2021 Fall Team Preview: Redbank Valley High School

Welcome to 2021’s Team Preview series! We will highlight programs that are poised to make noise this fall. Ranked players, up-and-coming underclassmen, or watch list prospects, if you’re team has them, we will cover! It’s not often I find a school with little exposure with such a talented roster. Coming across Redbank Valley high school was exciting, as I may have found three prospects who are all deserving of spots on our rankings, which will be updated by mid-to-late August. My job here at Prep Redzone is to uncover talent from all areas of Pennsylvania, big or small, who are worthy of recruitment and exposure. The three seniors in this piece fit that mold to a tee. We normally want to preview schools with more than three stand-out prospects. However, stumbling upon this group and coming across three ranked players right away deserves a piece. <em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="178634" first="Marquese" last="Gardlock"] | 6’4, 180 | WR/DB | 2022</strong></em> Size will be a recurring theme when evaluating each of these prospects. We begin with [player_tooltip player_id="178634" first="Marquese" last="Gardlock"], a multisport star who excels on the track and on the court. Gardlock currently holds an offer from Westminster, who see the raw potential in this kid. He screams raw athlete. Gardlock is an outside lane wideout with an impressive stride. He put together some unreal catches on tape that showed off his strong hands and great ball-tracking ability. Not every basketball player can come on the field and produce like this, he’s a legitimate pass-catcher who understands how to contort his body while maintaining focus on the football. He demonstrates the understanding of body leverage, displaying the ability to fight for every inch of space when being targeted downfield. His catch radius extends above his helmet for sure, not sure about the rest of his body. Gardlock isn’t necessarily a YAC guy for RBV, but he is utilized in different ways behind the line of scrimmage occasionally, as the kid is a tough tackle for smaller defensive backs. The tape shows a limited route tree but this could be for a multitude of reasons. He’s an incredibly raw route runner as a whole. I would love to see him grow in this area, as coaches at the next level will want to see if he’s a one-trick-pony vertical threat or if there’s more to his game. Improving on his junior year and maintaining the production would do wonders for this kid. <em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="178635" first="Chris" last="Marshall"] | 6’3, 180 | WR/DB | 2022</strong></em> [player_tooltip player_id="178635" first="Chris" last="Marshall"] is another outside lane wideout with size who, much like Gardlock, has the vertical game down pat. Marshall is seasoned a tad bit more than Gardlock. He’s a natural strider and route runner as well as a natural mover in space. RBV trusts Marshall to run a high degree of difficulty timing-based routes that show off Marshall’s hand-eye coordination. He can run back-pylon fades while shielding off smaller defensive backs, as well as run front pylon out routes that require quick hands to reel in. He does a great job reeling in passes while off-balanced. There’s a bit of manipulation in his game when attacking vertically, as he shows the ability to change gears early on in his route. Marshall also contributes as a special teams gunner and at corner for RBV. I would personally love to see more reps at defensive back just to see what kind of pass-coverage he can provide a program. He’s got some head-hunter in him and I can’t help but see a potential safety prospect in the making. Again, would love to see what his range is like as well as his pre-play diagnosis ability. Nonetheless, the kid is consistent. <em><strong>Joseph Mansfield | 6’2, 195 | DE/OLB | 2022</strong></em> Last we have Joseph Manfield who is sure to slot the highest-ranking of the three prospects mentioned. That’s saying something. It’s egregious to not already have this kid ranked on our site but better late than never! Mansfield is a disciplined impact defensive line prospect who has off-the-charts run-pass play diagnosis. His get-off is legitimately one of the best among pass-rushers in his class. His tape was a blast to watch! That burst off the line of scrimmage is even quicker with his hand off the dirt. He’s a missile standing up and has some serious hip and ankle bend to blaze past lineman. This kid’s a lot to handle, as he’s seasoned in initial hand placement and usage. He shows off awesome balance and body control after engagement as he can dip underneath punches thrown by lineman. He can shield off lineman punches with inside shoulder thanks to his impressive lower body strength, all the while not losing a step coming around the edge. Mansfield is looking to cause turnovers too, as all elite speed pass-rushers are adept at doing. He’s got active hands that are looking to force fumbles when he gets home. The senior is seemingly all over the field, making tackles 10-15 yards away from pre-snap alignment. I can tell Mansfield is well-coached and wants to be as great as he can be. When talking about elite pass-rushers, ideally, you would like him to stand a bit taller than 6’2. Next-level programs will deploy 6’4+ tackles ready to eat up smaller edge rushers. He’s a tad bit underweight too. Neither combination is worrisome, just not ideal. I’m excited to see this kid this fall, hopefully in person! [caption id="attachment_177739" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/07/0B0QD5H8.jpg-large-crop-1240x815-1627692607.jpeg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-177739" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/07/0B0QD5H8.jpg-large-crop-1240x815-1627692607-300x197.jpeg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> Photo: Coach Blane Gold[/caption]