Watchlist 2026s with Strong Jr Tape - Defense

By no means does this guarantee guys will be ranked as I am still working on 2026 class of rankings and this list ranges from guys who are good D3 prospects to borderline recruitable D1 kids, but this class has some guys from the watchlist who were standouts following up years either on JV or year's where they did not produce any film to evaluate - I have seen a couple of them live in person so that add some more detail to evaluations here but overall these are some defensive watchlist guys I thought had strong Jr tape.    Smith, who I believe has been to PRZ camp, was a player wh,o coming into this season, did not have any film out - I was able to see him play vs. Kellenberg and got a look at his season tape, and there are some really solid things there. Smith plays an EDGE/OLB-type role and likely fits there at the next level, especially if he can continue to get bigger and stronger. He plays with a good motor; I thought his best reps came when he showed some explosive get-off and a strong first punch, knocking back OL or, in some cases, blocking RBs/TEs.   Smith does his best work rushing the passer, I was impressed with the fact he put some quality Special Teams reps in tape but a strong debut tape from Smith.     Murray came into the season with some hype - I could not see him live this year but should at some point during camp season to get eyes on his actual size/build. On tape, I think he is still a raw DT prospect, but he shows some good movement skills, especially in his get-off and ability to get upfield. He is quicker off the LOS than many DTs around the 280 range. He plays some nose tackle, but I think his skill set is better at 3-tech, and he could do some good work from as far out as a 5-tech. The athleticism stands out on tape, and it's a good start - I will be looking for continued improvement in his hand placement and ability to shed blocks through the camp season and next fall.     I saw CBA-Syracuse twice this season so that was 2 live exposures of Williams and I watched the whole State Championship game played in so between that and the film I have seen a lot of Williams.   He is one of the better slot corner/Strong safety players in this '26 class in New York. He was one of the most impactful players on a stacked CBA defense when I saw them play Section III AA contender Liverpool. Williams plays with a lot of confidence coming downhill, and he consistently makes tackles in space. I thought his coverage on tape was solid, he sees the field well in zone coverage and is a quick decision-maker on when to attack coming forward.   CBA-Syracuse has both a lot of prospects and a lot of guys I know about - it was cool to see a player I was pretty unaware of turn out to be one of their better defensive prospects when I saw them play. Think Williams can do a lot of good during spring workouts and camp season.     Walker is a player who had some SOPH tape but missed the cut by just a little for the rankings - I thought he had a strong season for Rush-Henrietta as the heart of the defense for a team that made a huge run in the postseason. Walker is a really good tackler both in traffic in the box and in space - he flashes some closing speed and plays fast due to his ability to find the ball and attack downhill. He showed some instincts, closing down on some screen plays quickly and avoiding blockers.   On the tape, you see a lot of open-field tackling and unblocked play,s but there are limited reps of shedding blocks or man coverage (like most LB tape) I think there is a lot to like on tape, camp season should help answer open field movements in coverage but would like to see some more getting off blocks.     I saw Franklin in person at a 7v7 tournament and saw Monroe play twice this season - It is at times hard to stand out as a Monroe skill position player with all the talent that team contains at DB and WR, but Franklin physically looks the part - he can play as a deep safety or rotate into the box as an extra LB - he will need to add weight to play in the box in college, but he avoids blocks and finishes tackles well. He does bite at ankles at times when attacking guys in the backfield, but he shows both live and on tape he can get guys down consistently. I like the coverage you see on tape. The two times I saw him, he wasn't targeted much as one game was a Monroe blowout out and the other was primarily a run-first team, but the ball tracking and ball skills are there on tape.   The tape is good, but Franklin is a player where the live evaluation gives you more confidence in his frame and movement skills - I would highly suggest coaches emphasize giving a look to Franklin when they visit James Monroe in the spring. I will follow up with every coach that is recruiting in the northeast should probably visit James Monroe because of the depth of talent they have.     Clark, who plays DB for Shaker out of Section II, primarily lines up at CB, is a player who also does very well in Hurdle events in track. He flashes some speed, but straight-speed track times fall about in the average of what you look for in a CB, but his hurdle times are impressive. Verifies some explosiveness and smooth athleticism you see on tape. Clark does have sophomore tape from JV so this year is his first varsity tape.   I like his overall movement skills, he has some twitch and that explosiveness out of his breaks - he shows solid ball skills and the ability to knock the ball out at the catch point. For Clark there is a lot to like with his athleticism - getting bigger, stronger, and more violent as a tackler will really round out his skillset at CB.

By no means does this guarantee guys will be ranked as I am still working on 2026 class of rankings and this list ranges from guys who are good D3 prospects to borderline recruitable D1 kids, but this class has some guys from the watchlist who were standouts following up years either on JV or year's where they did not produce any film to evaluate - I have seen a couple of them live in person so that add some more detail to evaluations here but overall these are some defensive watchlist guys I thought had strong Jr tape.