AVC Football Camp: Defensive Back Notebook, Volume III

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For the third year running, I was invited back by Fairleigh Dickinson University&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/CoachAVC_FDU">Head Coach Anthony Van Curen</a>, as he - yet again - pulled off our region's largest one-day football camp. This year's rendition welcomed just over 450 participants who all eyed up the opportunity to get eyeballed in front of current college coaches.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I could not determine which was deeper: the roster was loaded with talent or the roster of coaches in attendance. In my three years covering this event, this is perhaps the widest range of U.S. states represented, including: Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, North Carolina, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Georgia, Florida, Delaware, and Connecticut. However, more than I can recall in the last, an International crop of talent was extremely well represented, with prospects hailing from Austria, Bavaria, Danmark, Baden-Wurttemberg, Bavaria, Berlin, Catalunya, Kenya, Podlaskie, Rhineland-Palatinate, Steiermark, Thuringia, Uppland, and Vienna. As far as coaches, there were more than I could count.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Below you will find my evaluation notes for the position group mentioned in the title of this article. These notes are strictly performance-based observations from what I witnessed at this event.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Be sure to follow me on&nbsp;<a href="https://x.com/BrendanScoutsNJ">Twitter</a>&nbsp;for the latest New Jersey high school football prospect news and not miss a beat!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1606920"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a30131c5c412"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Making one of the furthest trips to attend this camp, [player_tooltip player_id='1606920' first='Elijah' last='Elibert'] made the trek from Georgia to get noticed. One thing was clear: Elibert's Georgia speed plays different. After a push-off by the receiver, Elibert found himself trailing by a lot. This, however, was an opportunity for Elibert to showcase elite closing speed. As he accelerated kicking up turf pellets all around him, Elibert undercut the ball for a pick. Simply put, it was a play that made Elibert look different.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Xavier Harrigan","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"field_65b288425ecf6","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2495","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Montgomery","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a30131c5c56c"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">A prospect who looks to break through into the lineup for Montgomery his senior year is Xavier Harrigan. Harrigan, in my estimation, must break down/lower his pad level when changing direction. As Harrigan worked during indy, it looked as though this defensive back was running everything as if it was a speed out.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Dante Palmer","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"field_65b288425ecf6","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2495","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"West Orange","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a30131c5c682"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">One of the more quick, agile defensive backs in attendance was Dante Palmer. Aside from demonstrating his twitchiness, Palmer also bazed the turf any time he ran. With zero issue changing direction, he worked extremely tight to the cones during indy without losing much steam. Lastly, I watched Palmer participate in a drop drill where, with his West Orange teammate wearing jersey #15, moved in unison as if they were players on a foosball table. Their synchronization bodes poorly for opponents who want to pass on the Mountainers this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["1974870"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a30131c5c70c"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">[player_tooltip player_id='1974870' first='Josiah' last='Tims'] is a prospect that I wish I had an opportunity to get another look at. I suspect that Tims sustained an injury year in this event. I noted that he was not finishing and lack burst. His body language, performance, and face led me to suspect that Tims was not near 100%.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"Yandel Maria","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"2027","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_weight":"field_65b288425ecf6","player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"2495","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"Hillside","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details_club_program":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_0_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations":1,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"preview","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6a30131c5c80b"} --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"placeholder":"Add evaluation here...","className":"text-gray-700"} --> <p class="text-gray-700">Taking the trip from Hillside was Yandel Maria. Maria is a prospect that, for the rest of the summer, ought to focus on flexibility and mobility. I walked away from this one feeling as though Maria's hips were tightly wound up.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- /wp:acf/evaluation-block --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Anthony Van Curen Football Camp Coverage</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-defensive-combine-results">Defensive + Specialist Combine Scores</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-offensive-combine-results">Offensive Combine Scores</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-the-eye-test-offense">The Eye Test, Offense</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-the-eye-test-defense-specialists">The Eye Test, Defense + Specialists</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-defensive-back-notebook-volume-i">Defensive Backs, Volume 1</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-defensive-back-notebook-volume-ii">Defensive Backs, Volume 2</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-defensive-back-notebook-volume-iii">Defensive Backs, Volume 3</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-defensive-line-notebook-volume-i">Defensive Line, Volume 1</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-defensive-line-notebook-volume-ii">Defensive Line, Volume 2</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-linebacker-notebook-volume-i">Linebackers, Volume 1</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-linebacker-notebook-volume-ii">Linebackers, Volume 2</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-offensive-line-notebook-volume-i">Offensive Linemen, Volume 1</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-offensive-line-notebook-volume-ii">Offensive Linemen, Volume 2</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-receiver-notebook-volume-i">Receivers, Volume 1</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-receivers-notebook-volume-ii">Receivers, Volume 2</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-running-back-notebook-volume-i">Running Backs, Volume 1</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-quarterback-notebook-volume-i">Quarterbacks, Volume 1</a><br><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2026/06/avc-football-camp-quarterback-notebook-volume-ii">Quarterbacks, Volume 2</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->