Carolina Coaches Combine Clayton Primer: Defense

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Saturday marks the first prospect camp of our offseason schedule, as I'll head over to Clayton High School to cover the Carolina Coaches Combine there. We'll have plenty of coverage from one of my favorite camps in the state. We're starting by going in-depth ahead of the camp. Out of several hundred players across multiple sessions, which defensive players am I most excited to evaluate?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Defensive Players To Watch at the Carolina Coaches Combine</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The CCC is unique in that every player was nominated by his head coach. There are three sessions, two for rising seniors and one for the 2028 and 2029 classes. Here, I'm looking at the first two sessions.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Editor's Note: I'm slightly more familiar with players in Session 1, as that's primarily players on teams in the Triangle. But I'll actually spend most of my time on Saturday evaluating some of the guys in Session 2 from eastern NC, who I've evaluated remotely, but haven't seen in person.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Defensive Line</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>First, I just have to mention how loaded these defensive groups are, which mirrors the 2026 class.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1607844' first='Xavier' last='Perkins']</strong> is the headliner, ranked 14th overall in our state rankings, and he's joined by several other top edge rushers on Saturday morning.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Clayton's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='444280' first='Jordan' last='Hamm']</strong> is a guy who could have a massive season, and he sits inside the top 60 in our 2027 rankings. He's a tweener, so I'm interested both in how he measures and how he tests. There are a ton of guys who made our various RDU Deep Dives, with <strong>Ta'Ron Mitchell</strong> (Bunn), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1941008' first='Holton' last='Westbrook']</strong> (Northern Nash), <strong>Ashem Afubu</strong> (Harnett Central), and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1658476' first='Tracey' last='Brown']</strong> (Triton) among the guys I'm excited to see in person for the first time.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In Session 2, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1701467' first='Emmanuel' last='Rucker']</strong> (Northwest Cabarrus), <strong>Damerin Cooper</strong> (Red Springs), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1706217' first='Duncan' last='Obst']</strong> (Union Pines), and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1717322' first='Steven' last='Elliott']</strong> (Perquimans County) are guys I like on film, but have never scouted in person.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Add Northside-Jacksonville's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1570094' first='Jamir' last='Mitchell']</strong> to that list. He's a long, lean edge defender who I want to see move. I want to see how he measures, as he's undersized. But if he weighs in closer to 200 pounds, I think his bend and explosion could make him a viable edge prospect.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other Names I'm Excited to See:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2151238' first='Javon' last='Hicks']</strong> | Sanderson<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2147849' first='Daniel' last='Prince']</strong> | Lee County<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1679959' first='Cody' last='Robinson']</strong> | Southeast Raleigh<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2153276' first='Kaiden' last='Blackwell']</strong> | Clayton</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Linebackers</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's an impressive linebacker group, with several guys who have long been on my list to scout in person. Here, I'm particularly excited for Session 2 and the guys in the eastern part of the state.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Union Pines duo <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1610572' first='Josiah' last='Sandler']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1610571' first='Dylan' last='Benedict']</strong> caught our attention last offseason. The Vikings are among the state's best strength programs, and I'm interested to see how those two measure and test.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There is a trio of linebackers I'm excited to see run through drills, specifically because I've never seen any of their defensive film.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Lakewood's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1106564' first='Calvin' last='Lacewell']</strong> is our eighth-ranked running back, but he's working out as a linebacker Saturday. Similarly, we have East Duplin's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1705626' first='Noah' last='LeBlanc']</strong> and Martin County's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1159168' first='Jordan' last='Matthewson']</strong> ranked at running back and athlete, respectively. We've seen far more of Matthewson at receiver than linebacker, and he should be one of the tallest backers in attendance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I have Southeast Raleigh's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2168898' first='Josiah' last='Heath']</strong> and Willow Spring's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2166397' first='Tyler' last='Hodges']</strong> on a list to evaluate in the coming weeks, so the weekend will make that much easier. There are also seven guys I recently evaluated for Deep Dives, including Clayton's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1665959' first='Imarii' last='Givens']</strong> and Lee County's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1636768' first='Tyler' last='Buchear']</strong>. Count Enloe's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1129854' first='Jaiden' last='Creath']</strong> among a group of guys I've heard about, but haven't gotten to see in person.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Others I'm Excited to See:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1707958' first='Ja'Don' last='Lillie']</strong> | Hillside<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1361375' first='Jessie' last='Wade']</strong> | Northern Nash<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1647668' first='Elijah' last='Fulton']</strong> | ALA-Johnston<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1106598' first='Bradley' last='Byrd']</strong> | Oak Grove<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2092906' first='Carmello' last='Bullock']</strong> | Tarboro</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Defensive Backs</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Top to bottom, the defensive backs group might be the best in attendance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It starts with three future FBS recruits in <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1661632' first='Ta'Shaun' last='Walker']</strong> (Clayton), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1607071' first='Matthew' last='Smoot']</strong> (Northside-Jacksonville), and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1397877' first='AJ' last='Randle']</strong> (Garner), the latter of whom could play safety or linebacker at the next level. Both had huge years for <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/01/unsung-heroes-greater-neuse-river-7a-conference/">Greater Neuse River Conference</a> powers and are already garnering plenty of attention.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I'm particularly invested in speed data for Randle. If his 40 and GPS numbers check out, he's a top-20 prospect in the class.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>But there's some depth here, too, and I'm excited to scout guys like <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1727145' first='Isaac' last='Barefoot']</strong> (South Johnston), Hobbton's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2148880' first='Amir' last='Tate']</strong> (Who we have ranked as a running back), and Southeast Raleigh's trio of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1782058' first='Moses' last='Miller']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1953574' first='Ziyir' last='Stanley']</strong>, and <strong>Coreyon Bullock</strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Finally, there's one guy who could make a huge move in the rankings. Middle Creek's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2005255' first='Jayden' last='Barnes']</strong> has college size and (reportedly) speed. If he puts up some impressive testing numbers and looks the part in drills and one-on-ones, I'm ready to make him one of the biggest movers in our next rankings update.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Other Names I'm Excited to See:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1170683' first='Tristan' last='Freeman']</strong> | Garner<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1553253' first='Keyon'Dre' last='Wright']</strong> | White Oak<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1751874' first='Kolby' last='Kearney']</strong> | Franklinton<br><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1667014' first='Jaleel' last='Griffin']</strong> | Jordan</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Final Notes</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here are a couple of final things I'll be looking for:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>I hope to get the opportunity to see Middle Creek's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2162955' first='Ben' last='LaDue']</strong> and Willow Spring's <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2145391' first='Moses' last='Barker']</strong> kick. It's always a treat to see top specialists work out, and LaDue and Barker are worthy of their national rankings as a punter and kicker, respectively.<br></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>I'm interested to see which programs are having the most success in the weight room. It helps when projecting players in the offseason to know which players have the best chance to reshape their bodies, especially for tweeners and guys who need to add a bit more weight.</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Catapult data should be available Saturday. 40s are important, but I'm excited for real-time GPS data. Which guys play the fastest in one-on-ones?</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>It's camp season, and we're coming to Charlotte on May 1 for our PRZ Exposure Camp under the lights on a Friday night. <a href="https://events.prepredzone.com/e/2214/register/exposure-series-north-carolina">Secure your spot</a> and use promo code WillHelms10 at checkout for $10 off. Think we missed someone? DM me on Twitter/X (<a href="https://x.com/whelms21">@whelms21</a>) with film.</em><br></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->