PrepRedzone Illinois & Indiana Showcase Standouts: LB/DB

Last Saturday in Crown Point, Indiana almost 150 distinguished athletes from Illinois and Indiana came together for a day of hard work and competition at our second-ever PrepRedzoneIL Showcase and our first PRzIN event. Held at the awesome Sparta Dome, the preps were put through the wringer of testing, positional coaching, and 1 on 1 reps that helped the scouts and college coaches involved evaluate the skill sets and talent of the performers and get a sense of the projected college level for as many athletes as the event as we could. With the testing numbers released and the player’s performances still fresh in my mind, I wanted to circle back and name some of the top performers and standouts from the DB and LB positional groups at the Showcase. Representing the great states of Illinois, Indiana, and Wisconsin, these ballers showed up and showed out and earned this recognition, and I had a heckuva time watching them perform. Thanks for reading! Defensive Backs Gregory Atkinson Jr. (Mishawaka Marian, IN) 2022. 5’11, 153 lbs. Atkinson Jr. is a real deal talent at the CB position and was one of the best players at the entire event last Saturday. He was above and beyond the best performer during 1 on 1s and also tested impressively with a 4.5 and 4.38 40 and a 9’8 broad jump. This kid could get out of his breaks with a ton of power and closed on the football with some impressive speed, and possessed some loose hips and impressive footwork that never saw him waste steps and really helped him stay on top of WRs all day. He was also physical at the LOS and possessed the vertical game to make plays on jump balls, and I came away really impressed with his game overall. He hasn’t reported a lot of college interest but was an All-State pick last fall, and I’ll be keeping my eye on his recruitment going forward. Thanks for coming, Greg! [player_tooltip player_id="135932" first="Michael" last="Jefferson"] (Grayslake North, IL) 2023. 5’10, 145 lbs. The Grayslake product was competitive and flashed some noteworthy reps for a young buck who was long and physical in coverage and did a good job of maintaining eye discipline and getting his head around to make plays on the ball. I also liked his footwork, and he was physical when breaking up passes and at the point of the catch. He’s coming off his spring season where he started as a sophomore, and he’s got a ton of football left in his future. [player_tooltip player_id="20917" first="Michael" last="Williams"] Jr. (Brownsburg, IN) 2023. 5’10, 173 lbs. The most physical of the CBs at the Showcase, Williams was strong at the LOS and did a great job of rerouting WRs and knocking them off of their mark when he got a hand on them, which he was efficient at when receivers were releasing as well as throughout the route. With long arms, wide shoulders, and big hands he displayed a good ability to break up passes at the catch point and showed a good ability to stay on top of deep routes. If he continues to grow I think he’ll project best as a safety at the next level but showed some good man coverage skills last Saturday. Anthony Hood (Whitney Young, IL) 2024. 5’11.75, 165 lbs. Hood jumped over to the DB group once Indy came around as they were low on numbers, and although he was raw I think he is a future P5 talent at either the WR or DB position. He primarily played WR this season at Whitney Young of the CPS, but was naturally sticky in coverage and did a great job of just staying with WRs no matter if they were running short, intermediate, or deeper breaking routes. With long arms and some natural strength, speed, and athleticism, he could always compete for the football and did a good job of powering out of his breaks and closing on the football when it was in the air. Big things coming from the youngin’ from Chicago!! Linebackers [player_tooltip player_id="20927" first="Ty" last="Hopp"] (Aurora Central Catholic, IL) 2022. 5’11, 219 lbs. Clocked a 4.87 on the 40, a 4.91 on the short shuttle, and 9’3 broad jump at almost 220 lbs. and showed off why he has earned early offers from the Air Force Academy as well as Army-West Point as he was a fluid LB with a great ability to stick his foot in the ground and go and could change direction and accelerate out of his stance with speed and power. He also displayed some instincts and athleticism in coverage and could move in space well for his size and make plays on the football, and when he got his hands on opponents it was obvious they felt his strength. He was a unanimous favorite at the LB position for the scouts involved and it was fun to watch him compete. [player_tooltip player_id="119808" first="Sean" last="Allison"] (Hinsdale Central, IL) 2022. 5’10, 195 lbs. A hybrid, in-betweener of a recruit who could potentially play SS, OLB, or ILB at the next level depending on how he grows, Allison was sticky in coverage who could unlock his hips with ease for a LB and had the strength to play physically and reroute RBs and the speed to stay on top of deep routes as well as compete for the football when it was in the air. He had good closing speed for a LB as well, and was well filled out and physically impressive during the testing portion of the event. I am very intrigued to see how he continues to grow and develop as well as how his recruitment continues to progress. Joseph Clayton (Whitney Young, IL) 2024. With a ton of room to continue to grow, Clayton flashed some good instincts in coverage and wasn’t scared to compete as well as put his hands on bigger, more experienced prospects at the RB and WR position. He had some good reps and is a name to keep an eye on in the 2024 class. [player_tooltip player_id="118352" first="Caden" last="Tolefree"] (St, Joseph Catholic Academy, WI) 2022. 5’11, 213 lbs. A really physically impressive prospect who was a cut-up and well-built 213 lbs., Tolefree flashed explosiveness during testing as well as the 1 on 1 portion of the event and could get out of his stance with burst and get downhill in a jiffy during Indy. He flashed some strong physical traits, with good feet, hips, and hand usage that helped him compete on basically every 1 on 1 rep and he showed some impressive PBUs on the afternoon on shorter routes as well as deeper throws, where he played pass-catchers hands well and was powerful when breaking up the ball at the catch point. All in all a really good performance from the Badger State product. [player_tooltip player_id="155400" first="Jacob" last="Bottarini"] (Marmion Academy, IL) 2022. 5’10.5, 200 lbs. Clocked a 4.9 on the 40 and a 4.72 on the short shuttle and played with some of the strongest technique of the LBs at the Showcase and was impressive in coverage, particularly on shorter and intermediate routes where he was dangerous at getting hip to hip with pass-catchers and powerful when he got a hand on RBs or WRs. He could read and react well when covering routes and broke up a ton of balls on the afternoon. Way to ball out, Jacob!