Rising Seniors Ready To Separate Themselves

Senior year, for a lot of high school football players, represents a final push in their ability to get eyes on them and get recruited. The last chance they have to prove themselves in high school football. When I was still a part of a college program, there were multiple athletes who we'd take a look at in their senior year that we never would've considered based on their junior year tape. For the athletes already being recruited, it's a chance to separate themselves. For the athletes who haven't been recruited much, it's an opportunity to get themselves out there. These are a few guys I expect to make leaps in their senior years and begin to get more heavily recruited.    Hopwood's got some special positional versatility. At 5'10, 165, his lower center of gravity helps him break tackles. He's able to line up in the backfield, in the slot, or on the outside. That'll be an attractive feature to colleges-and it'll help him get on the field quicker. His hands are super reliable. I'm excited to see him play his senior year, and see how much faster he can get. Right now on his tape, he glides, which is a good thing! He's more smooth than fast. I'd love to see him add a bit more twitch and burst to his game for this final season.     Whitaker is another guy with a lot of position versatility. He's got the size to rush from the inside and the quick first step to play on the edge. He's got long arms that colleges are gonna love. He plays the run as hard as he plays the pass, and is a strong tackler. One of my favorite parts of his game, which is a bit more rare in pass rushers his age, is his ability to stay square while rushing the quarterback. He's unfazed by evasive moves in the backfield. He's aggressive, he's strong, and he's got the ability to push linemen off their spot. I'm really looking forward to what's next for Whitaker, if he can add some more twitch and if he can add some more pass-rushing moves to his bag.     It's easy to see why colleges could fall in love with a player like Malcolm. He is a massive human being and a people mover. He's got the ability to move the LOS that you look for in a lineman. And, when you watch the tape, he's more agile on his feet than you'd expect. He's not cumbersome in space at all. I would like to see him pull a bit more in front of ball carriers-I think it could develop into a strength for him. I'd also like him to consistently stay in front of defenders. Too often, he allows them to slip to the side and can fall in danger of drawing a flag or giving up an angle to a rusher with bend. I like how he consistently finishes plays and brings his man to the ground. He's got some nastiness to him. If he can put some more plays in space on tape next season, I think he'll get some serious looks from colleges.     Karpowicz is another athlete who's easy to love when you look at him through a college football lens. He's a lanky, fast DB that can give you quality reps at DB and also on special teams. He'd slot in really well as a returner for a college football team. My favorite thing about how he throws his body around. He's aggressive and not afraid to get down and dirty. Hits surprisingly hard for a DB. Shows ability to track the ball. He shows some ability to get off blocks and make plays in the run game, but I'd love to see him come into his senior year and dominate the run game. I think he has the athleticism to be a big nickel or a safety, and flashing some dominance in the run game could really help him catapult his recruitment.     Ariola is a super shifty back, patient behind his blockers, is able to squeeze through tiny spaces. He's twitched up with breakaway speed to boot. He's got the ability to break arm tackles but can also run circles around defenders. In my opinion, his biggest area of improvement will be in picking up blockers at his smaller stature. I'd love to see him grow another inch or two and maintain his twitch. He's comfortable catching the ball out of the backfield, but could expand his route tree a bit. With that-he should be a top New York running back target for colleges.

Senior year, for a lot of high school football players, represents a final push in their ability to get eyes on them and get recruited. The last chance they have to prove themselves in high school football. When I was still a part of a college program, there were multiple athletes who we'd take a look at in their senior year that we never would've considered based on their junior year tape. For the athletes already being recruited, it's a chance to separate themselves. For the athletes who haven't been recruited much, it's an opportunity to get themselves out there. These are a few guys I expect to make leaps in their senior years and begin to get more heavily recruited.