John F. Kennedy Cougars | Summer 3-2-1 Spotlight

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>John F. Kennedy opened some eyes this fall with a 9-1 regular season, top-five playoff seed and quarterfinal run.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And while the Cougars have to replace some notable stars and leaders from the top of that roster, plenty of talent returns to have reason for optimism for another strong campaign as they try to continue building. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>John F. Kennedy garnered a stop on Prep Redzone Louisiana's offseason tours and a series of "3-2-1" spotlights looking at three key returning standouts, two notable breakout candidates and one underclassman to know sooner than later.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://www.youtube.com/embed/Gf2vL04puhg","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"embed-handler","responsive":true,"className":"wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-embed-handler wp-block-embed-embed-handler wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://www.youtube.com/embed/Gf2vL04puhg </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3 WELL-KNOWN RETURNERS</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='285193' first='Bernard' last='Causey'] — 6-0, 160 DB —&nbsp;John F. Kennedy (2024)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cougars return one of the state's highest-ceiling cornerbacks in the new Ole Miss commitment. "Beeby" checks a long list of boxes with his length, twitchiness, fluidity and ball skills and plays with contagious levels of confidence and aggressiveness. Causey has a long track record of lockdown performances from Friday nights to camp and 7-on-7 settings against elite competition and has the chance to have his best football still ahead of him with the resources and support available at a major college program.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='421612' first='Joey' last='Davis'] Jr. —&nbsp;6-1, 175 WR — John F. Kennedy (2024)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='914129' first='James' last='Evans'] — 5-9, 140 WR — John F. Kennedy (2025)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>A pair of all-district receivers return. Davis is somewhat of the offensive counterpart to Causey as the long, lean rising senior and vocal playmaker with a list of offers that includes South Alabama, UTSA, Southeastern Louisiana, Indiana, Marshall, Nicholls State and Samford. The younger Evans was one of just two sophomores in 9-3A to earn all-district recognition after racking up more than 500 yards this past fall. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>David Phoenix — 5-10, 230 OL — John F. Kennedy (2024)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The offensive line will be an interesting area of turnover to watch with some notable size and experience graduating in the 2023 class, including all-district performer Dontae McNeil. But the quick, versatile lineman, who spent much of last season at left tackle, returns as a reliable leader in the group.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2 BREAKOUT CANDIDATES</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='285268' first='Bobby' last='Kennedy'] — 6-3, 180 ATH —&nbsp;John F. Kennedy (2024)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>and <strong>Kingston Jones — 5-10, 175 WR —&nbsp;John F. Kennedy (2024)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Cougars add a pair of notable rising senior transfers from St. Augustine. [player_tooltip player_id='285268' first='Bobby' last='Kennedy'] initially gained attention as an intriguing young prospect as an underclassman at JFK before playing this past fall with the Purple Knights. The versatile athlete, also a high-flying basketball standout, has played at receiver, safety and corner. Jones, a speedy receiver with blazing track times recently picked up his first college offer from Alabama State. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='914099' first='Amyne' last='Darensbourg'] — 6-1, 170 QB/DB — John F. Kennedy (2025)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The biggest storyline from a roster standpoint as the Cougars attempt to build upon this past fall's quarterfinal run will be how well they can fill the big shoes left by graduated all-district passer Christopher Armstrong. Darensbourg played well, primarily as a ballhawking safety, but has been preparing this offseason for more of an opportunity to throw big passes rather than intercept them.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1 UNDERCLASSMAN TO KNOW</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='934585' first='Grayson' last='Powell'] — 6-1, 215 DL/LB — John F. Kennedy (2027)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the early members of Louisiana's 2027 class to know, the young edge-rusher has already picked up his first college offer from Southern University in May. Powell follows a solid run of edge-rushing predecessors that includes 2023 Troy signee Deshaun Batiste and 2024 defensive end [player_tooltip player_id='421620' first='Kennell' last='Hamilton'] Jr. and outside linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='285199' first='Hurley' last='McDonald'].</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->