On Campus: Catawba River Region Joint Practice

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2024 season may still be 95 days away, but the Football City USA Showcase took place on Tuesday afternoon where Rock Hill, Northwestern, South Pointe and Indian Land all took part in a joint spring practice at Manchester Meadows in Rock Hill. College coaches from South Carolina, Western Carolina, UNC Charlotte, Wingate and Limestone were all on hand as well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We were on hand for most of the session and here are some of the notes and observations from what we saw:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Northwestern WR <strong>CJ Broughton</strong> made a great catch on the slant on a great throw from [player_tooltip player_id='241044' first='Finley' last='Polk'] with a defender on him. <strong>Mahaki Barber </strong>made a great catch out of the backfield, looking the ball into his hands while running a guy over in the process.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Trojans' DB <strong>Zy'Quavious Beckham </strong>made a good tackle on a quick out from the receiver to drop him immediately and limit the gain during the team period.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Early on in the Trojans' practice in what's called a pat-and-go drill, where you're basically completing routes versus air, Trojans QB <strong>McCrea Knight </strong>made a great delivery on the throws. There was also a ball security drill where wide receivers had to make the catch through traffic and WR <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1823352' first='Daylen' last='Shankle'] </strong>made a nice catch, looking the ball into his hands.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Moving on to some observations from South Pointe, we caught a drill where receivers had to progress through the route around the cones. WR <strong>Kadin Vassel </strong>did a good job of turning and getting out of routes. He also did an excellent job on the release. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1249764' first='Jordan' last='Collins'] </strong>looks bigger than when we last saw him. He looks almost like a tight end.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>WR <strong>Dalian Duncan </strong>is quick and knows how to get up field quickly after making the catch. RB <strong>Tacarean Douglas </strong>has a good burst once he finds the hole. He can find the green grass quickly. WR <strong>Caymen Finch </strong>made an excellent catch on the go route on a throw from <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='212416' first='J'Zavien' last='Currence'] </strong>to conclude the Stallions' practice.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Indian Land QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1036748' first='Sequel' last='Patterson'] </strong>caught our eye from the brief time we watched him. He made a nice connection on a flat route where the receiver was able to sit down and make the grab. The ball comes out quickly and smoothly. We expect a big year from him after an All-State freshman season in 2023. DB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1249777' first='Omarion' last='Davis'] </strong>holds eight Power Five offers and has good size for his position. He keeps his eyes in the right place.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Warriors RB <strong>Devon Caldwell </strong>did an excellent job finding open room on a jet sweep during a competitive period. Expect him to make an impact as a returning starter from 2023. WR <strong>Yukota Simpson </strong>is new to football in 2024, but he made a good catch and showed good concentration to make the grab.<strong>&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was our first chance to see Rock Hill QB <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='809751' first='Ian' last='Grissom'] </strong>(pictured left) with his new team after transferring from Lewisville last month. He has a nice spiral on his throws and made a nice connection on a corner route. The ball comes out fast and you can tell he's comfortable in picking up the Bearcats' system.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Northwestern will open the 2024 season in the Charlotte Kickoff Classic against Hough on Friday, August 23 at 5:15 p.m.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Rock Hill will open the 2024 season on the road against River Bluff on Friday, August 23.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Indian Land opens the 2024 season at home against York on Friday, August 23.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->