Community Film Room, Episode 72

Our Winter rankings update pinpointed even more players from the 2027, 2028 and 2029 classes who have stood out in their respective positions. For a variety of reasons, our team decided that each of those new additions were worthy of a coveted spot in our rankings.   But as you've discovered by following along, we're nowhere near done.   As we traverse the offseason, we're also seeing a changing of the guard. And, as such, PRZ South Carolina is constantly looking at as many of the 10,000 or so prep football players in the SCHSL and SCISA ranks as possible.   Now, the Community Film Room is back.   In each edition, we'll break down five unranked players from across the state to let you see what we're seeing. The series will lead right into the the start of the spring rankings cycle, the ever-growing importance of the summer program schedules and then the 2026 season.   In Episode 72, we've got a pair of athletes who have proved they can make plays on either side of the ball, an interior defensive lineman now fully healthy after a respectable 2025, a tall receiver ready for his next leap and an all-region linebacker who isn't messing around.    Watson had a couple of pretty good underclassman seasons at West Charlotte (N.C.) before making his way to South Pointe. As a freshman, he put up 73 tackles and 10 tackles for loss and then converted to more of an offense-first player who rushed for 655 yards and 10 touchdowns as a sophomore.   At South Pointe, he's almost assuredly going to focus on defense as a linebacker or safety, and while that is still up in the air, but his athleticism is not. After the conclusion of his sophomore year, Watson's film started leading to offers, and as of last count he was sitting on five NCAA Division I opportunities and counting.    We believe most of those are because of his defensive prowess. Watson is a menace in blitz packages off the edge, can roam the middle of the defense or stay with would-be pass catchers out of the backfield or elsewhere. His playing time is a big ol' TBD after his transfer, but we don't expect him to be a mystery in South Carolina for very long.       Earlier this offseason, we eluded to Hudson's ability to limited time during his sophomore season. What we didn't point out was that he missed the early chunk of the with a busted up right hand and then played the bulk of his snaps with a club on that paw.    It prohibited from spending as much time as he wanted in the weight room, and the fact he still finished the season with 55 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, five sacks and 12 quarterback hurries was a great glimpse into his future. Since the end of the season, he's now chiming in at 6-foot-1 and 285 pounds. That's a scary proposition.    A natural defensive tackle, Hudson can slide to the outside in occasional sets to throw a monkey wrench into the scheme. More importantly, he's already benching north of 300 pounds and squatting well over 500. That kind of power is apparent in his reel.       Let's cut to the chase: Edwards is a potential matchup nightmare waiting to happen for opposing defensive coordinators and secondaries around the Upstate. At 6-foot-3, he's got a massive size advantage over the guys asked to cover him. We've already seen that in how he's able to high-point passes those defensive backs have little chance of knocking down.   Now, the next evolution of Edwards' game could be upon us. After catching 20 passes for 32 yards and two touchdowns as a junior, getting the ball to him more needs to be much more of a priority earlier in games. We've already noticed Blue Ridge having him chip in on special teams and defense. However, his biggest impact should be at receiver given his length and advantage.    It doesn't simply need to be about taking the top off, though. Between some end-arounds or short screens, we're likely to see the Tigers utilize his frame more there, not to mention when he can go from decoy to punishing downfield blocker in the blink of an eye.      Not all that long ago, Burton was primarily playing tailback, where he's rushed for 322 yards and six touchdowns on 53 carries. But what Fountain Inn also discovered is he's a hit-stick linebacker capable to delivering the type of game-changing blows that could take the Fury to another level in its brief history as a program.    Burton, an all-region selection last fall, finished the year with 69 total tackles, four tackles for loss and three sacks. He's a pursue-and-destroy middle linebacker capable to navigating tight windows to the ball. Burton isn't a sure-fire tackler - he was dinged with 21 missed stops last fall by his own staff.   But much of that could be attributed to over-pursuit and moving faster than the play called for. That's a relatively easy fix, and it's why Burton's 2026 numbers will likely dwarf what he did as a sophomore.       While Welch's only two touchdown receptions came within the first three weeks of the 2025 regular season, it was obvious to anyone watching him that the intent of the play calling was centered more around him in the final six weeks of the year.    Over that span, Welch caught 25 of his 34 passes en route to 492 yards overall. It de-emphasized some of the home-run threat he brought to the table, but that was actually a boon for his own usage, especially since he was still playing a ton in the defensive secondary.   He has no fear to his game on either side of the ball, as he's often laying out to catch a pass or lowering his shoulder to lay someone out from his hybrid corner/safety spot. Welch's only singular focus is to make the play. At 5-foot-10 and 175 pounds, he's got enough size to help him pull off either and make it fun to watch in the process.

Our Winter rankings update pinpointed even more players from the 2027, 2028 and 2029 classes who have stood out in their respective positions. For a variety of reasons, our team decided that each of those new additions were worthy of a coveted spot in our rankings.