Best Thing on Film- Defensive Backs

Time to turn the attention to the defensive side of the ball for the best thing on film evaluations.  Just a reminder when a coach is evaluating prospect film and a guy really pops there is usually a single play that sticks in your mind and helps you to start to build a descriptive narrative around that player.  That narrative is what you use when you are in staff meetings going through prospects and often lobbying for certain guys you as a recruiter hope will make the top of your boards.  Once a young man makes that coveted spot it is time to up the intensity with your recruiting and try to start building deeper connections, get them on campus, etc.  So let’s start taking a look at some of Minnesota’s best defensive players and highlighting their "Best Thing on Film".  Enjoy! &nbsp; Latayvion Mccoy- (Simley High School). 5’11 170 Lbs. C/o 2023. @TayvionMccoy (DB) As is often the case with high school DB’s their film will typically feature a lot of offense as well.  Latayvion is no exception as he is an accomplished WR and could even be recruited that way at the next level.  Watching his offensive clips as an evaluator is very helpful and the biggest takeaways I have from him at WR is that he has very good ball skills.  There are a number of times when he does a great job with body control to adjust to throws that many others can’t.  Defensively he shows best in zone coverage with his eyes on the quarterback and a good understanding of route concepts to inform his breaks.  He has quick feet and good hips.  <strong>Best Thing on Film</strong>- at the 1:31 mark you get to see him in run support. The higher the level that you play at the more you will be asked to contribute to run fits and he does a nice job of maintaining leverage and executing the cut tackle. &nbsp; Garrison Monroe- (Shakopee High School) 6’1 187 Lbs. C/o 2023. @GarrisonMonroe1 Garrison’s offensive position is Quarterback which I always like to see from a guy who may be a DB at the next level and more specifically a safety.  Safeties and QB’s both need to see the game from the big picture and recognize formations and intentions of their opponent. He has a great skillset as a deep ½ and 1/3 player but Shakopee also asks him to man up the slot WR and sometimes the other teams number one.  All of this together gives you the opportunity to see a highly intelligent player with good hips and speed, who plays the game under control and typically with very good leverage.  <strong>Best Thing on Film</strong>- At the 1:18 mark you can see both his film study and recognition come in to play as he immediately recognizes a smoke screen after the snap and triggers to break it up, this is one of multiple plays on the highlight where his intelligence is equal to his physical skills. &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="312995" first="Sean" last="Robinson Jr"]- (Cretin Durham Hall) 6’1 180 Lbs. C/o 2023. @SR2023 (DB) I really like how Sean’s film is set up to show the variety of different skill sets that he has.  Probably the biggest takeaway is that he is a ball hawk.  Whether it is breaking up a pass or stripping the ball he gets around the football and he helps to create extra possessions for the Raiders offense.  He is a good cover corner specifically when there is safety help over the top and he is able to play trail man to man and force throws over the top.  He is also a willing tackler in the run game.  <strong>Best Thing on Film</strong>- this has to be play number one, he comes off the edge on a punt rep and takes the ball off of the punters foot, scoops and scores.  This is one of the best plays in football and any recruiter is going to be excited when a position player shows a skillset to contribute on special teams. &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="313179" first="Collin" last="Vick"]- (Owatonna High School) 6’1 180 Lbs. C/o 2023. @CollinVick We start off with a handful of man coverage reps.  Watching you can tell Collin is a technician playing the trail hip, and also understands how to use his hands appropriately to break up passes without being in danger of pass interference.  Where he really excels though is as more of a box safety.  When playing heavier personnel groupings from opposing teams he is a great guy to have playing in the 8 to 10 yard range and becoming an extra hat in the run game.  He shows a confident understanding of run schemes and how he fits.  <strong>Best Thing on Film</strong>- at the 1:18 mark you get a great example of my assessment, from a tight view you can see him patiently wading through the blocking scheme in front of him and making a tackle for a minimal gain. &nbsp; [player_tooltip player_id="112113" first="Brandan" last="Lee"]- (Park High School) 6’1 180 Lbs. C/o 2023. @BrandanLee_7 Brandan is truly a middle of the field eraser for Park.  They typically play him as a single high safety and he shows the balance to take care of the field in both the pass and the run game.  He had 70 tackles as a junior and most of them were the result of diagnosing run game and effectively filling lanes and finishing.  In the pass game you can see he understands pass concepts and covers a lot of ground to take care of any deep issues.  He can cover but is best when he has his eyes on the QB and the backfield.  <strong>Best Thing on Film</strong>- there are many clips and this one is pretty subtle, but at the 3:42 mark you can see him come out of the hole vs. a screen against a running back with a lot of space, he does an expert job of keeping his leverage and finishing the play in a tough situation &nbsp;