2022 Class Position Ratings: Wide Receivers Part 1

<strong>2022 Class Position Ratings: Wide Receivers Part 1</strong> &nbsp; Next in our early 2022 position ratings preview is a look at the wide receivers with a look at the top 10 names to watch. &nbsp; This group is loaded with three names leading the way and led by Myrtle Beach’s [player_tooltip player_id="59464" first="Adam" last="Randall"].  There will be stiff competition as he will have to continue to fend off Newberry’s [player_tooltip player_id="59467" first="Zack" last="Chalmers"] and Dutch Fork’s [player_tooltip player_id="61070" first="Antonio" last="Williams"]. <strong> </strong> <strong> </strong> <ol> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="59464" first="Adam" last="Randall"], Myrtle Beach, 6’3, 198</strong></li> </ol> Make sure to keep an eye on Randall as he could eventually be the top rated player in this class. As a junior, he hauled in 46 catches for 1,011 yards and 9 touchdowns showing big play ability and a second gear to take it to the house when he gets in open space. Randall adjusts well to the ball, has good quickness, and can take the top off a defense. This Class 4A First-Team All-State selection has already committed to play in the 2022 UA All-America Game. The highly touted prospect committed to play for Clemson on Christmas Day. <strong> </strong> <ol start="2"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="59467" first="Zack" last="Chalmers"], Newberry, 6’4, 200</strong></li> </ol> This was an extremely tough decision as there are so many good top tier wide outs in this class. Chalmers is a big body target who uses his size well, has strong hands, can high point the football, and return punts.  He also is a solid defensive back who could potentially be a safety in college as well. We expect Chalmers to be a very good possession receiver at the next level. Chalmers is starting to put together an impressive offer list with App State, Coastal Carolina, Duke, East Carolina, Liberty, Virginia, and Wake Forest among his early offers but that list show grow a lot between now and the start of the fall. <strong> </strong> <ol start="3"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="61070" first="Antonio" last="Williams"], Dutch Fork, 6’0, 180</strong></li> </ol> Like the two players ahead of him, Williams has quite the impressive offer list. So far Arizona State, Duke, South Carolina, Coastal Carolina, Louisville, Missouri, Oregon, USC, and Wake Forest are among them. Back in December he played in the East vs. West All-Star Game where he stood out after a strong junior season where he had 1,504 yards and 10 touchdowns in 10 contests. He is a smooth route runner who knows how to get open, has good hands, and the speed to separate and take the top off the defense. One aspect that is underappreciated but should not be forgotten is his punt return ability. We really like Williams and believe he could challenge for the #2 and #1 spot by season’s end. <strong> </strong> <ol start="4"> <li><strong>EJ Evett, Seneca, 6’3, 187</strong></li> </ol> The Seneca standout led the team with 24 catches for 440 yards and two touchdowns in 2020. He also averaged 18.3 per catch in the five games to show he can make big plays. Evett has good body control and ability to adjust while also lethal on screens. Often he is asked to dive or high point the ball and does it quite well. He picked up offers from South Carolina, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, West Virginia, and Coastal Carolina early on but that list should grow a lot more. <strong> </strong> <ol start="5"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="59482" first="Zavier" last="Short"], Chapin, 6’2, 204</strong></li> </ol> This class is stacked with big body possession types and Short is another one of those. His ability to high point a 50/50 ball and strong hands make him a lethal threat in the red zone. The Chapin standout has good body control and ability to adjust, along with the strength to break tackles, and smooth running to shift through traffic. Through eight games in 2020, Short caught 50 passes for 705 yards and nine touchdowns.  There are many classes where he would have been #1 or #2 in the class but that goes to show how good the 2022 class will be.  His early offers include App State, Coastal Carolina, and Wake Forest with interest from many other FBS programs early on. <strong> </strong> <ol start="6"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="61067" first="Cam" last="Scott"], Hammond School, 5’11, 172</strong></li> </ol> [player_tooltip player_id="61067" first="Cam" last="Scott"] was a good player for A.C. Flora back in 2018 but transferred to Hammond School and was an immediate impact player with 37 catches for 628 yards and nine touchdowns to earn SCISA Second Team All-State honors. He followed that up with a great junior year where Scott led Hammond School in receiving with . The productive wide out has good movement skills, quickness, speed, and smooth route running make him a very good prospect.  So far he has no offers but that won’t last long as he should eventually attract interest from many FBS schools. <strong> </strong> <ol start="7"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="91178" first="Reggion" last="Bennett"], Trinity Collegiate School, 5’9, 170</strong></li> </ol> When we first saw the film of Bennett the question of how he could be overlooked early on popped up with the explanation that he is small and in the SCISA being brought up but this is not a player to gloss over. Sometimes a smaller player can have one good year but won’t be consistent because they can’t stay healthy but Bennett is a 3-time All-Region selection so that argument goes out the window.  He dominated at Trinity with 1,894 yards and 20 touchdowns in 2020 like you would expect an elite prospect to do as well. The best way to describe him is that he looks like he is being shot out of cannons. The burst, speed, quickness, and versatility of [player_tooltip player_id="91178" first="Reggion" last="Bennett"] make him a player to expect a lot more buzz on as the recruiting process shakes out.  Miami Ohio was the first to offer and then Wofford joined as his second offer back in January. The offers won’t end there as App State, Clemson, Coastal Carolina, East Carolina, and many others have shown interest. <strong> </strong> <ol start="8"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="91168" first="Shamontae" last="Burgess"], Lake City, 5’10, 170</strong></li> </ol> Like Bennett, Burgess is another real sleeper to keep an eye on. His only current offer is from Savannah State but he is receiving interest from Akron, App State, Army, and Clemson already as well. He is a two-time all-region pick who is slippery in traffic and has the speed to break a big gain at any time. Burgess is a smooth route runner who can change direction quickly but also has some skills on defense that could attract offers on both sides of the ball. Despite his diminutive size he can high point the football well and is very athletic. That list of just two offers should grow to double digits by the end of the cycle. <strong> </strong> <ol start="9"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="91169" first="Chanc" last="Gamble"], Southside, 6’3, 180</strong></li> </ol> Here is another big play threat with great size and speed. Gamble is also productive as an All-Region selection in both 2019 and 2020.  He averaged 110.1 yards per game and 24.1 per catch in 2020 to put him among the top receivers in the entire state. The first thing that pops out on tape is his skills to win contested throws and ability to hit a second gear once he hauls in the pass. Despite being lean built he is tough to bring down and often picks up yards after contact. This is another prospect without any FBS offers but that should change. <strong> </strong> <ol start="10"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="91175" first="Jevon" last="Long"], York, 5’8, 170</strong></li> </ol> Despite being smaller he was hard to stop as the 2020 Herald All-Area Special Teams Player of the Year was dynamic.  Many times they would give him the ball on reverses where he was difficult to catch due to his speed.  He is an impact player in the slot or as a return man because of his elusiveness and explosive burst that make him difficult to get a hand on. Long was York’s top receiver with 21 catches for 315 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing for 64 yards and two touchdowns last year. He does not have any FBS offers as well but is one to keep an eye on.