Deep Dives: Western NC Defensive Linemen

The final leg in our Deep Dive Series will be Western North Carolina! This is definitely an under-recruited area of the state, but there is some great talent in the mountains and foothills!   We will keep it going with the top defensive linemen in western North Carolina, and we will follow the same setup as we did for Mecklenburg County: The top five players will get their own individual breakdown, while our remaining players will get a summarized analysis of their abilities. Let's get started!    With impressive production this past season of 69 tackles, 34 tackles for loss, and 12 sacks, Tariq ranks as our #1 defensive lineman in Western North Carolina. On top of those impressive statistics, Tariq was also the recipient of the Conference Defensive Player of the Year award. So, why does Tariq have all of these great numbers and accolades? When you take a look at the film, Tariq has elite quickness off the line of scrimmage. He does a great job of shooting gaps before linemen can get their hands on him and disrupting plays in the backfield. Also, Tariq's closing speed is electric, which is why he's able to get so many sacks when getting into the backfield so quickly.     Brooks earns our #2 spot here with excellent size off the edge at 6'4, and strong production from this past season. Brooks totaled 84 tackles on the year, with an impressive number of solo tackles, 49. Also impressive were the 9 and a half sacks Brooks was able to put together on the year. When you take a look at the film, I like Brooks' ability to play off blocks in the running game first and foremost. He uses his hands well. Brooks is what I consider a power-rushing type of player; he uses his strength well to leverage pass-rush wins against offensive tackles on a consistent basis.     Tyrell earns our #3 spot for defensive linemen in Western North Carolina off of being a defensive selection for All-Conference this past season. Tyrell shows some strong burst off the ball at the snap, which allows him to make plays in the backfield in the running game. Tyrell totaled 10 tackles for loss, and that is a big reason why. Also, I love Tyrell's closing speed in short spaces, that allows him to get to ball carriers quickly and take them down. Tyrell had 52 tackles on the season, a pretty good number for an EDGE player.     Jaxson ranks 4th on our list here, and he's an All-Conference performer from last season who shows some good things on his highlight film. Also, he's an offensive lineman, so that versatility is very valuable - and he shows some nice things in space pulling in the running game from the offensive side of things. On film, Jaxson shows some strong instincts as a defensive player, with a strong ability to read where plays are going, shed blocks, and get in on the tackle consistently in the running game. I also like the effort and emotion Jaxson plays with. I can see him being a leader through his film.     #5 on our list is another talented Blue Devil in Brandon, who also plays some EDGE for them. Brandon isn't the biggest size-wise, but he's got very good speed for the EDGE role, and he uses that to get in the backfield consistently and get sacks on the quarterback and tackles for loss in the running game. His speed also sets up some good-looking pass-rush moves against bigger and slower tackles in pass protection. Brandon does a good job of keeping outside leverage in the running game, allowing his teammates to chase down any plays going outside of the hashes consistently.

The final leg in our Deep Dive Series will be Western North Carolina! This is definitely an under-recruited area of the state, but there is some great talent in the mountains and foothills!