Web Gems: Intriguing Prospects from the Twitter-sphere

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>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 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.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>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!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:quote --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>TO HAVE YOUR FILM EVALUATED FOR OUR NEXT TWITTER COMMUNITY FILM ROOM SESSION, DIRECT MESSAGE ME ON TWITTER&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/BrendanScoutsNJ">@BRENDANSCOUTSNJ</a></em></strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1228166"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Down in South Jersey we can find rising freshman [player_tooltip player_id='1228166' first='Ethan' last='Nicolas'] lining up in the backfield for Donovan Catholic. The young tailback has a second gear to his foot speed that allows him to turn up the sideline with ease. Along the same sideline, Nicolas showcases outstanding balance, tight roping and staying in bounds as defenders try to knock him off his path. However, make no mistake about it: Nicolas does not resort to bouncing to the sideline, as many freshman backs who are transitioning to high school might. We see him follow his blockers through the designated hole first, and exploding for big plays second. In the thick of things, Nicolas is willing to go into a pile, drudge forward, and plug ahead. The move he likes the most is a sort of sidestep/jump cut hybrid he uses to rub against the backs of his offensive linemen and cutback to a more opportune hole. A defender too, Nicolas has been shown to track the nearside hip well, gator rolling when appropriate. In coverage he has a good sense of when to break off his coverage when the quarterback breaks the pocket. He has served on specials on the kickoff team too. One thing that Nicolas could take with him into next fall is to lower his pad level when running. By doing so he will shrink the surface area defenders have to tackle him, increase his ability to get lost in the shuffle behind bigger offensive linemen, and create more power angles in his body to break tackles. In his debut season Nicolas rushed for 99 yards and 1 score on twenty attempts.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66078bb0c940c"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/16658956/65667ff3da514b0c8cd545bc' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66078bb0c94d1"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1228164"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Hailing from Camden High School is the speedy deep threat [player_tooltip player_id='1228164' first='Malik' last='Redd']. Last fall, Redd was credited with 1 rush for 29 yards, slashed 28/422/5 as a target, and forced 1 fumble and recovered another on defense. Fast is the operative word for Redd's game. Film shows that he is used almost exclusively in the slot and stretches the field vertically, often getting behind the secondary. He runs a lot of verts, fades, wheels, and flags - likely to exploit a matchup his coaches like. When defenders are on their heels, he has the sense of when to break off his route for an easy pitch-and-catch first down. Using his hands to catch, we see Redd also make diving grabs and win on contested 5050 balls. In the open field, the way Redd moves reminds me of a running back, the way he can make one cut and one additional move to gain additional yardage. Turning speed into power, we see Redd make stalk blocks look a helluva lot like crack blocks at times. An element of Redd's game I wish to see more of is how he is with the ball in his hands on short-to-intermediate routes. Given how explosive he is, I am interested to see how he can create for himself across the middle.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66078bb0c9535"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/17429482/65595b3e066162084818b117' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66078bb0c9556"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1228165"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Lining up next to [player_tooltip player_id='1225962' first='Oscar' last='Solis'] in the trenches for the Aviators is [player_tooltip player_id='1228165' first='Joseph' last='Russo']. Although he does play guard, Russo is a highly active and highly productive defensive end who turned in 76 tackles (37 solo), 6 TFL, 9 sacks, 1 FF, and 1 Int a season ago. You could argue that the frequency in which Russo utilizes his hands is elite. We see him engage with his hands to feel pressure and shed blocks accordingly. Similarly, he will push/pull to regain and eventually win leverage. The arm over is something he resorts to as well in his clinic of block shedding. We see that he clearly recognizes reach blocks and sets the edge accordingly. Along with feeling his pressure key, Russo plays with his eyes to see his visual key, evidenced in how he defends plays where the play side guard pulls past tackle. When pass rushing Russo can beat slower tackles off the snap; moreover, we see him do a great job of working back to the quarterback when the quarterback either steps up or when Russo finds himself having over set the pocket. Russo is violent when colliding with trappers, eliminating the inside gap; however, I want to encourage him to see them a bit sooner so that he is in better position to wrong-arm and u-turn. Doing so will add to his tackle total and eliminate an offense's willingness to run to his side of the field.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66078bb0c95b5"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/16131405/6529680cbee17601308b6b66' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66078bb0c95d3"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1224798"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Taking snaps for The Hun School is center [player_tooltip player_id='1224798' first='JP' last='Gottschall']. On film we see that Gottschall seldom misses assignments, consistently protecting the pulling guard's hole - either it is on a nose or a wider 3-tech. Gottschall does a nice job of his head placement, forcing defenders to have to fight upfield and over his crown. He seems to get solid vertical displacement, likely because we see him get his hands under his opponent. In pass protection Gottschall has the desired upward body lean to get defenders on their tippy-toes, thus eliminating both power and speed. With maximum effort at all times a signature of his game, Gottschall hustles downfield to follow plays. For me, Gottschall's game will ascend as he works on keeping a shoulder-width base. Doing so will improve his pad level and provide him with an easier time pumping his feet - creating a cutback lane up the A gap in the process.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66078bb0c9623"} /--> <!-- wp:acf/hudl {"name":"acf/hudl","data":{"embed_code":"u003ciframe src='https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/16944583/655077e1c11a7e045c43e466' width='640' height='360' frameborder='0' allowfullscreenu003eu003c/iframeu003e","_embed_code":"field_62daf7995fd8c"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-66078bb0c9643"} /-->