16 Scouting Notes from the Corky Kell Classic - Kell HS

The Corky Kell Classic is one of the premier kickoff events in the entire country. Here are some of my scouting notes from opening day of the event and the GAHSFB season at Kell high school.   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Douglass-LaGrange</h2>    John Amofah is a broad, stout defensive line prospect who created penetration and havoc all afternoon against LaGrange. He dominated his matchup early on with his combination of explosiveness and mass. He also anchored down well and was difficult to move off the ball. He is an efficient bull rusher, frequently driving blockers onto their heels and denting the pocket, creating pressure in the face of the QB and flushing him out. Amofah is still young, so his physical presence will only continue to grow over the next few years.     Grimes won't scare you off the bus with his size, but he compensated for it in a big way. He aggressively flew downhill, closing space with the ball in a hurry and violently striking. Grimes was one of the tackle leaders against LaGrange and patrolled the middle of the defense very well. His height and weight might hold him back on the trail, but his violent pursuit of the football and his range can't go unnoticed. He is absolutely worthy of some small-school attention.     A few weeks ago, I highlighted Elijah Hunter as one of the biggest potential steals out of Georgia in the 2025 class. His combination of size, speed, and aggressiveness stands out frequently on tape. Against LaGrange, he played a critical role, coming away with 2 INTs to kick off his senior season. He is big, but he still flashed the ability to come downhill to jump routes. Later in the game, Hunter took some direct snaps on offense. I already knew he was an impressive athlete, but he was active around the ball, and we know that ball production translates to the next level.     [player_tooltip player_id='1201242' first='Casey' last='Barner'] kicked off what should be a prolific HS career against LaGrange. Barner only toted the rock a few times, but he ran one in for a TD and is as physically impressive as it gets for freshmen playmakers. He absolutely looks the part and is very athletic, which is the main reason why he holds an offer from UGA. He has broad shoulders and ran with a purpose, proving difficult to bring down. Once he fully settles in, Barner will end up being one of the premier 2028 prospects in Georgia, and the Corky Kell Classic was just the start.     It was difficult to create yards against Douglass, but Malachi Fannin-Render was able to leak out of traffic for a couple of sizeable runs. He is a smaller, skinner back with some bounce in his feet, which is what allowed him to create his own yards. Fannin-Render holds several FBS offers, so his ability to make positive yards is attractive to college coaches. Even at his smaller size, he is smaller to tackle in space and is generating some positive buzz as a result.     Kayden Sutton was the most active defender on defense for LaGrange. He not only led the squad in tackles, but he was also consistently around the football and clouded passing windows. He is a versatile defender who hovers around the second level. He attacks the ball in coverage and plays with good instincts, allowing him to consistently be around the football. He is long and thin, sporting a frame with plenty of room to add weight. He has generated some small-school buzz and is off to a good start in his senior season.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Kell-North Atlanta</h2>    [player_tooltip player_id='401475' first='Brayden' last='Rouse'] is on a fast track to becoming one of the premier 2026 LB prospects in the state. Rouse, formerly a WR prospect before filling out to 6'3 205, flashed excellent coverage and tackling skills against North Atlanta. He is long and athletic, gifting him with a large tackling radius, absorbing ball carriers in the second level. He came away with an INT, getting his head around to find the ball and high-pointing it out of the air. He also turned around and made a couple of plays on offense as a receiver. With his range, measurables, and ball skills, Rouse projects as an elite coverage LB who is nearly impossible to throw over. He added an offer from Texas after his performance and has broken the threshold as a nationally known recruit.     [player_tooltip player_id='283870' first='Kaleb' last='Narcisse'] made his first career start for Kell, but he looked like a seasoned vet. He was very efficient, completing 10 of his 14 passes. He has strong passing abilities, flashing the ability to change up his arm angle and fire the ball with the flick of his wrist, qualities common with baseball athletes. There is plenty of juice in his arm, as he frequently drove the ball downfield with high velocity and proved capable of putting air under it when needed. He is a good athlete as well, allowing him to extend plays and take available yards on the ground. I will go on the record by saying I am pleasantly surprised with his tools. He has big shoes to fill, but I think Narcisse will generate some D1 buzz.     