TSSAA Week One Sophomore Report

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The opening week of the high school football season inside the state of Tennessee has concluded after producing exciting matchups with plenty of prospects that broke through and turned their potential into production.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The first week of the season featured many stellar performances from sophomore players, and these five 2029 prospects turned in high-level performances in high-level matchups.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Upperman RB [player_tooltip player_id='1617552' first='Gavin' last='Frazier']</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Upperman had the task of replacing a large amount of offensive production from last year and the first week of the season showed that the team will be able to rely on a strong one-two punch at running back.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of those running backs is new to the program in sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='1617552' first='Gavin' last='Frazier'], who holds a strong and powerful frame at 5-foot-11 and 185 pounds. Despite being a bigger tailback for his age, he moves well and thrives when working between the tackles.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In his Upperman debut, he ran the ball 15 times for 113 yards (7.5 yards per carry) against Knoxville Webb.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">McCallie WR [player_tooltip player_id='1455068' first='Levi' last='Scott III']</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1455068' first='Levi' last='Scott III'] is a young slot receiver that the coaching staff on McCallie has been high on since reaching the high school level, instantly rotating in last season despite being behind a senior that is now expected to be an immediate contributor at Wisconsin. During the summer, he continued to build up his name with adding a couple of SEC offers during camp season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The hype translated to the field, where he had seven catches for 70 yards and a touchdown in addition to converting a two-point attempt.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He's going to be a explosive playmaker underneath for the offense that will turn the RPO plays into a true triple threat. He has the explosiveness to create after the catch as well as attack defenses vertically.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/SportsGod1k/status/2091167507407163519?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"x","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/SportsGod1k/status/2091167507407163519?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Baylor OT [player_tooltip player_id='1305226' first='Haddon' last='Thornburg']</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='1305226' first='Haddon' last='Thornburg'] has quickly become an exciting young prospect to watch this season at a priority position with some elite traits.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Standing at 6-foot-6 and 290 pounds, he now has an elite frame with the room to add a lot more as he continues to get older. He has the arm length to consistently lock out defensive lineman from the pocket. Additionally, he has a good anchor now with the added mass and has not been moved off his spot in back-to-back weeks against top 25 teams in the nation.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With the development pace that he is currently on, he should see a string of college offers quickly come his way as the first month film goes out in a couple weeks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Ensworth CB Gage Bullock</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gage Bullock quickly emerged as an intriguing cornerback prospect at Ensworth during spring practice and that carried into the regular season as he produced high-level play on an island during the entire night against a potent offense.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>His ability to mirror opposing receivers is already top-notch and that was evident on Friday night. He is a physical player that is more than willing to chip in run support and that helped him recover a fumble at the positive 20-yard line.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He comes from an athletic family and the early returns from him are strong. While more games will need to be played, if he continues this high level of play, he could be the latest Division One talent in the family.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/shaynep_media/status/2054603194471186479?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"x","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/shaynep_media/status/2054603194471186479?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Lipscomb Academy DB Matai Poutoa-Alo</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Matai Poutoa-Alo transferred into the state from Hawaii this offseason and quickly showed his playmaking ability in his Lipscomb Academy debut against McCallie on Friday night.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He has an excellent frame at 6-foot-2 and 175 pounds that he will continue to fill out as he gets older. He played cornerback in week one and delivered strong returns in coverage, with an interception and three pass breakups.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It will be interesting to see where his long-term future is inside the secondary, he showed the ability to keep strong positioning in the hip pocket while working in trail technique with blatant ball skills.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/Matai_Alo/status/2091410016146186570?s=20","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"x","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-x wp-block-embed-x"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/Matai_Alo/status/2091410016146186570?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->