AL Pops’ Class of 2027 Prospect Evaluations – 3.23

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There are <strong>11 opportunities to compete</strong> against some of these guys and other top 2027 &amp; 2028 prospects this spring at our PRZ Next Rising Prospect camps. Do yourself a favor and <strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2023/02/introducing-the-prep-redzone-next-rising-prospect-tour/">get signed up here</a>.</strong> The talent that comes out never disappoints.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the constant search for who the biggest and brightest stars of tomorrow are, PRZ Next stays with a constant eye towards the future of football. Here's a look at seven class of 2027 prospects, from seven different states, that I'm high on today.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["724757"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"-Hard to not love the potential in a (unverified) 6-foot-5, 150-pound eighth-grade prospect. Even if he isn't exactly at the height he lists himself at, one look at his build and there's reason to get excitedu003cbru003eu003cbru003e-Very long and very lean for a 2027 prospect who should only continue to improve with a standardized and legitimate weight training program. He'll need to bulk up considerably to be able to better absorb the big hits that will undoubtedly come on the high school levelu003cbru003eu003cbru003e- Will walk into a great situation at Mount St. Joseph High School in Maryland this fall. He should have a year to learn and develop under new Head Coach Donald Davis, who is 139-81 as a HC during his career. Not to mention he'll be sitting behind 6-foot-6 Quarterback and D1 hopeful, [player_tooltip player_id='249088' first='Winston' last='Watkins']","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["724812"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"- Has potential future D1 football player written all over him as an eighth-grader, already standing 6-foot-2 and weighing 190 pounds with a frame ready to easily handle another 30-40 pounds through high school. Has played Linebacker during his youth career, but could easily see him transitioning to Defensive End/Edgernrn- If for whatever reason football doesn't work out the way I presume it will, the 2027 prospect is beyond gifted as an overall athlete and could go on to the next level in other sports. He has gone undefeated in wrestling the last three years and also plays lacrossernrn- The athleticism Chaffin has isn't coincidence. His father Kendall is a member of the Wingate University Hall of Fame and is the only player in South Atlantic Conference history to be selected All-Conference on both sides of the ball","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["723530"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"- Like listed [player_tooltip player_id='724812' first='Elijah' last='Chaffin'] above, Stark is another multi-sport athlete that has a huge upside in more than just football. I do think the gridiron is where he'll end up, but this Louisiana kid can get it done on the diamond toornrn- Again, similar to Chaffin above, Stark comes from good genes. His father (Allen) played collegiately at Louisiana Tech and led the Bulldogs in yards per reception in 1999, averaging 15.1rnrn- The 2027 Stark prospect looks like he is poised to play at a high level as well. At Lutcher Middle School this past season the 5-foot-8, 140-pound prospect played Quarterback, but is a natural at Wide Receiver. He immediately jumps off the screen on film, with his verified 4.57 speed. Plays 7v7 for the famed NOLA Bootleggers. Also reported an offer from Grambling last June, ahead of his eighth-grade year","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["489184"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"- There's an abundance of very talented 2027 prospects in western Pennsylvania, specifically in the greater Pittsburgh area, and [player_tooltip player_id='489184' first='Gabriel' last='Jenkins'] is right there in the the thick of itrnrn- The younger brother of Steven Jenkins, the No. 12 Defensive Back and No. 75 overall class of 2024 Pennsylvania prospect in our most recent rankingsrnrn- Good looking prospect that lists himself (unverified) at 5-foot-11 and 150 pounds. Played Running Back and Wide Receiver on the offensive side of the ball this past season. Very agile and plays with borderline elite body control in the air or while running with the ball in one-on-one situations.  Wouldn't rule out being an offensive player by the time all is said and done","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["725163"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"- Upside is what has me excited about what I see out of 2027 prospect [player_tooltip player_id='725163' first='Karter' last='Simonsen']. While I don't think he's a slam dunk D1 player quite yet, he is trending that wayrnrn- The (unverified) 6-foot-3, 225-pounder wrapped up an eighth-grade season that saw him tally 46 tackles and five sacks en route to an All-County and Defensive Player of the Year award at Hawkins Middle School in Hendersonville, Tennessee. He played a mix of standup Defensive End and Outside Linebacker, but is best-suited with his hand in the dirt as a four-techrnrn- Upon the completion of the school year, Simonsen will be moving to Iowa where he'll be attending Humbolt High School in the fall. The Wildcats finished last season 10-2 and made it to the semi-finals of the Class 3A state playoffs.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["725191"],"_player_evaluations_5_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"- Sanders III is a crazy talented class of 2027 prospect that I'm u003cemu003edangerouslyu003c/emu003e close to saying programs should offer right now as an eighth grader.  He's u003cemu003ethatu003c/emu003e goodu003cbru003eu003cbru003e- Played his pre-high school ball at C.E. King Middle School in Houston, Texas and is a verified 11.04 in the 100M and 22.58 in the 200Mu003cbru003eu003cbru003e- Has a good build right now weighing 180-pounds and is somewhere between the 5-foot-8 and 5-foot-10 range. Has remarkable vision and understands angles effectively to maximize the benefit of his speed. Unlike a lot of other speedy backs at this level who head for the edge right away, Sanders III shows no hesitation to run it up between the tackles before busting it outside","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_6_player":["378974"],"_player_evaluations_6_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"- First saw Montgomery last June as a member of the South Carolina Future Stars team. The name was fitting for what I saw over those few days, as Montgomery checked a lot of boxes both physically and as a leaderrnrn- Was a force at Outside Linebacker and Wide Receiver this past season for South Side Christian. Using a combination of pretty good speed, good size (unverified) at 5-foot-11, 175 pounds and excellent power, he played both positions physicallyrnrn- Watching his film from this past season, I think he has big time upside as an Outside Linebacker. Plays the position violently with more than a couple hits that were reminiscent of NFL Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor, where he nearly decapitates the Quarterback. Recently picked up his first reported verbal offer from Arkansas State","_player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":7,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-641c83a4bfe79"} /-->