Twitter Community Film Room Session
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Although I am not the best at Twitter, Tweeting, or X’ing (whatever Elon calls it now a days), more times than I like to admin I will often stop and watch the film of a prospect who posts it. After…
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Continue ReadingAlthough I am not the best at Twitter, Tweeting, or X’ing (whatever Elon calls it now a days), more times than I like to admin I will often stop and watch the film of a prospect who posts it. After getting lost in the depths of Twitter I will find the light, the light brought to me by a prospect that I am impressed with. When these opportunity to find diamonds in the rough come about, I cannot help but want to scout them.
For the first time I will be trying out the Prep Redzone New Jersey Twitter Community Film Room Session where I evaluate and do a write-up on those prospects. Read more about these prospects below!
TO HAVE YOUR FILM EVALUATED FOR OUR NEXT TWITTER COMMUNITY FILM ROOM SESSION, DIRECT MESSAGE ME ON TWITTER @BRENDANSCOUTSNJ.
Returning for South Group V’s #1 seed Cherokee for one more go of it is Dylan Grau Dylan Grau 6’5″ | 330 lbs | OL Cherokee | 2025 NJ , a big, powerful offensive lineman. Grau possesses a bit of a nasty streak, particularly when uncovered in pass protection, where we see him load up, de-cleat, and destroy pass rushers engaged with his teammate – doing a bit more than what coaches would call “helping.” Due to his broad size, he does a nice job walling off spin moves and cutting off inside gap penetration. The root of this ability comes from his base, which remains shoulder-width and often near-parallel. Grau consistently gets hands on his matchup, which allows him to fling-and-sling opponents all over the field, only for him to painstakingly land on them to pin them to the turf. Two things I hope to see more from of Grau as he enters his senior year are, first, clips of him in pass protection and; second, work to shorten his strides. By taking short, choppy steps he will be able to get more consistent drive and momentum when drive blocking.
An explosive prospect I hope to see on the camp circuit this spring is Keyon Thorpe Keyon Thorpe 5’9″ | 155 lbs | DB Snyder | 2025 State NJ . Thorpe appears to be Snyder’s Mister Do-It-All. So far he has taken reps at tailback, receiver, slot, and safety – and before 2024 is all said-and-done I would not be surprised if we see him as the Wildcat, returner, corner, and anything else his coaches can imagine. The first thing that I jotted down about Thorpe’s game was that he has a fluid ability to bounce when he is toting the rock. An arsenal of moves at his disposal, Thorpe jump cuts and cuts back while maintaining balance to rip off big gains, while also showing the ability to slow down and accelerate, stopping on a dime. Often the fastest man on the field, he hits top speed at about 6 yards and can see-and-hit seams full throttle. In some instances we see him criss-cross the field multiple times against porous defenses. When at receiver, when things breakdown in the pocket he has a tendency to get vertical during the scramble drill, showcasing his ability to make catches in traffic. In one outstanding clip we see him do so by using his hands and coming back to the ball, prevailing against three opposite-colored jerseys to secure the grab. At just 5’9″, Thorpe demonstrates tremendous leaping ability, breaking up passes I would expect him to have absolutely no business tipping. He comes down hill hard to fill the alley and hits much heavier than he looks capable of. When playing center field he gets solid breaks on the ball as he reads the quarterback’s eyes and is a good form tackler. With anyone his size, approximately 155, I want Thorpe to crush it in the weight room. Building up his lower-half will make him more explosive and tougher to bring down. Last fall Thorpe was 65/427/2 on the ground, 30/320/3 as a target, and 43 (22), 4 TFL, and 1 sack on defense.
Taking his team’s nickname to heart, Jack Harris Jack Harris 6’3″ | 295 lbs | OL Rumson Fair-Haven | 2026 State NJ is a bit of a Bulldog in the trenches himself for Rumson-Fair Haven. Harris does a nice job at guard, particularly when pulling. Harris adjusts his path for moving defenders to ensure he secures his assignment while keeping his feet through contact and keeping his eyes inside for leakage. When drive blocking Harris maintains solid pad level throughout the process and keeps working his block all the way down field until the whistle blows. We see that in drop back protection he is able to absorb bigger, explosive pass rushers and play their leverage against them by tossing them to the ground. A patient player, we see Harris do a superb job in turn protection, flawlessly picking up an E-T stunt. For as impressed as I am with Harris’ offensive game, his defensive game might be better. Extremely quick off the snap, Harris can get into the hip pocket of pulling guards and chase them to the point of attack in the backfield; we also see Harris use the swim/arm over to get penetration. In textbook fashion, Harris can jack people up and create separation to establish control of his gap. He is also a sure tackler. Areas I hope t see Harris refine, one on both side of the ball, involve his feet. I would like to see Harris’ foot speed improve when he pulls, allowing him to get to his assignment more quickly; defensively, although he does a great job of getting hands on, extending, and controlling his gap, college coaches will go nuts once he begins to walk offensive linemen into their own backfield and establish a new line of scrimmage. Statistically Harris was good for 24.5 (7), 7 TFL, 2 sacks, 1 FF, and FR during his sophomore season.
Highlights
Allentown has a big-bodied target they like to split out wide or run as a sniffer in Nicholas Colella Nicholas Colella 6’3″ | 220 lbs | TE Allentown | 2025 NJ . Colella has the ability to vertically outrun nearly all cornerbacks he is matched up against, only to dwarf them by plucking the ball off of the top shelf with his hands. Colella also does a nice job playing the scramble drill, lulling defenders to sleep and exploiting lax coverage or soft spots in the zone. On contested balls we see Colella do a nice job coming back to it, using his hands to catch it, and keeping it away from defenders who are trying to play over his back. Similarly, he adjust to balls thrown behind him so he can catch it in-stride and accrue YAC. Colella can stand to improve his break in-and-out of routes; however, on Hudl he lists himself as a tight end. Should he wish to play this position in college I would want to see more clips of him in-line blocking. Last fall Colella went for 19/302/2 through the air.
Highlights
A quarterback with probably the best quarterback name, Jack Cannon Jack Cannon 6’2″ | 200 lbs | QB Holmdel | 2026 NJ ‘s game has evolved since I last watched film on him. More so than anything mechanical, Cannon seems to have evolved into a quarterback who plays with flow and plays really well when moving. The first thing I saw was that Cannon trusts his blockers. He will step up and move around the pocket patiently, not to prematurely initiate the scramble drill nor with regard for his internal timer – although he does have escapability. When he does escape Cannon throws on the run, in either direction, very well. He will wait until the last possible moment as he approaches the line of scrimmage to let the ball loose. I would describe his as “awfully crafty” when things break down, yet never appearing to lose his composure while looking like he is still in a flow. More than most quarterback’s I have watched lately, Cannon puts touch on the ball to get it over defenders and into the break basket of his intended receiver. Cannon’s film would benefit from its inclusion of short-to-intermediate passes; whereas we will see an uptick in his arm strength has his lower body mechanics progress. Last fall Cannon was 52/76 for 1049 yards with 10 touchdowns and 2 interceptions, while adding 56/508/7 as a rusher.