704 Junior Bowl Team: Defensive Selections

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Queen City Senior Bowl honors 80 of the top seniors in the Charlotte Metro Area. Prep Redzone North Carolina takes a look at a hypothetical "704 Junior Bowl" - players that had a strong junior season that would be considered for a selection if such a game existed in the Charlotte Metro Area.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are the final selections for the 704 Junior Bowl Defense below.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>**For full transparency, the 704 Junior Bowl will consider players from the following counties: Cleveland, Gaston, Mecklenburg, Iredell, Cabarrus, and Union counties.**</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Front 7<br><br>DL – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1353067' first='Jesiah' last='Fields']</strong> - Corvian<br>DL – <strong>Nathanel Kamba</strong> - Corvian<br>DL – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1623018' first='Kai' last='Phinazee']</strong> – Forest Hills<br>DL – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1029786' first='Griff' last='Galloway']</strong> – Providence Day<br>LB – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='949642' first='Michael' last='Griffin Jr']</strong> – Hough<br>LB – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='223038' first='Justin' last='Abanquah']</strong> – Providence Day<br>LB –<strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2104509' first='Brayden' last='Fortenberry']</strong> – Stuart Cramer</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Analysis </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It was too hard to deny the dynamic duo from Corvian from being on this Junior Bowl defense. Both Fields and Kamba have incredible burst off the ball, and the drive to play through the echo of the whistle, setting the tone at the line of scrimmage. Phinazee at the defensive tackle spot will command double teams because he is a load against the run, and he's starting to get some well-deserved recruiting attention. Galloway has some nice versatility in his game, where he can be dominant off the edge as well as an interior pass rusher, and he's being highly recruited as well. <br><br>At the linebacker spot, playing a traditional 4-3 front, Griffin Jr is probably the best pure middle linebacker in the state, and he was an easy choice to lead the charge in the middle of this defense. The speed and athleticism of Abanquah at an outside linebacker spot were an easy choice. The other spot was a tough decision, but with Fortenberry's size and speed, plus his versatility to be an edge rusher and an offensive contributor, that won out on the other side of the defense. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Defensive Backs/Athletes </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>DB – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1422524' first='Josh' last='Dobson']</strong> - Hough<br>DB – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1610603' first='Tre' last='Geathers'] </strong>– Providence Day<br>DB – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1788073' first='Jackson' last='Heath']</strong> – Hough<br>DB – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='897764' first='Bryant' last='White']</strong> – North Mecklenburg<br>ATH –<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='1301243' first='Keland' last='Shelton Jr']</strong> – Providence<br>ATH – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1610634' first='Kenyan' last='White']</strong> - Olympic<br>ATH – <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1239187' first='Caleb' last='Cooper']</strong> – Providence Day</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Analysis </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Dobson was a no-brainer at the corner position, as he's one of the best corners in the entire nation in the 2027 class. The other three defensive backs have great instincts, coverage skills, and are fast to the football. Geathers is highly recruited and shows good physicality in tackling in the open field, Heath is a great leader and can make plays at all three levels of the defense, and I really love White playing center field from a free safety position, especially. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The athlete selections are really talented here. Shelton Jr is a dominant edge presence who has the talent and ability to play at the 2nd and 3rd levels of the defense. White, who I have long said is one of the most underrated players in the Charlotte Metro Area, is a tackling machine in the open field, and Cooper has become a highly sought after prospect from a recruiting perspective, who shows great defensive instincts and is explosive to the football all over the field. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->