Region IDs: 8 Chattanooga Area Sleepers, Part I

Chattanooga is home to some of the best talent in Tennessee and some underrated talent south of the city in Georgia. Here are 8 sleepers that are new names to me and guys I will keep track of going forward.    Josh Conner is a stout DL prospect at 6'4 240 with broad shoulders. He plays even bigger than his size, operating with manipulative strength. He sets the edge both with power and patience. His ability to settle down and mirror ball carriers in an alley at his size is impressive. He also bends and drops his shoulders nicely for a big guy. Conner has good size, a high floor, and is worthy of generating small-school attention down the line.     Darian Keefe is a sleeper rising senior QB with fun flashes on tape and impressive athletic information. He is a tall, lanky, but cut 6'4 175 with plenty of room to pack on weight. He doubles as a basketball prospect. He is developing suddenness and twitch, but he has enough to escape pressure and play like he's in the backyard. He has a long, slower-developing, but whippy release that generates easy life on the ball. He has the gas in the tank to make difficult throws that require a lot of arm strength, as evidenced on tape. Keefe hasn't generated much recruiting buzz to this point, but there is a lot of clay for a college at the small school level to mold.     Hendrix is all of 6'5 280 and has a basketball background. He might not possess the desired twitch to generate major recruiting buzz at his size, but he is very active and reactionary for his size and makes plays all over the field. He is a lot of mass to account for in the middle of the defensive line and brings his arm over to shed blocks. Hendrix is big, has a multi-sport background, and impresses with his instincts. He is generating mostly small school buzz right now. If he ends up at that level, he will gift someone a body type that level typically doesn't have easy access to.     Hinton is a rising senior two-way player with no recruiting buzz at this point, but the tape speaks for itself, this kid has D1 tools. He comes in around 6'0 180 and is on the thinner side with room to bulk. Hinton is an extremely sudden, twitchy athlete with excellent foot speed. On offense, he is a YAC machine and can get himself out of tough spots. He is hard to corral and demands all 11 hats have attention on the ball. On defense, he has a quick trigger downhill and quickly closes space between him and the football. Hinton has a chance to pick up recruiting traction with added exposure.     [player_tooltip player_id='1635017' first='Ryan' last='Burney'] is a highly productive DB prospect with good size and functional athleticism. His ball production is off the charts, totaling 9 total takeaways last year, with 6 INTs. He is patient in coverage, leveraging the eyes of the QB and tracking the ball well through the air. Burney is aggressive downhill and found a way to frequently separate the ball from the ball carrier. Burney creates chaos when around the ball, which is what catches my eye the most.     [player_tooltip player_id='402569' first='Zach' last='Gilbert'] missed his junior season to injury, but his earlier HS production and his traits still give plenty of reason to get excited about him. He comes in around 6'3 215 and plays a good mix on and off the ball. The biggest thing I notice on tape is his length. He has grass scrapers for arms and uses that length to expand his tackling radius and engulf ball carriers. Gilbert is a long strider and still growing into his frame, but he flashes adequate closing speed to the ball, especially on a straight line. He plays hard at the point of attack as well. Gilbert is a new name to me and someone I will track going forward.     [player_tooltip player_id='1432197' first='Jaden' last='Haywood'] is a smaller, wiry two-way playmaker who really flashes with the ball in his hands. He is way too fast for his level of competition, frequently getting out and staying ahead of defenders. He quickly explodes to his top speed and is able to maintain it for long distances. He might be a bit thin to play RB, but he has time to bulk up. Size aside, he does a good job of remaining patient and piecing around contact in the short areas. Regardless of where he plays, Haywood has serious juice and has tacked on some offers as a result.     [player_tooltip player_id='1535798' first='Connor' last='Jenne'] is a big, pure pocket-passing QB coming off a productive sophomore season. He isn't going to flash with his athleticism, but he calmy navigates the pocket well and is a tall, durable force back there. He generates some easy life on the ball and has the arm strength to pump it over safeties. Jenne is a sit back, survey, and let the ball eat kind of QB. He reminds me a little of Keegan Stover, a QB out of West Forsyth (GA) that played college ball after high school. I will keep an eye on this kids growth.

Chattanooga is home to some of the best talent in Tennessee and some underrated talent south of the city in Georgia. Here are 8 sleepers that are new names to me and guys I will keep track of going forward.