Florida Future Stars Breakdown: 8th Grade Quarterback (2027)
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Since 2011 the Future Stars has been an institution in the middle school football space, where many of the best kids from the Peach State have put an exclamation point on their pre-high school careers. Household names such as former…
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Continue ReadingSince 2011 the Future Stars has been an institution in the middle school football space, where many of the best kids from the Peach State have put an exclamation point on their pre-high school careers. Household names such as former No.1 overall NFL draft pick and current Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback, Trevor Lawrence, have made this team and event a special one. The evaluators and coaching staff that put together the Florida Future Stars do a great job of balancing skill sets and showcasing what the future of football will look like. Here’s a look at the Quarterbacks on this year’s eighth grade (class of 2027) team.
Based off skillset, physical maturity, ability and age, McDonald would get my nod as the signal caller who should win the starting job during the practices leading up to the eighth grade Florida Future Stars’ games this June. Bluntly put, McDonald has one of the best arms in the 2027 class and is on the 2027 PRZ Next National Watchlist, for a reason. He gets the ball out very quickly with excellent velocity to all levels of the field. Can throw a seed on a slant on 2nd and 6, then turn around and throw a touch pass deep to the parameter on the very next play. Has good pocket presence and moves exceptionally well laterally and vertically in the pocket. Exceptional and succinct footwork in the pocket, leads to little wasted movement and good decisions. In my opinion is the best pure Quarterback out of the six selected from Georgia and Florida.
Despite this being the eighth-grade team Florida Future Stars team, Dallas is only a seventh-grader (class of 2028) and was selected for the roster. I truly believe he will push McDonald to the limit every practice, every drill and every rep, in terms of fighting for that starting spot. Dallas was the starting signal caller a year ago for the Florida Future Stars seventh grade team and was a notch above the competition. Like McDonald, he’s also a southpaw and is an impressive playmaker. Dallas is an RPO threat on every snap and can break a long run off at any time–with impressive speed to boot. He’s listed anywhere from 5-foot-10 to 6-foot but his exact size is unverified. That said, he certainly is long and lean with a slender build. He moves fluidly and simply makes plays. Having seen him play several times in the last calendar year, I’ll give him the edge in terms of dual-threat ability for this Florida eighth grade team, headed into the Future Stars event.
Khayse Barrett
Khayse Barrett
Not to be forgotten about is another returning quarterback from last year’s Florida Future Stars team, Khayse Bennett. He’s not the passer that McDonald is, nor is he runner that Dallas is; but he does bring a nice combination of both skill sets to this roster. He’s a confident kid that trusts his ability and never thinks a throw is off the table. Out of the other side of my mouth, he also has shown the ability to throw balls away or keep it himself for modest gains, if the his playmakers are blanketed. In another interesting twist, he’s the only right-handed quarterback listed on the roster. If backside protection from the offensive line becomes an issue, he could find himself as a bit of a savior for this Florida Future Stars offense.