5 First-half Stock Risers
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With the first half of the season in the rearview and college coaches getting back on the road, high schoolers across the country are starting to raise their stock as they continue to shine on Friday nights. Here are a…
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Continue ReadingWith the first half of the season in the rearview and college coaches getting back on the road, high schoolers across the country are starting to raise their stock as they continue to shine on Friday nights. Here are a few from all across the state that are sounding off recruiting alarms.
Dominic Steward – 2024 – OL – Westlake
Steward is an uber-athletic OL prospect with good size. He committed to Troy recently, but his recruitment is not anywhere near over. With recent offers from Missouri, Cincy, and others, the bulk of his recruitment is between now and signing day. Steward comes in listed at 6’5 270, showing exponential physical growth since he first broke onto the scene and there is still plenty of physical growth down the road for him. As far as pure athleticism and movement ability are concerned, Steward is one of the best in the state in this class. He is exceptionally fast for his weight class, frequently blasting downfield as a lead blocker and locating second and third-level defenders. He is explosive off the snap and plays with a physical edge, launching with good pad level and connecting with force. He generates decent drive from his lower body, which will only improve as he adds more mass. Steward gets into his pass set quickly and plays with good hand placement. When defenders work to free themselves up, Steward does a good job of keeping his hands steady and recalibrating his feet. Once he is in position to do so, he can kick things into another gear and completely wash the pass rusher out of the play. When he isn’t directly responsible for a 1 v 1 rusher, Steward does a good job of remaining disciplined and keeping his eyes up to find someone to block. At times, he can knock one defender to the turf and then completely reposition himself to handle a blitzer, accounting for two defenders on one play. Steward is a freak athlete with good frame and plays with a nasty edge. He is a P5-level prospect and once he is fully grown, he could be a P5 contributor.
Cedric Roberts – 2024 – LB – Peach County
Roberts is a thick-bodied LB prospect who has picked up some D1 offers over the last few months, including one from Stetson earlier this month. The obvious physical traits are there to make Roberts an intriguing prospect. He is plenty stout at 6’1 220 and has filled out very well. His frame allows him to absorb contact well and he is able to generate some push thanks to the strength present in his lower body. Roberts is a disciplined player around the line of scrimmage, keeping eyes on the football and staying east/west to keep the action in front of him. When he comes downhill, he does a good job of squatting down and sizing up the ball carrier when he goes in for the tackle. He has good length for his height and does an excellent job of getting his arms around defenders. He strikes low as well, so his pad level and tackling radius make it hard to break his tackling attempts. In space, Roberts is still a bit raw and is growing when it comes to taking angles to the football and playing in coverage. However, he is a good pursuer of the football and will frequently flag down ball carriers down the field. If he does get beat on his angle to the outside, he does a good job of quickly reacting by getting upfield and staying in phase with the ball carrier. Roberts has D1 size and is a good tackler. He will be able to hold his own physically and make tackles at the next level. If he can continue to elevate his game in space, he will increase his ceiling as a prospect.
JD Davis II – 2024 – QB – Grayson
Davis is a long, lanky QB prospect who has steadily improved each year and is currently having his best season yet at the high school level. The 6’2 190 signal-caller has been super efficient with his arm while also getting things done with his legs. Davis’s touch and confidence in throwing the deep ball pop on tape. He is often schemed up 1 v 1 deep shots downfield and does an excellent job of lofting a smooth, catchable ball with plenty of trajectory. Davis is capable of working his reads across the field and can make the throws on the outside and on the hashes. When attacking the intermediate part of the field, Davis continues to flash his touch by layering the ball over LBs and dropping the ball right into the zone. He plays with extreme patience in the pocket, quickly getting into his drop and positioning himself with a firm base. As the play goes on and the protection starts to leak, Davis does a great job of escaping through the pocket, giving himself the chance to pick up extra yards with his legs or slip out to the flat to get away from traffic and read the field. Davis has an intriguing delivery, firing the ball with a long throwing motion. Still, he gets the ball out quickly thanks to his quick trigger and quick arm action. When he has to throw the ball into tight windows or bend the ball around an EDGE defender to reach the flat receiver, he shows great elasticity in his arm and is able to shorten up his delivery to get the ball out even quicker. When out on the run, Davis is a pretty fluid athlete who is capable of forcing missed tackles. He is also willing to take on contact if it means falling forward into the endzone or moving the chains. Davis can threaten the defense vertically in numerous ways and still has his best football ahead of him. He fits the “modern” QB build and will have plenty of D1s to choose from.
Julius Columbus Julius Columbus 6'2" | 270 lbs | DL Gainesville | 2025 State GA – 2025 – DL – Gainesville
Columbus was one of my favorite DL evals last year and he has shown even more improvement as a junior. He has started to pop onto the D1 radar, receiving numerous D1 offers since the season started. Columbus is an athletic, energetic IDL prospect who can force the action and impact the line of scrimmage in a multitude of ways. Columbus spends a lot of time lined up over the center as a true nose, but he is absolutely capable of stretching out to the 1-3 spots on the defensive front. Columbus’s explosiveness and speed off the snap are often too overwhelming for your typical offensive lineman. His 0-60 is well above average for DL prospects at his age. He is capable of slipping blocks without hardly getting touched and attacking the mesh point for the QB and RB. His grip strength is noticeable on tape. Once he has fired his hands and is locked into action with a lineman, he is able to toy around and completely sheer the blocker off his platform. Against the pass, he has the suddenness and athletic profile to bend around blockers and can break out some pass-rushing moves to keep the blocker guessing. Where he might make the most money at the next level is with his bull-rush. He plays with pretty consistent pad level, generates plenty of drive from the turf, and has a motor through the roof. When you tie all those things together, you get yourself a pocket denter up front who can make the world feel like it’s crumbling around the QB. With another year of development, his eye discipline should continue to come around and will prevent him from getting misfiring and getting lost in his pursuit. He might not check prototypical P5 IDL measurements at 6’2 270, but his ability to get pressure right in the face of the QB and sheer off blocks against the run makes him a very intriguing eval for P5 schools.
Jontavius Wyman Jontavius Wyman 6'0" | 170 lbs | ATH Jonesboro | 2026 State GA – 2026 – ATH – Jonesboro
Wyman is a future blue-chipper as a DB and it’s thanks to his production against the ball and athletic upside. He comes in at 6’1 175, already checking plenty of height, weight, and length boxes when it comes to P5 DB prospects. As is the case with guys at his age, he is likely not done growing. From my evaluation, I project Wyman long-term at the CB spot, though others would likely value him as a S. Wyman’s discipline in zone and off-man coverage is on another level. He plays with excellent patience and is seemingly always aware of his job and is executing at a high level. Once he reads and reacts, he quickly gets to the football and makes a play on it. As a corner, I love his ability to run with WRs, locate the football, and rise up to make a play. He has a high vertical and has the physicality to play through the hands of the receiver, knocking the ball to the turf. When coming downhill, Wyman is a physical tackler who wraps up well and drives receivers into the turf. His discipline translates to his tackling ability. When he comes downhill and is faced with a blocker, he does a good job of settling down, sizing up the blocker, and attacking. When fully grown, he should develop his man coverage game even more, which is why his upside on the outside as a corner is so intriguing. Wyman is an outstanding athlete with upside on offense, defense, and special teams. He is going to physically outmatch his opponents, but what makes him different is that even at a young age, he always seems to be a step ahead of everyone else, including the offense. Wyman will continue to stack P5 offers over the next few years.