Trait Rankings Series – Wide Receivers Part I

While the 2023 receiver class does not currently appear to have the plethora of D1 locks its preceding class had, this is a very diverse group from a skillset perspective, and there are some under the radar prospects that can put themselves into that conversation with breakout senior seasons. We’ll start this segment off looking at the top athletes and route runners in the states. <table style="border-collapse: collapse; width: 100%; height: 105px;"> <tbody> <tr style="height: 21px;"> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;"><em><strong>ATHLETICISM</strong></em></td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;"><em><strong>ROUTES</strong></em></td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;"><em><strong>PASS CATCHING</strong></em></td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;"><em><strong>BLOCKING</strong></em></td> </tr> <tr style="height: 21px;"> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Top End Speed</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Fluidity</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Hands</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Physicality</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 21px;"> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Vertical Leap</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Deception</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Radius</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Footwork</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 21px;"> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Yards After Catch</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Speed Variance</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Tracking</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Finishing</td> </tr> <tr style="height: 21px;"> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Acceleration</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Footwork</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;">Adjustment</td> <td style="width: 25%; height: 21px;"></td> </tr> </tbody> </table> &nbsp; <strong><em><u>Best Athlete</u></em></strong> <ol> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="229736" first="Andre" last="Davis"] – Blue Valley High School, 6’4 207</strong></li> </ol> A three-star recruit with a slew of B10 offers, there wasn’t a whole lot of deliberation in placing Davis atop this list. Davis shatters the eyeball test with his build and size, and he has legitimate top end speed to pull away from defenders on vertical routes. He’s also a smooth accelerator for a big wideout prospect, taking advantage of a long, smooth stride to put instant pressure on his defender, as well as eating up gaps against zone coverage. Davis has a very bright future ahead of him, as receivers with kind of size/speed ration don’t come around very often. <ol start="2"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="166970" first="Bryce" last="Cohoon"] – Maize High School, 6’2 185</strong></li> </ol> While Cohoon (pictured above) doesn’t quite have the 0-60 that [player_tooltip player_id="229736" first="Andre" last="Davis"] has, but he is still a very smooth accelerator, and he does possess an impressive extra gear at the top of his route, which allows for excellent top end separation. Cohoon can also get off the ground explosively and suddenly, and is a smooth mover after the catch, with the ability to make cuts in higher gear. He is set to have a huge senior season with the talent around him, and he will definitely be making another appearance in these rankings. <ol start="3"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="35666" first="Tejon" last="McDaniel"] – Salina South High School, 6’4 170</strong></li> </ol> [player_tooltip player_id="35666" first="Tejon" last="McDaniel"] is a wideout prospect that has yet to break out, but look for that to happen his senior season, as he is chock-full of potential. The main reason he finds himself on this list is an explosive leap, coupled with tremendous length, that will make him a menace on jump balls. In addition, he can be a danger after the catch, with some sneaky lateral twitch that you don’t expect to see from a lanky, 6’4 receiver. McDaniel has every chance to obliterate the 8 catches for 136 he put up in his junior season, while at the same time maintaining something in the ballpark of his 17 yards per catch. &nbsp; <strong><em><u>Best Routes </u></em></strong> <ol> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="166970" first="Bryce" last="Cohoon"] – Maize High School, 6’2 185</strong></li> </ol> This is probably the easiest placement I’ve had in this series, as Cohoon simply checks every single box in the trait group for route running. The body control and fluidity are absolutely effortless, which allows him to vary his speeds within a route and go in and out of his breaks with no wasted motion. He is also an expert route salesman, and this comes from patience and attention to detail, as he just seems to be able to recognize the instant he has his DB on a string. There is meaning to every movement Cohoon makes when running a route, and he has a natural feel for reading a DB’s body position and movement.  With highly coordinated feet, Cohoon has ideal suddenness to his throttle, allowing him to completely freeze and blow by his DB on hitch/go routes. Overall, everything about the way Cohoon runs routes is advanced far beyond what is reasonably expected from a high school junior. It is no hyperbole to refer to this kid’s routes as art. <ol start="2"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="126703" first="Jaxon" last="Goldberg"] – Blue Valley North High School, 6’0 180</strong></li> </ol> North may have had the best skill group in the state last season, and with [player_tooltip player_id="89200" first="Mekhi" last="Miller"], [player_tooltip player_id="89245" first="Lucas" last="Bullock"], and [player_tooltip player_id="113287" first="Cole" last="Stratton"] all moving on, the torch is being passed on to Goldberg, who still made a mark last season in a crowded wide receiver room. Goldberg has excellent feet and is very compact and sudden in out of his breaks, making it very difficult for his DB to get a gauge on what’s to come. He also has some sneaky juice to separate and stack at the top of his route and can smoothly turn his hips at higher gears. There is also some good deception to Goldberg’s routes. He does a very good job of getting hip reaction out of his DB with the way sells upfield, as well as using subtle movements and shoulder dips on short and intermediate routes. Goldberg is ready to move into a primary target role, and it will be intriguing to see him take his game to the next level as a senior. <ol start="3"> <li><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="126704" first="Rohan" last="Putz"] – Bishop Miege High School, 5’9 165</strong></li> </ol> Putz might be the best pure slot receiver in the state, and like any good slot receiver, his route running confounds opposing defenses. Putz is razor sharp breaking out of his stem, with little to no wasted steps. He has some devastating lateral twitch, and short area juice that allows him gain instant separation in man coverage, and quickly present a target versus zone coverage. He has lightening quick feet and can throttle down as efficiently and suddenly as any receiver in the state, flashing the ability to freeze defenders with his stop/start. There is a reason quarterbacks, at every level football is played, love playing with a slot receiver that can eat up 1 on1 coverage, and that type of dependability, play in and play out, is exactly what Putz brings to the table.