WV Preseason Spotlight: Monongalia County (Part One)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As we reach the three-month window until the 2023 football season begins, we will spotlight some of West Virginia's prospects to watch for this season. Today will be part one of Monongalia County. Here are some prospects you need to keep an eye on in Monongalia County for the 2023 season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["370287"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":848529,"_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Morgantown High's [player_tooltip player_id='370287' first='Maddox' last='Bowers'] is a 2024 QB that you need to know for the 2023 season. Bowers battled through a torn ligament in his throwing shoulder for most of his junior campaign while leading his Mohigans to a WV AAA Playoff berth. Although injured, he put together a solid junior year passing for over 1,200 yards and 11 touchdowns in a Wing-T offense. Bowers has a strong arm that can stretch the field and throws a pretty deep ball. He does a nice job hitting his receivers in stride and gets a rainbow arc on his deep throws. Bowers is a pure pro-style QB who does most of his damage from the pocket but has enough mobility to make defenders miss in the pocket. Bowers has nice touch on his throws while also having the arm strength to zip the ball when needed. Even with limited throwing opportunities in their scheme, Bowers showed enough on film that he can lead offenses outside of the Wing-T and will threaten defenses with his arm.rnrnWith hopefully a full senior season of being healthy, Bowers should have a breakout final season of his high school career.rnrnu003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://www.hudl.com/profile/14460766/Maddox-Bowersu0022u003eHudlu003c/au003e | u003ca href=u0022https://twitter.com/Maddox_Bowers16u0022u003eTwitteru003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_player_details_selected_featured_image":848532,"_player_evaluations_1_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_1_player_details_player_name":"[player_tooltip player_id='907657' first='Zac' last='Hall']","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_1_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_1_player_details_height":"5'8u0022","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_1_player_details_position":"2408","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_1_player_details_school":"Clay-Battelle","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_1_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_1_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_1_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_1_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Listed at 5'8 160, Clay-Battelle's [player_tooltip player_id='907657' first='Zac' last='Hall'] isn't the biggest athlete but he has one thing you can't teach: speed. They say speed kills and it certainly does with Hall often running by most of his WV Single A counterparts. He runs the 100-meter dash in the low 11-second range and that speed jumps off the film on the football field. He set a PR of 11.22 seconds back in April of 2023 with still another year of high school to go. On the football field, Hall plays running back and defensive back for his team while also returning kicks. Anytime he touches the ball he is a threat to take it the distance and there aren't many in small school WV football that can catch him. Hall had a monster junior year in 2022 rushing for over 1,100 yards and 13 touchdowns on 11.3 yards per carry. He had just as good of a season on defense with 41 tackles, 6 interceptions and 6 PBU's. Look for Hall to have an even bigger senior season in 2023.rnrnu003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://www.hudl.com/profile/15001791/zac-hallu0022u003eHudlu003c/au003e | u003ca href=u0022https://twitter.com/Zac_hall2u0022u003eTwitteru003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["370311"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_player_featured_image":848545,"_player_evaluations_2_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"University High School's [player_tooltip player_id='370311' first='John' last='Coleman'] is one of the best specialists in WV but is equally impressive on the offensive side of the ball at wide receiver. Coleman has elite size at 6'4 and 200 pounds and he uses his size very well to his advantage. He does a great job high-pointing balls and making tough contested catches using his bigger body to shield off smaller defenders. Coleman has enough speed to go with his size to create separation and stretch the field on deep balls. He does a great job catching passes with his hands and not his body which allows him to jump over defenders and secure those tough catches. With his size, he could potentially eventually grow into a tight end at the next level depending on how his body transforms after being in a college strength and nutrition program. Coleman is also a Top 3 kicker in the state of WV in our rankings which he could also do at the next level.rnrnu003ca href=u0022https://www.hudl.com/profile/16333916/John-Colemanu0022u003eu003cstrongu003eHudlu003c/strongu003eu003c/au003e","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["370331"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_player_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"The University Hawks have another very good 2024 prospect with OL/DL Anthony u0022Cookieu0022 Rivera. Rivera is a very stout athlete and at 6'2 290 he also has solid size to play on the line. His strength is very apparent on film on both sides of the ball, and he could play offense or defense at the next level. On offense, he manhandles opposing defensive linemen and often drives his man downfield. Rivera played some at both tackle and guard last season but with his height, he will likely stay inside in college. Quicker defenders may get around him at times but there likely aren't many that can push him backward or off of the line of scrimmage. He is dominant in the run game and consistently opens large holes for his teammates. Rivera could play in the interior of the defensive line as well at the next level where he also showed to be a handful last season. However, his ceiling may be highest at offensive guard.rnrnu003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://www.hudl.com/profile/14943361/Anthony-Cookie-Riverau0022u003eHudlu003c/au003e | u003ca href=u0022https://twitter.com/CookieRivera62u0022u003eTwitteru003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["370279"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_player_featured_image":848567,"_player_evaluations_4_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"The Morgantown Mohigans will have one of the best 2024 offensive linemen in the state in 2023 with [player_tooltip player_id='370279' first='Braylon' last='Brown']. Brown is the son of current West Virginia University Co-Defensive Coordinator ShaDon Brown and you can see that he's been coached up very well by his father. At 6'2 280, he's not the biggest linemen, but Brown is a very strong and athletic guard that moves very well. With Morgantown High being a run-heavy Wing offense, Brown is very skilled and fundamentally sound in run block and is often tasked with pulling and getting to the second level of the defense. He is a very physical and hard-nosed player that enjoys the contact of football. Brown is a nasty blocker who plays until the echo of the whistle which you love to see in offensive linemen. He's very strong and frequently overpowers opposing defenders who often end up on the ground. Brown has good athleticism and feet that allows him to move well and get to the spots he needs to be quickly. He also plays on the defensive line and could likely play there at the next level as well.rnrn[player_tooltip player_id='370279' first='Braylon' last='Brown'] is currently a Top 5 player in WV at his position in our rankings.rnrnu003cstrongu003eu003ca href=u0022https://www.hudl.com/profile/15177347/Braylon-Brownu0022u003eHudlu003c/au003e | u003ca href=u0022https://twitter.com/Braylon_Brown_u0022u003eTwitteru003c/au003eu003c/strongu003e","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":5,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6477ef240c4d0"} /-->