watch the linebackers too much as this was not the type of event that would let them individually shine, but Okwara’s athleticism was hard not to notice.
Defensive backs: Not a lot to report here, although I thought Fayetteville Terry Sanford Isaiah Stallings performed well, including perhaps doing the best in one-on-ones with Powell as anyone. Stallings remains low-key about his recruitment and did not say much when we interviewed him.
Quarterbacks: Some very good passers out there. Oklahoma-bound Austin Kendall from Cuthbertson High in Waxhaw was probably the best that I saw. I have always been a big fan of UNC-bound southpaw Chazz Surratt from East Lincoln but he was a tad inconsistent with the throws today when I watched.
NCSU commitment Dylan Parham from Southeast Raleigh High was also inconsistent, but as always the physical tools were there. He struggled with accuracy and throwing a consistent tight spiral, but he did well throwing in one-on-ones.
This was probably the best I have seen Graham High and Wake Forest pledge Jamie Newman throw. Also want to mention Parham look-alike Deshaun Phillips from Overhills High. Phillips was a tall, lanky quarterback with some arm strength.
Running backs: Truthfully, since NC State is not heavily involved here I did not pay them a lot of attention. I did notice Shelby Crest and Virginia commitment Tre Harbison and Morganton Freedom’s B.J. Emmons at times make nice runs during inside run drills. Also saw Wisconsin pledge Antonio Williams from North Stanley High have some moments, but personally feel that Williams needs to lose some weight.
Was told that Southern Durham’s Jordon Brown did well, too.
Wide receivers: May have been the best group out there today. Continue to be impressed with Clemson pledge Cornell Powell from Greenville Rose and may elevate him to No. 2 in the state behind Wake Forest High’s Dexter Lawrence, a defensive tackle.
Recent NC State pledge Bryce Dixon from Cary Green Hope worked out with the receivers. He’s a bit of a long-strider and did not get great separation with defensive backs, but overall it was a solid performance for Dixon. He seemed to catch most everything thrown his way.
Two other guys that really impressed me were Winston-Salem’s Divine Deablo from Mt. Tabor High, who has great size and seemed to move better than when I saw him live in persona last year, and Tahj Deans from Bailey’s Southern Nash High.
Deans, as we mentioned in the War Room, is an ECU commit and absolute steal for the Pirates. Deablo told us that he has a top four of Georgia, NC State, UNC and Virginia Tech, with the latter two recruiting him the hardest.
Tight ends: One guy that looked the part was 6-foot-6, 230-pound Taron Mallard from New Bern High. Mallard is understatedly raw, but he sure does look the part.
Offensive linemen: A lot of attention for us during oe-one-ones with Burlington Williams’ Harrison Gee and Hampstead Topsail’s Joe Sculthorpe. During inside run drills, we saw Gee nearly pancake a defensive tackle from his center position, which is where the Shrine Bowl coaches spent a good amount of time working him.
In one-on-ones, Gee lost his first battle to West Charlotte’s Marlon Dunlap, but he held his own in the second round. Sculthorpe won both of his one-on-ones and drew praises from the offensive line coaches both times.
Landon Dickerson from South Caldwell High in Hickory is about as flexible as you want for a lineman, although he was badly beaten in his one battle. Asheville High’s Pete Leota was solid although a tad stiff and probably more suited to be a right tackle.
Defensive linemen: If Asheboro High’s Nick Coe, Mooresville High’s Jamal Dukes and Dunlap can get their respective transcripts in order, all three are ACC-caliber players. There are rumors that Dunlap could be on the verge of a UNC offer.
One name that drew quite a bit of praise was Emmanuel Ukheligbe from Fayetteville 71st, and Havelock High’s Makai Collins won his fair share of one-on-ones with his quickness.
Linebackers: Recent NCSU commit Garrett Hooker from Thomasville’s Ledford High, Duke-bound Xander Gagnon from Charlotte Catholic, Notre Dame pledge Julian Okwara of Ardrey Kell High in Charlotte and Jonathan Smith from Laurinburg Scotland all were in attendance.
I did not really watch the linebackers too much as this was not the type of event that would let them individually shine, but Okwara’s athleticism was hard not to notice.
Defensive backs: Not a lot to report here, although I thought Fayetteville Terry Sanford Isaiah Stallings performed well, including perhaps doing the best in one-on-ones with Powell as anyone. Stallings remains low-key about his recruitment and did not say much when we interviewed him.
