2023 Rankings: Defensive Back Breakdown
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Here in the month of June we’re updating all of our prospect rankings as the 2021 season gets closer and closer. For the 2023 class, we went from a Top 50 to a Top 100 as this class continues to get deeper and deeper. The margin between the ranked players is very close and this class has a chance to be fairly deep from top to bottom. You can check out the Top 100 Right Here. Throughout the week, we’ll be adding some analysis on the players that have stood out in the 2023 class with positional breakdowns, newcomers and even prospects on the border of being ranked this time around. Stay tuned for next week when we update the state’s 2022 class. For now, we take an in-depth look at five defensive backs who have either continued to elevate their game or have vaulted themselves onto the scene with their play this spring and summer.
Kanijal Thomas Kanijal Thomas 6'1" | DB Del City | 2023 State OK – Del City (#1 DB – #3 Overall)
A new #1 DB in the class of 2023! It seems like since both Kanijal and Jacobe Johnson Jacobe Johnson 6'4" | DB Mustang | 2023 State OK stepped on the gridiron as Freshman a few years ago that it has been a battle for #1 and #2. That has not changed as Jacobe is still the #2 DB for us in this class, but after seeing what Kanijal was capable of in coverage when he went against some of the top WR talent in the state and country during 7on7 action this spring, it was hard to not move him up. Kanijal played his usual safety position at times but also slid down to cornerback often where he went 1on1 in both off-man and press-man coverage. While walked down at cornerback, he straight-up dominated some of the top WRs in the state and even went toe to toe with a few of the elite pass catchers from Texas, Missouri, Iowa, Florida, and Louisiana that attended these tournaments. Kanijal is not just good for Oklahoma, he is one of the nation’s elite high school defensive backs who will come into 2021 with a chip on his shoulder to prove he is better than some of the major recruiting outlets think he is.
Jacobe Johnson Jacobe Johnson 6'4" | DB Mustang | 2023 State OK – Mustang (#2 DB – #4 Overall)
As we stated in our Defensive Backs Big Board back in April, Jacobe has not fallen in our rankings because he has regressed by any means. Rankings fluctuate all the time and it is near impossible for anyone to hang on to a #1 ranking regardless of class or position. Nevertheless, Jacobe is still one of the top 10 defensive backs in the state and he might be one of the best all-around athletes as well. It is still unknown whether Jacobe will choose basketball or football at the next level. He has plenty of D1 options at both. However, we do know that on the football field Jacobe is one of the fastest players if not the fastest at all times while he is in between the lines and that he can strike from just about any position after seeing all the ways Mustang used him in 2020 on offense and defense. For rankings purposes, we had to separate Jacobe and Kanijal, but the two are essentially neck and neck right now. From a pure coverage/defensive back perspective, Kanijal gets the nod currently, but Jacobe’s speed, athleticism, and versatility across the board makes him an x-factor at multiple positions. These two still have a couple more seasons, so the race for the top spot between them is all but over.
Dylan Hasz Dylan Hasz 6'0" | DB Bixby | 2023 State OK – Bixby (#4 DB – #29 Overall)
The first of two Bixby defensive backs that made the top 100 in our latest rankings update, Dylan Hasz Dylan Hasz 6'0" | DB Bixby | 2023 State OK , has a chance to cement himself as one of the premier defensive backs in the state this season. He played primarily at safety in 2020 but constantly rolled down into the slot to man up on some of the speedy slot receivers that play in 6A-2. That kind of versatility from play to play is one of the reasons we love Dylan but his best attribute in coverage other than his speed and sideline to sideline agility might be his instincts/ability to trick quarterbacks. Hasz was baiting QBs into making ill-advised throws deep downfield all season long in 2020 and came up with quite a few pass breakups and INTs as a result. While he may not become the All-American his brother Luke is, he may be able to narrow the gap between them just a bit if he can continue to do what made him special in 2020 while also continuing to grow mentally and physically.
Tyson Williams Tyson Williams 6'1" | DB Bixby | 2023 State OK – Bixby (#6 DB – #67 Overall)
Tyson Williams Tyson Williams 6'1" | DB Bixby | 2023 State OK is yet another player that we got to see a lot of this spring thanks to Sooner7 who put together some very talented rosters from top to bottom across all classes. Williams is lightning quick at the position which makes sense when you see that he has a background in track and was a part of Bixby’s 200-meter relay team that also featured Dylan Hasz Dylan Hasz 6'0" | DB Bixby | 2023 State OK . Aside from pure speed though, Tyson is very physical at Cornerback. He is always the first to initiate contact at the line, and he has incredible ball skills once the rock is in the air. He rarely allows catches in 1on1 scenarios if he is anywhere near the WR when the ball comes because he is excellent at locating the ball at the last second before violently punching it out of the WRs hands. If one thing is certain about Bixby’s team in 2021, it’s that their secondary will be full of speedsters and ball hawks with Dylan Hasz Dylan Hasz 6'0" | DB Bixby | 2023 State OK , Tyson Williams Tyson Williams 6'1" | DB Bixby | 2023 State OK , and others patrolling the back end.
Tagg Campbell Tagg Campbell 5'10" | DB Metro Christian | 2023 State OK – Metro Christian (#7 DB – #78 Overall)
The last DB on this list is one that just missed the cut for our top 50 back in January. Tagg Campbell Tagg Campbell 5'10" | DB Metro Christian | 2023 State OK impressed us in 2020 as a two-way star for Metro Christian at RB and DB both on film and in person when we saw him at the state championship game that the Patriots controlled from start to finish en route to their second straight title. Tagg is a hard-hitting DB who loves contact (one of the reasons he starts at RB for Metro) and was a lockdown cover corner at times in 2020. He constantly displayed the ability to run with anyone that lined up in front of him in both off-man and press-man coverage thanks to his smooth and easy hips along with his straight-line speed and last but not least, his burst, both laterally and vertically. Additionally, similar to Dylan Hasz Dylan Hasz 6'0" | DB Bixby | 2023 State OK , Tagg also did a good job of slow playing routes on occasion when it was appropriate so that he could bait QBs into throwing the ball his way when in reality he had the WR to his side locked up. The only concern we had with Campbell in 2020 was that he was only listed at 160 Lbs. However, after watching his film from team camp and spring ball, it is obvious that his frame will not be an issue moving forward as he brings more than enough power and strength to the table.