Nate’s Southern Illinois Community Film Room: Part I
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ILLINOIS– I tap into Southern Illinois and find a significant plethora of prospects that have that next-level ability and I believe are ones that will take that next-step into summer prospect camp season and into their 2023 seasons in this…
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Continue ReadingILLINOIS– I tap into Southern Illinois and find a significant plethora of prospects that have that next-level ability and I believe are ones that will take that next-step into summer prospect camp season and into their 2023 seasons in this Community Film Room, Part I.
Larevious Woods Larevious Woods 5'9" | 195 lbs | RB East St. Louis | 2025 State IL , RB, East St. Louis (2025) Twitter
LaRevious shows off some well-balanced vision as a pass-catcher out of the backfield that has the excellent patience to let the play develop while using his agile instincts to pave his way to stretch the field for the long haul. He also gathers a ton of burst very early at the start of the first level of the field which set out a steady tone for the rest of his run by requiring the linebackers and secondary to adapt to his speed very quickly if they want to play a play to catch this kid while on the move. LaRevious also has a high plethora of durability in his 5’9 195 pound frame that can get plenty of yards booming thru the initial contact looking for more. No offers yet that I could see for LaRevious, but man I expect a big summer at prospect camps for this young man and the skillsets he brings to the table.
Owen Lee, OL, Carbondale (2025) Twitter
Holy cow does this kid have quite the hefty punch already as just a sophomore. Owen plays like a downhill freight train with his pad-level and footwork and has that finishing touch every college coach in America wants on their roster. He is a certified bully too even when he is angle blocking. It is easy to see that this young man is workhorse in the weight room, as when you tap into his tape around the 30 second mark, his light tap of the hands with all the strength he has in his 6’4 290 pound body, he still lands his defender on the turf. No offers yet for Owen and he is not one I would wait around to offer either! Looks like a scholarship level OL in my eyes.
Jordyn Beverly, RB, Marion (2024) Twitter
I like watching how clear Jordyn looks with his vision inside the Marion backfield, as he finds the hole even though sometimes it’s a tight window he utilizes his athleticism and speed to bounce on thru on a consistent basis. He shows some really sound durability on multiple hits of contact around the 40 second mark as he shows really solid bounce off ability in his 6’0 210 pound frame. This kid is the defined by getting the hard-nosed yards and he puts that all over his tape. He’s also talented as a pass-catcher out of the backfield, as that skillset might be Jordyn’s biggest pop out I grasped on tape, as he shows significant patience thru some high traffic areas to find the end zone for six. He is certainly a gritty running-back I would take in my backfield if I was a recruiter at the next level.
Travis Billups, DB, Alton (2025) Twitter
From the start of his tape, Travis impresses with the length of his strides in his lower body, as don’t let the 5’9 175 pounds fool you this young man can cover some substantial amount of ground with that athletic striding ability locked in with his ball-tracking ability. That long-striding speed translates well over to the WR spot as well on offense, as Travis is extremely quick off the snap and has an extremely effective burst and good hands to make the catch on balls slightly off line. Travis also has elite balance at the WR position as even when the high pressure caves in, he keeps a calming demeanor with his highly athletic skillsets. He certainly is a two-way Illinois prospect to watch from the Illinois border!
Patrick Walker, RB, Marion (2024)
I liked watching the well-developed balance Patrick shows thru high traffic areas in the inside box as he has some good vision to attack on thru some those small windows of opportunity. He also demonstrates that great stamina speed to pull away and get separation on long runs. He’s not the biggest RB you will ever see, but he’s got the build at 5’7 190 pounds that is built with some great levels of durability. Patrick also shows off extreme agility in the Marion return game which shows off great bounce with his footwork with his change of direction. He runs a 10.9 100 meter dash and you can certainly see that on the field as a Southern Illinois RB prospect that is destined for more in the upcoming 2023 season.
Charles Bass Charles Bass 6'2" | 180 lbs | DB East St. Louis | 2025 State IL , DB, East St. Louis (2025) Twitter
When you first get to watch Charles on tape, it easy to see why he has many Division I FBS offers already when you look at his stance from the first look as this young man is gamer. He also some extremely instinctive read steps he utilizes in his plethora of skillsets and so much length at 6’2 to get his hands right in the wheelhouse of the wide receiver on a consistent basis. He also shows off a high-level of amped up aggression on every single route he takes with the wide receiver, to assure that they have a very tiny window to work with. I also like watching the run down physicality Charles has as on one clip he not only chases down the ball carrier streaking up field he finds the ball and creates a turnover out of it which certainly show off that next-level skill. Charles already has over 12 offers going into his junior season, and already is a convincing national recruit with more coming I am sure with two more seasons to go at East St. Louis.
Cooper Zimmer, DL, Edwardsville (2025) Twitter
I love the soft hands Cooper brings on his freshmen tape when engaging with the offensive line from my first look at his tape, as he has that tap and go skillset locked down very early in his tape. Cooper also shows off some great range with traveling deep in the inside box looking for the ball carrier and is one that comes off as a highly motored DE prospect out of Edwardsville. He shows off a high-level bend on the line for his age, as has that find ability consistently built on every clip I got to watch out of him this afternoon. He also brewing consistency in his physicality and I only expect that instinct along with his motor to get even stronger as we track him at Prep Redzone Illinois over the next coming years.