Regardless of position, Gipson is one of the premier 2027 prospects in Georgia, and he proved it against North Atlanta. Gipson played the role of workhorse, toting the ball 22 times for 173 yards and 2 TDs. He also broke off a long receiving TD that was called back for a procedure penalty. Gipson is a stout, muscular RB prospect that runs close to the ground. He can move the pile forward, drive through arm tackles, and stay on his feet through contact. He has surprisingly twitchy footwork and can create his own yards well for a bigger back. Gipson will continue raising his stock and at this rate will be put up against any 2027 RB in the entire country.     Donte Grant is a new name to me and a perfect compliment at RB to Moonie Gipson. Grant got some carries late in the game, and he made the most out of the 10 chances he got, running for 91 yards and finding the endzone once. Grant is a paper thin change of pace back. He is extremely slippery and proved difficult to get his hands on. He is also very patient and showed it by locating and exploiting open running lanes. He is thin and has room to build, but is hard to bring down in his own right. I was very intrigued by Grant and will track him closely going forward.     [player_tooltip player_id='1085379' first='Jaden' last='George'], a Chattanooga commit, looks to be the go-to option for [player_tooltip player_id='283870' first='Kaleb' last='Narcisse']. George made plays across multiple levels of the field, flashing the speed needed to take a screen for a sizeable gain and get behind the safeties. He did both of those against LaGrange. He put some focus on display too, making an impressive diving catch. George comes in at 6'2 180, making him an intriguing size/speed combo. He is an FBS talent committed to play FCS ball, making him a massive steal.     [player_tooltip player_id='1550033' first='Michael' last='Domanik'] is a violent football player. On defense and special teams, he was quickly flying to the football and would unleash plenty of force when he made contact with the ball carrier. He has the mentality and violence desired in LB prospect, but he is also pretty athletic on top of a 6'1 210 frame. There is a lot to like here. Coaches rave about his game and believe he is extremely underrated, and I agree. I expect some D1 schools to throw their name in the hat in his recruitment.     Kell is super talented on the outside, which opened up an opportunity for McCullough to take advantage underneath, and he did. He reeled in 4 passes for 132 yards and 2 TDs, all while doing gritty work as a blocker. He is stout and strong, and once he got going downhill, he was extremely difficult to bring down in the open field. He was schemed up some wide open opportunities, but he still executed and made the most of each opportunity. I expect McCullough to be a premier target for North Atlanta going forward.     [player_tooltip player_id='588469' first='Ian' last='Reynolds'] was tough as nails against Kell, frequently absorbing violent contact while still playing fairly efficiently. He is a tall, athletic presence in the pocket. He stands with confidence and has plenty of juice in his arm. The ball comes out hard and with spin, piercing through the air and arriving with noise. When the play breaks down, he is absolutely capable of scrambling and creating his own yards. Reynolds at times would throw the ball into double and triple coverage, but he still took advantage of some underneath opportunities. There is still some fine tuning to be done to his game, but he is tall, athletic, and has a big arm. He has D1 upside.     Kell tested [player_tooltip player_id='873930' first='Bryce' last='Willingham'], who was making his first ever start at the HS level, as a freshman. He proved himself by making a physical INT through traffic. He has a basketball background and there is plenty of physical upside left in the tank. There are several athletic indicators here, and he added an offer from Georgia State to back that up.     Dean Paulson is a tough, gritty edge defender with a physical edge. He has plenty of muscle mass, and would use it to frequently run at blockers and drive them toward the QB. He came away with 9 tackles, flashing the range and motor to flag the football down from across the field. His muscular frame and ability to bull rush is what stood out most to me.

The Corky Kell Classic is one of the premier kickoff events in the entire country. Here are some of my scouting notes from opening day of the event and the GAHSFB season at Kell high school.