Deep Dive: Mecklenburg County Athletes

Charlotte Football Insiders is taking a look at ranking the top Charlotte Metro Area players by position, and we're taking a look at those players in those rankings in a Deep Dive analysis series. In these articles, we will share why these players are ranked and their best attributes as potential college-level football players in their respective futures. This will feature Mecklenburg County Athletes – the city of Charlotte is in Mecklenburg County.   <figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/03/19.png?w=1024" alt="" class="wp-image-1648631" /></figure>    KD has been a great leader for the Lions throughout his career, and he did an excellent job on both sides of the ball on their run to a state championship last season. KD can star anywhere on offense outside of being a lineman, and defensively he stands out as a defensive back. On both sides of the ball, KD shows impressive speed and explosive abilities in space. With the ball in his hands, KD can win as a receiver over the top, as he made several big catches against man coverage in the playoffs. Defensively, KD shows the elite ability to cover in both man and zone coverage while excelling in making tackles in space in run support. KD has a ton of offers to play college football and should have a ton of choices to choose from to play at the next level.     Davion came on to the scene very strong as a wide receiver his freshman year, making impact plays for the Lions in some big games. This past season, Davion showed a much broader skill set, playing some defensive back and EDGE pass rusher while still making some contributing plays on offense. In all those instances, Davion's speed stands out as the major trait. Defensively, Davion shows excellent instincts to get to the ball in both the run and pass games. Davion's physical frame allows him to break up a lot of passes in both man and zone coverages. From a recruiting perspective, Davion also has a high number of offers and still two years in front of him before making a decision to play on the next level.     Since his freshman year, LJ has made plays all over the field for the Knights. Playing some running back along with settling into the safety position on defense, LJ has become an absolute tackling machine defensively. LJ shows excellent speed and instincts getting to the football. Once he gets there, LJ tackles ball carriers well in space, often times in a solo fashion. LJ can also be effective in bothan and zone coverages, showing the ability to cover receivers in man coverage downfield especially. LJ has picked up some Division 1 offers and should continue to see increased recruiting attention going into his senior year.     Keland has excelled as both a receiver and EDGE defender, along with showing skills in the return game for the Panthers. Keland had a really strong season as a receiver, showing very strong hands and excellent speed for his size. Keland showed an advanced ability to line up both on the outside or in the slot, and win against any kind of coverage thrown his way. Defensively Keland showed some good speed off the edge in getting to the quarterback. Keland also made some plays in the return game, showing off some impressive agility in the open field. Keland currently has several Power 4 offers and should continue to see more come his way over the summer.     Caleb has shown some impressive skills both as a running back as well as a defender for the Chargers. Coming into this season, we should see more from Caleb as a back where he has a nice speed/power game with the football in his hands. I love Caleb's contact balance and his ability to run through weak.tackle attempts at 2nd and 3rd levels of the defense. Caleb also shows some ability to tackle well on defense, and also come down and cover slot receivers as an outside linebacker/safety hybrid type of player. Caleb has a lot of Power 4 offers from a recruiting perspective and is on his way to becoming another major recruit for a talented Providence Day program.    Honorable Mentions   [player_tooltip player_id='1600218' first='James' last='Bailey'] - East Mecklenburg - James is a big play threat as a receiver and a ball-hawking defensive back for the Eagles. Despite being the #1 offensive threat, James still put up good numbers offensively last season.   Da'mourion Thomas-Wright - Butler - Da'mourion has a big chance to breakout this season as a running back, after posting some good numbers in a part-time role last season. Da'mourion can also help out defensively and shows good instincts on that side of the football.   [player_tooltip player_id='897764' first='Bryant' last='White'] - North Mecklenburg - Bryant burst on the scene last year as a ball-hawking safety, showing excellent ball skills in the middle of the field for the Vikings. Bryant also contributes on offense as a receiver, but he is really impressive in zone coverage defensively, showing good range to get off the hash or play the deep middle.

Charlotte Football Insiders is taking a look at ranking the top Charlotte Metro Area players by position, and we're taking a look at those players in those rankings in a Deep Dive analysis series. In these articles, we will share why these players are ranked and their best attributes as potential college-level football players in their respective futures. This will feature Mecklenburg County Athletes – the city of Charlotte is in Mecklenburg County.