Community Film Room, Episode 52
In this article:
Our Winter rankings update pinpointed even more players from the 2025, 2026 and 2027 classes who have stood out in their respective positions. For a variety of reasons, our team decided that each of those new additions were worthy of…
Access all of Prep Redzone
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingOur Winter rankings update pinpointed even more players from the 2025, 2026 and 2027 classes who have stood out in their respective positions. For a variety of reasons, our team decided that each of those new additions were worthy of a coveted spot in our rankings.
But we’d be naive to think we’ve evaluated everyone or didn’t miss a few along the way.
PRZ South Carolina is constantly looking at as many of the 10,000-plus prep football players in the SCHSL and SCISA ranks as possible.
Now, the Community Film Room is back.
In each edition, we’ll break down five unranked players from across the state to let you see what we’re seeing. The series will lead right into the the start of the spring rankings cycle, the ever-growing importance of the summer schedule and then the 2024 season.
In Episode 52, we’re highlighting five 2025s who collectively impact all three phases of the game.
With the way River Bluff tries to get the ball to top-flight receiver Stephen Collier Stephen Collier 6’3″ | 210 lbs | WR River Bluff | 2025 State SC it has little choice but to lock down the left side of the line. Enter Pitts, who at 6-foot-4 and 265 pounds is showing he’s much more than just a project tackle.
While he has the type of frame that could certainly hold more weight (something the colleges who have already offered are banking on), he also moves pretty well. The Gators staff ask him to do much more than simply stand there and take up space.
In fact, he’s often engaging with multiple defensive players at multiple positions on the same play. As you can see in his reel, some of his most effective blocks are downfield.
Connor Gooding Connor Gooding 6'4" | 215 lbs | TE Gilbert | 2025 State SC
Connor Gooding Connor Gooding 6'4" | 215 lbs | TE Gilbert | 2025 State SC
As a junior, Gooding hauled in 22 passes for 389 yards and eight touchdowns. And while a couple of those scores were jump balls in which he could put his height to max usage, there’s a lot more to Gooding than just his frame.
We love the way Gilbert moves him around to different starting locations; from out wide to next to the tackle to more of an H-Back look, it keeps defenses on their heels.
Gooding is also strong enough to break tackles, which is why the Indians have no issue throwing to him across the middle of the field. He is a YAC machine who just so happens to have clocked in a 21.7 miles per hour (Joanne Langfitt Challenge).
J’Vaariez Sumpter
J’Vaariez Sumpter
Before you ask, no, we didn’t put the wrong film here. Yes, the first 90 seconds or so of Sumpter’s reel is him torching Berkeley in the 2023 opener. He went off for 120 yards and a pair of touchdowns against the Class 5A program in a narrow loss.
At the semester break, Sumpter then transferred to nearby Berkeley, bringing his dangerous open-field skill set to a Stags squad that already has an established quarterback in Henry Rivers Henry Rivers 5’11” | 160 lbs | QB Berkeley | 2027 State SC and Kayden Bash Kayden Bash 5’11” | 150 lbs | WR Berkeley | 2025 State SC and Kevin Boone Kevin Boone 6’0″ | 160 lbs | WR Berkeley | 2025 State SC at receiver. The three together make Rivers that much better.
If that’s not enough, Sumpter is equally potent returning kicks; he returned a few of those for touchdowns last fall, too.
Davion Kinard-Taylor Davion Kinard-Taylor 6'2" | 225 lbs | DL West Ashley | 2025 State SC
Davion Kinard-Taylor Davion Kinard-Taylor 6'2" | 225 lbs | DL West Ashley | 2025 State SC
You play for Donnie Kiefer, there’s a good chance the weight room is going to factor in heavily. That’s true for Kinard-Taylor, who at 6-foot-1 and 225 pounds has the power and burst to wreak havoc on opposing offensive lines.
Last season, he put up an eye-popping 19 tackles for loss to go along with 35 total tackles, 10 quarterback hurries, six sacks and a fumble recovery.
Kinard-Taylor can and does play all four spots on the Wildcats’ defensive line as scheme requires, making plays from each of them. He’s strong enough to push through interior linemen and too fast for many of the tackles charged with slowing him down. We see a huge senior season loading.
Amari Lewis
Amari Lewis
In Lewis, the Eagles will have a truely fast option out of the backfield. Lewis has 4.5 speed and led the team with 459 rushing yards last fall while recording one of the team’s two rushing touchdowns.
He burst into the year with a huge scrimmage showing and then blipped all season long, giving Airport some of the team’s best runs. And while he’s going to get his chances to play early and often, how much he can sustain during the opening portion of the season won’t be known until an even tougher region slate begins.
Either way, even more production in Year 2 of this staff seems inevitable. Because while his overall yards per carry (3.1) wasn’t a highlight in itself, some of the long runs he busted off along the way certainly were.