Cedartown Football’s Top Returners For The 2021 Season
Cedartown’s football team, which is less common among most high school football team’s, is one of the most underrated teams throughout the state of Georgia. Not only do they have loads of talent across the board, but they constantly find…
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Continue ReadingCedartown’s football team, which is less common among most high school football team’s, is one of the most underrated teams throughout the state of Georgia. Not only do they have loads of talent across the board, but they constantly find ways to compete against some of the top teams in their level of play. In fact, last season, they managed to make it all the way to the third round of the playoffs, shocking many of fans. While they will definitely hope to make it further this upcoming season, it can certainly be said that their future is bright. Next season, expect them to be able to further develop in their offensive and defensive execution, while their young talent continues to refine itself. Because of this, we expect them to have a decent year in 2021, and the players we listed below will be huge contributing factors.
Harlem Diamond- S / RB
Diamond, who is a bit of an unknown 2023 prospect, saw some decent time last year, and managed to get his name out there, and make some plays for his team’s offense. Not only does he play both sides of the ball, but he manages to make an impact each time he sets foot on the field. While he may have raw movement skills, he does have a good burst to him, and he moves very well on his toes, allowing him to fly around the field and make tackles when on defense. While he does a decent job of taking solid tackling angles, we would like to see him use better leverage, and to explode more on contact. On offense, Diamond does a good job of showing off his overall burst and speed, and has no problem traveling north and south. His quick feet allows him to change direction well at the line of scrimmage, and to take off for big gains. Diamond also does a good job of running through contact as well, and picking up good yards regardless of the situation at hand. Next season, expect Diamond to continue to step up to the plate, and to be able to provide good offensive stability for his team.
Jai Barnes- DT
Barnes not only has a solid lower body build and frame, but he allows it to help him explode off of the line, and to stop ball carriers in the backfield. With this, Barnes also does a solid job with his use of hands, and is no stranger to rolling his hips well on contact, which helps him to finish plays very well. When watching him, not only does he do a good job of filling holes, but he also does a good job of creating pressure on the QB. While we are a big fan of his bull rush, we do want to see him improve in his overall flexibility, arm use, and how he is able to move laterally.
Eli Barrow- RB / MLB
Just like Diamond, Barrow is another LB for Cedartown who also sees time on offense as a RB due to his bulky frame, and ability to use his speed. When carrying the football, Barrow does a good job of using his vision to his advantage, as he is able to dip around defenders and pick up positive yardage. While he is not the smoothest athlete, his speed and small amount of burst allows him to separate himself from tacklers, and those in pursuit. While on defense, Barrow also does a decent job of allowing these same movement skills to help dictate his success. While we like his aggressive playing style, and does a good job of finishing tackles through to the ground, we would like to see him improve in the angles he takes, as well as his change of direction, and lateral movement skills.
CJ Washington- DE
Washington, who is committed to UGA, shows elite traits as a pass rusher. Not only does he have a great frame, and solid length, but he has a good radius of reach, and does a good job of changing direction and making various kinds of tackles, wherever he may be on the field. Washington also has great burst out of his stance, and moves very fluidly laterally, and vertically, which puts him leagues above most high school defensive linemen With this, Washington also uses good leverage, and does an okay job of using his hands and arms to generate separation. While he does a good job of finishing tackles, we want to see more consistency in the pop he brings when he rolls his hips on contact. Next season, as he will continue to further develop into his body and frame, look for him to improve with such things.