TSSAA Week Six Freshman Report

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>High school football in the state of Tennessee is halfway through the regular season and the fifth week of the year allowed for programs to get another look at freshmen players on their team.<br><br>As the talent level inside the state continues to increase, the number of freshmen that are making immediate impacts continues to increase as well.<br><br>These five 2030 prospects made a large impact for their teams in week two of the 2026 high school football season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Collierville QB Domonic Rocconi</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Collierville offense continues to roll and freshman quarterback Domonic Rocconi has been a central part of that success over the last two weeks. In this start, he went 14-19 for 193 yards and three touchdown scores in a win over Bartlett.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He has received an opportunity to showcase his potential and he has provided strong production while running the offense, leading the team to back-to-back wins. Rocconi is one of the top freshman prospects in the state and he is making his presence felt at a high level already on the high school stage.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/GoDragonsGo_/status/2103647213616255130?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/GoDragonsGo_/status/2103647213616255130?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 RB [player_tooltip player_id='1592012' first='David' last='Knowles III'] </h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Baylor has a star at running back now, but they also have a very exciting running back of the future in freshman [player_tooltip player_id='1592012' first='David' last='Knowles III'], and he was able to get some run in the second half against DII-AAA opponent MBA.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The biggest highlight of the night for the freshman tailback was an explosive touchdown rush from 67 yards out. He finished the game with 72 yards and that score, giving a glimpse into the future of Baylor's running back room.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He has the size and athleticism to step into the starting role next season and deliver at an impressive rate. The long rush against MBA proves the ceiling that he holds to be the anchor of the running back room over the next several seasons.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/DavidKnowlIII/status/2103979416900796662?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/DavidKnowlIII/status/2103979416900796662?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">East Robertson RB [player_tooltip player_id='2347346' first='Issac' last='Prince Jr.']</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2347346' first='Issac' last='Prince Jr.'] continues to be one of the most productive players in the state regardless of age and that continued in a win over Hickman County to remain undefeated on the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the game, the freshman rushed for 227 yards and four touchdowns, continuing to deliver at an impressive rate this fall. He immediately emerged onto the scene this offseason and has not slowed down since, dominating everyone that lines up across from him up to this point.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The East Robertson program always has one huge recruit anchoring the team and Prince is already doing that as a freshman.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Bradley Central RB [player_tooltip player_id='1596142' first='Hezekiah' last='Thomas']</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> - 13/71/1 - 1/12</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>As Bradley Central travelled to face Oak Ridge, the young talent on the Bears were about to receive the top challenge that they have experienced in their short high school careers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>That proved to be no problem for freshman tailback [player_tooltip player_id='1596142' first='Hezekiah' last='Thomas'] however, as he ran 13 times for 71 yards and a touchdown in addition to a 12-yard reception.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The freshman earned trust from the coaching staff early in the season and has not looked back since, consistently delivering at a high level early in his high school football career.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity" /> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Bradley Central DB/WR [player_tooltip player_id='2091895' first='Juice' last='Sims']</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p> 95-yard kickoff return TD</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='2091895' first='Juice' last='Sims'] has been immediately thrown into the fire as a young cornerback prospect playing in the 6A classification as just a freshman. However, his biggest impact against Oak Ridge came on special teams with a huge return.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In the second half of the game, he returned the kickoff 95 yards to earn a touchdown for his team and cut the lead to 13 points. While being tasked to deliver in all three facets can be challenging for a freshman, Sims has had his moments halfway through the season, and the kick return score proved to be the latest.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/unojuice1/status/2103953920141799476?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/unojuice1/status/2103953920141799476?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">Knoxville Halls RB Maverick Sharp</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>For a second straight week, freshman running back Maverick Sharp has dominated and for a second straight week, Knoxville Halls has earned a win.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In a 42-10 victory over Knoxville West, the freshman tailback ran for 182 yards and three touchdowns in addition to hauling in a receiving touchdown. Since stepping into a larger role, he has took over games and anchored the offense for the Red Devils. It will be interesting to see how he performs against the top teams on the schedule later this season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/MavSharp3/status/2103814903073210551?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/MavSharp3/status/2103814903073210551?s=20 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->