New Faces: Top TN Newcomers

Kevin Bergsmith

February 17, 2021 @ 02:30 PM

The state of Tennessee has had two ranked players transfer into two different power programs in the Nashville area over the course of the last week. These moves are more of the same for Tennessee; last season an out of state prospect transferred into the Volunteer state - (the #1 player in the country by some analysts) left IMG Academy in Florida for St Benedict of Auburndale in Memphis. Below is a breakdown of each player and how they project with their new teams. Chris Parson - DQB, Ravenwood, 6’0" 190 lbs, 2023 - Just as the rest of Williamson county had let out a collective sigh of relief, seeing the Raptors lose the top two players in the state to Clemson and Michigan, the rich get richer. Parson tranfers into Ravenwood from Red Oak High School in Texas. A true dual-threat, Parson had 52 passing attempts to 48 carries his sophomore season. His film shows off his skills as a passer - throwing deep on the run, finding open receivers over the middle after going through his progressions, and escaping pressure while keeping his eyes downfield. His 10.1 yards per carry average and 9 rushing TDs from last season are very impressive, and figures to put up ridiculous numbers in Will Hester’s offense. He runs through defenses with ease - his speed and acceleration allow him to evade seemingly everyone on the field. With five Power 5 offers (two in the Big 12), he is still relatively new on the scene. Especially since no SEC teams have offered him yet. That is sure to change once he leads a prolific offense in the largest classification in the state. Another reason this matters - Parson joins , , and at Ravenwood. All three are rising seniors with Power 5 offers. A word to the wise though - this is Parson’s third school in three years, just fyi. Sam Roush - TE, Lipscomb Academy, 6’5" 225 lbs, 2022 - Buy stock in the Lipscomb Academy football program. After making an appearance in the D2-AA state title game last season, Trent Dilfer has added a future Pac-12 tight end to his up and coming team. After the state of California did not play football this past fall, and the decision to play in the spring seems to be losing steam, Roush decided to take his talents elsewhere. The connection is that Roush played at Valley Christian, which is where Dilfer’s daughters attended and played volleyball. Utilized primarily as a wide receiver, the future Stanford TE figures to dominate once he suits up for Lipscomb. His footwork and ball skills are extremely rare for someone his size and for the state of Tennessee; he is a unique talent here. The two-sport athlete uses his basketball skills to come back to the ball and essentially rebound - blocking out defenders to secure the catch. Roush will be joined on offense by (2023) and , with Kaleb Beasely on defense. All three have Power 5 offers. Lipscomb was already on the up, with this addition they have now become scary.