Long Beach Poly vs. Serra (Gardena) Preview: Players to Watch

The Long Beach Poly Jackrabbits, who have dominated the Moore League for many years, will play Serra of Gardena on Friday. The game will be broadcasted on Fox Sports Prep Zone. Serra finished last place in the very competitive Mission League last season with its only league win coming against Alemany of Mission Hills. The Cavaliers have added some high-profile transfers which I will highlight below. Both teams were in the Division 2 playoffs last season and were ranked beside each other on MaxPreps end of season rankings. Both teams feature players who have already signed letters of intent and prospects who are still available. Below I will break down some of the top players in this game: <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25228" first="Maalik" last="Murphy"], Serra</strong> With [player_tooltip player_id="25054" first="Devin" last="Kirkwood"] reportedly opting out of the season to enroll at UCLA early, Murphy is the highest-profile college prospect in this game. Murphy has little experience but he has been dazzling scouts at camps and is chomping at the bit to get some varsity game action on film. He has a great arm and is accurate to all three levels. He is verbally committed to Texas and I expect other schools to try and steal him until signing day next year. <em><strong><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/10128842/Maalik-Murphy">Check the film</a></strong></em> https://twitter.com/Rivals/status/1363597151159283712?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1363597151159283712%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fprepredzone.com%2F2021%2F02%2Ftop-15-southern-california-qbs-in-the-class-of-2022-part-3%2F <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25207" first="Tyray" last="Odell"], Serra</strong> Odell is a three-year starter for Serra. He plays middle linebacker and has Power 5 l conference level speed and instincts. He is too fast and agile for most offensive lineman to block in the running game and has the ability to hustle to each flat and stop short passes. If he was a little bigger he’d be a Power 5 prospect. He has offers from Nevada and Utah State. <em><strong><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/9851364/Tyray-Odell">Check the film</a></strong></em> <hr /> <strong>Elijah Davis, Serra</strong> In the age where every team has three or four running backs, Serra has an every down back in Davis. He rushed for 915 yards on just 157 carries with seven touchdowns. He also caught 21 passes for 273 yards and a touchdown. He is short and strong without sacrificing any speed and isn’t afraid to lower his shoulder and take on tacklers. He has an offer from Nevada. <em><strong><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/9851589/Elijah-Davis">Check the film</a></strong></em> https://twitter.com/UTRScouting/status/1366952090761785344?s=20 <hr /> <strong>Lando Brown, Serra</strong> Coach Scott Altenberg has called Brown "unblockable" on multiple occasions. He led the Cavaliers in tackles last season with 99 but was most impressive as a pass rusher with 19 sacks and two forced fumbles. The reason he doesn’t have offers is because he is a hybrid defensive end and outside linebacker type depending on the scheme and is undersized. Regardless of his status as a college prospect, he stands out on film and is someone other teams have to game plan to stop. <em><strong><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/9851242/Lando-Brown">Check the film</a></strong></em> <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25205" first="Brody" last="McKinnon"], Serra</strong> McKinnon is a versatile receiver who can line up anywhere on the field and catch anything remotely near him. He can win on some 50/50 balls in man coverage and runs good underneath routes in zone. He isn’t afraid to take a big hit and he blocks down the field in running plays which is something scouts like. He was offered by BYU before his junior season but his recruiting has stalled. <em><strong><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11599855/Brody-McKinnon">Check the film</a></strong></em> <hr /> <b>[player_tooltip player_id="25162" first="Bryun" last="Parham"], Long Beach Poly</b> Parham was all over the field for the Jackrabbits last season, tallying 102 tackles, 24 tackles for loss, eight sacks, three forced fumbles, threehurries, a blocked punt, a fumble recovery, and an interception. He is coming off an injury and didn’t play on the Winner Circle Champions club league like most of the Long Beach Poly players. Parham is arguably the best defensive player on the team and is signed with San Jose State. <em><strong><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/12968745/Bryun-Parham">Check the film</a></strong></em> https://twitter.com/bryun7/status/1219818288546340864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1219818288546340864%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fprepredzone.com%2F2021%2F01%2Finside-look-at-wca-club-team-the-long-beach-grind%2F <hr /> <strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2020/09/southern-california-class-of-2021-sleepers-part-1/">Michael Fesili</a>, Long Beach Poly</strong> He is a three-year starter on an offensive line that is one of the best in the state and that should be good enough to warrant more Division 1 offers. He is an elite pass blocker and overpowers many defensive ends in the Moore League. He can play any position on the offensive line and will be crucial to the Jackrabbit’s offense this season. They have an elite group of receivers for quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="25344" first="Shea" last="Kuykendall"] to throw to and the offensive line will need to give him time to make plays. <em><strong><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11044142/Michael-Fesili">Check the film</a></strong></em> <hr /> <strong>Kyren Racheal, Long Beach Poly</strong> Racheal is a sleeper receiver who excels against man-to-man coverage and can line up all over the field. He caught 18 passes for 290 yards and four touchdowns which earned him All-Moore League honors as a junior. Racheal was the team’s second leading returning receiver, behind New Mexico commit [player_tooltip player_id="25128" first="Keyonta" last="Lanier"]. With defenses keying on Lanier and other three-star receiver <strong>Jordan Riles</strong>, Racheal should get some good targets. He has no offers but I am sure that will change after this season. <em><strong><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/12802405/Kyren-Racheal">Check the film</a></strong></em> https://twitter.com/Coachkim92/status/1367350401008246784?s=20 <hr /> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25210" first="Jacob" last="Tuioti"], Long Beach Poly</strong> He was the Moore League Defensive Player of the Year in 2019 and racked up 61 tackles last season, 22 of which came for loss, five sacks, 10 hurries, a fumble recovery, and two forced fumbles. He gets into the backfield with ease, even when being double-teamed as a one-technique. He committed to Army and it will be interesting to see how Long Beach Poly uses him this season. <em><strong><a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11416966/Jacob-LTuioti">Check the film</a></strong></em> https://twitter.com/mikehuntley63/status/1289379362765062145?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1289379362765062145%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fprepredzone.com%2F2020%2F08%2Ftop-10-moore-league-defensive-players-1-5%2F