Elite V Showcase: WR/DB Key matchups

Donovan Green

May 18, 2022 @ 02:52 PM

As the day went on, the DB group started to win more of their matchups. Reading the body language of receivers and piecing together tiny details that may tip them off and give them an edge to disrupt the route and reception. Here are some, but not all, top matchups of the day   KJ Duff vs. Jaylin Lewis Jaylin is a 6’3, 195 pound, stud corner for the Royals secondary who is well equipped with speed and quickness. He stepped up to the challenge against 6’4, 200 pound KJ Duff who we have mentioned as a top 2024 receiver. Jaylin played off coverage doing well to keep Duff in front of him and has great hip turn to trace him down the sideline. However, Duff’s ability to shift gears so smoothly allowed him to gain a step or two on Lewis at a great point in his route. The ball was slightly late but Duff was able to adjust back and make the back shoulder catch over Lewis inside the front corner pile line. For what its worth, Lewis has over a 36 inch vert jump and should have the ball skills to make a play on it but Duff’s timing was slightly better.   Moussa Kane vs. KJ Duff This was perhaps the key matchup of the day that scouts, coaches and other players wanted to see. 6’2, 190 pound Moussa Kane is an athletic freak with a 40 inch vert and 10.5 broad jump. Combine that with great ball skills and we finally have someone who can challenge KJ Duff. After Duff got Moussa on their first round, Moussa disrupted the route from the start pressing him off the line and having the speed to stick with him at the top of the route. Duff could not get enough separation on his IN route over the middle after a lot of contact. Moussa was able to jump in front of the pass and bat the ball into the turf.   Gjok Dedevukaj vs Joshua Narcisse I have mentioned Gjok in previous posts amongst some of the best receivers in the state so I was definitely excited to see him in person. He won most of his reps all day running very good routes and making grabs that seemed sometimes even far out of his reach. Joshua Narcisse who is 6’0 179 pounds stepped up to challenge the playmaker on a go route. Josh disrupted the timing from the start with a decent jam on Gjok off the line. Gjok was eventually able to gain a step on him but by the time he adjusted to the ball, Joshua was right there to get a hand up and the ball hit the turf. Two things important here, the first being even though Gjok managed to peel away. The timing was thrown off and that is credit to Narcisse from the start as well as make up speed to stay within the play. As a receiver you have to make the catch otherwise the defense wins. A fun matchup to watch.   Karyll Rony-Dorceus vs Korey "KJ" Duff Karyll is another Christ the King Royal who will be returning as a leader in the secondary this fall for his senior year. Karyll is long and fast at 6’2 and weighs 176 pounds. Karyll did well to use his hands to trail and trace but keeping the play clean throughout and having Duff step by step. Duff was not able to get his usual step or two on his defender and the ball sailed just away his fingertips. Very clean man to man coverage by Karyll but this is something he does and can do continually at a high level.   Deontae Douglass vs [player_tooltip player_id="269081" first="Anthony" last="Gentile"] Gentile had great releases off the line the entire day and running the most impressive routes out of the entire group. Deonte Douglass is 6’0 175 pounds got a great jam on Gentile off the line nearly knocking him to the turf, but Anthony was able to use his hands push away and stay on his feet to finish his out route. Once Anthony gained a step or two, he made his way towards the sideline for another one of his toe tap catches but the route was undercut by Narcisse who made the pick and got both feet in bounds.