Standout D-Linemen from the AVC Mega Football Camp, Part II
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Our event coverage of Fairleigh Dickinson University Head Football Coach Anthony Van Curen‘s AVC Mega Football Camp continues. First we will review offensive and defensive prospects that shined during the combine, athletes who appear physically ready to play college football, and…
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Continue ReadingOur event coverage of Fairleigh Dickinson University Head Football Coach Anthony Van Curen‘s AVC Mega Football Camp continues. First we will review offensive and defensive prospects that shined during the combine, athletes who appear physically ready to play college football, and conclude with positional breakdowns of the talent on-hand. These breakdowns are only from my subjective on-site observations. They do not take into consideration film, highlights, or anything else.
Incase you missed any event coverage, here are the articles currently published related to the AVC Mega Football Camp:
As a former defensive tackle, few things make me smile more than an interior defensive lineman wreck things and wreak havoc up the middle. It appears that is the brand of football Turner has adopted as his own. For a big guy with a very solid frame, at 5’10” 267lbs, Turner got off the ball extremely quickly. This sudden burst and explosiveness allowed him to knife into the backfield, win his reps, force bounces, and impress me.
Watson is a prospect that our team here at Prep Redzone New Jersey has collectively liked for some time now; and with his recent commitment to Holy Cross there is plenty to celebrate about his game. Blessed with great size the 6’5″ 220lb defensive edge player has tremendous explosion. This is first evidenced by his 121″ broad jump and then again later, as his quick-twitch muscle fibers were activated too. Watson owns a get off that immediately had defenders off balance, on their heels, and struggling to recover.
This was at least the second time I had the opportunity to watch Dejesus compete live and in living color but yet, each time I see him I feel like I do not get that good of a look because he seems to be a streaking blur. Leveraging his speed-into-power seems to be Dejesus’ signature – and it was more of the same today. He had a twitchy get off that he leveraged with low pad level to drive offensive linemen backwards. Further, the stud defensive end changes direction easier than a Playstation 5 controler’s joystick. Combine that and mix it with pure hustle and pursuit and you have a defensive end that can play either frontside or backside effectively and make tons of plays from either spot.
Highlights
As much as I have seen of James recently, it would not shock me the least bit if he makes his junior year his coming out party. Hailing from East Orange, James fits the type of player we have come to know the Jaguars to have – uber-athletic prospects who are fast and physical. James knows that if offensive players cannot touch him then they cannot block him. He has a strong and powerful dual-arm swipe when pass rushing that nearly tips over tackles. Concurrently, as tackles have their hands rendered useless James turns the corner around them tight to their bodies en route to the backfield.
This was my first opportunity at all to watch Nicolas perform in any capacity. Before I get into a brief story about him, let me first go over what I watched of the 6’3″ 217lb edge player. Nicolas might have been one of the most fluid and mobile prospects to compete on either side of the line. He moves easily and with speed & control; while his hips were limber, loose, and explosive all throughout the evening. Nicolas also does a nice job using his hands when pass rushing and playing the run, always knowing to get hands on the man in front of him.
What I watched of Nicolas was validated by one of the college coaches in attendance. Literally seconds after I recored this live clip of Nicolas’ rep, a coach from Army pulled him aside and they exchanged information. Love seeing that kind of stuff.