Zone Reads: Charleston’s 2023 Prospects

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Of the more than 230 players ranked in the 2023 class from South Carolina, 31 of those are from high schools in and around the Charleston area of the Lowcountry.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As the regular season of the 2022 season reaches the midway point, now is a good time to catch up on the progress of the area's top players.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The state's top-rated prospect, Oceanside Collegiate tackle [player_tooltip player_id='89337' first='Monroe' last='Freeling'] (6-7, 295) recently ended his recruiting process with a verbal commitment to defending national champion Georgia. Freeling decided to end the drama earlier than he had expected so that he could focus on his final season as a prepster.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"It was just time. I knew where I wanted to be and even when I tried to talk myself out of it, it always came back to Georgia," Freeling said.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Freeling is one of six Landsharks currently ranked in the class of 2023. The list also includes running back [player_tooltip player_id='89344' first='Vaughn' last='Blue'], who is the 15th-ranked prospect and No. 2 running back in the statewide list. Blue has rushed for 691 yards and six touchdowns in four games, including four 100-yard efforts.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the top defensive linemen in the area is [player_tooltip player_id='146357' first='Tim' last='Castain'], the 33rd-ranked prospect overall in the state. Safety [player_tooltip player_id='146381' first='Zach' last='Hagedon'] and receivers [player_tooltip player_id='202746' first='Jace' last='Kraftchick'] and [player_tooltip player_id='91359' first='Cole' last='Strickler'] round out the Landsharks who are ranked in the class.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The position of strength in the Charleston area is clearly linebacker. Eight of the 31 ranked players in the 2023 class play linebacker and all will likely earn a college opportunity at some level.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ashley Ridge has three linebackers ranked. [player_tooltip player_id='194335' first='Alex' last='Ledford'] is averaging nine tackles per game early on, while teammates [player_tooltip player_id='263162' first='Christian' last='Garland'] and [player_tooltip player_id='91158' first='TJ' last='Wilson'] are getting their share of hits as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The top-rated linebacker in the area is TImberland's [player_tooltip player_id='91142' first='Omari' last='Jenkins']. While his team is winless in five games, Jenkins continues to set the pace on defense while also seeing significant time at running back.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The top tackler in the area is Cane Bay's [player_tooltip player_id='146380' first='Cameron' last='Avery'], who is averaging better than 13 tackles per game. In a losing effort to West Ashley a few weeks ago, Avery was in on 25 totals, including 11 solo hits.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>James Island's [player_tooltip player_id='277543' first='Walker' last='Woodall'] is a recent addition to the list. The 6-1, 215-pounder is averaging eight tackles per game and has spearheaded the Trojans' 4-1 start.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Wando's [player_tooltip player_id='313408' first='Mikey' last='Rosa'] is another of the area's most physical players and recently made a verbal commitment to The Citadel.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The second-best offensive lineman, behind Freeling, in the Charleston area is Cane Bay's [player_tooltip player_id='202729' first='Kameron' last='Durant'], a verbal commitment to East Carolina. Summerville's [player_tooltip player_id='262614' first='Drew' last='Inabinet'] and [player_tooltip player_id='263161' first='Reginald' last='Pinckney'], along with First Baptist center [player_tooltip player_id='202734' first='Roy' last='Maybank'] also are ranked.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the secondary, Summerville has two players ranked in safety [player_tooltip player_id='89335' first='Keith' last='Elmore'] and corner [player_tooltip player_id='262617' first='Michael' last='Jenkins']. Jenkins has blocked two punts already this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Goose Creek's [player_tooltip player_id='146369' first='Jordan' last='Turner'] is a top 100 player while new additions to the list include safety [player_tooltip player_id='443500' first='Bryce' last='Carpenter'] of Fort Dorchester and safety [player_tooltip player_id='443523' first='Gemoi' last='Brown'] of James Island, who had a season-high nine tackles in last week's game against Cane Bay.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Fort Dorchester's DeAndre Jones, who transferred from Summerville prior to this season, is one of the top defensive linemen in the area. Porter-Gaud's [player_tooltip player_id='443494' first='Zihaire' last='Jackson'] and Goose Creek's [player_tooltip player_id='146371' first='Jaylon' last='Richardson'] also earn top 100 rankings in the state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The lone placekicker from the Charleston area to earn a statewide ranking in the 2023 class is [player_tooltip player_id='262634' first='Griffin' last='Gore'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Baptist Hill's [player_tooltip player_id='336153' first='Kevin' last='Townsend'] is a recent addition to the senior list as an athlete. Townsend excels as a receiver and defensive back for the Class A Lower State power.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->