Clarke Central High School's offense set to be explosive

Clarke Central High School’s football team won’t have problems scoring in 2020. They’ll likely struggle to figure who should score the most. The Gladiators are loaded offensively. A peak at their practice on Thursday revealed several standouts. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-39846" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/07/IMG_2333-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Jairus Mack, 5’10” 175 pounds, Wide Receiver, (Class of 2021) The Charlotte University coaching staff should be afraid (very afraid). Mack is committed to the 49ers. The way he looked on Thursday, there will be more schools that reach out with potential offers as the season begins. Mack is a Power Five talent. He doesn’t wow you stepping off the bus. If you walked up to him on the street, you probably wouldn’t know he played football. Throw him on the field and he looks like the best player out there. That’s the case at a CCHS football practice. Mack is smooth in and out of his cuts. Even as a senior, he asks questions. That curiosity shows in his game. He’s found ways to hide his lack of size or speed. Mack is explosive and he has very sticky hands. He’s the type of player that seems to like moment to matter. He wants the ball. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Gladiators’ top wide reciever Nono Mack working. Very twitchy and smooth young man. <a href="https://t.co/SYbmS4yDS2">pic.twitter.com/SYbmS4yDS2</a> — Jeremy Johnson (@Clark_Kent_75) <a href="https://twitter.com/Clark_Kent_75/status/1288949061391982594?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 30, 2020</a></blockquote> <a href="http://https://publish.twitter.com/?query=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FClark_Kent_75%2Fstatus%2F1288949061391982594&widget=Tweet"><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></a> Playing in the Gladiators’ offense Mack will likely be the main target early and often. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-39843" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/07/IMG_2391-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="33856" first="Justin" last="Hodges"], 6’1” 170 pounds, Wide Receiver, (Class of 2021) Hodges is a perfect complementary receiver to Mack. Hodges isn’t second fiddle, just different than Mack. Hodges may be as fast, if not faster in a straight line than Mack. His hands are the most intriguing shown at practice on Thursday. The ball looks small to Hodges. He is a hand catcher. On any route and any angle the ball just fits naturally into his hands. There’s never any noise in the catch. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> [player_tooltip player_id="33856" first="Justin" last="Hodges"] has shown some nice hands so fair. <a href="https://t.co/HDH4tVVFh2">pic.twitter.com/HDH4tVVFh2</a> — Jeremy Johnson (@Clark_Kent_75) <a href="https://twitter.com/Clark_Kent_75/status/1288960223189893120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 30, 2020</a></blockquote> <a href="http://https://publish.twitter.com/?query=https%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2FClark_Kent_75%2Fstatus%2F1288960223189893120&widget=Tweet"><script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></a> He has long strides, so he eats up ground and has an understanding of how to attack a defense. Hodges is going to have his stock blowup in the next few months. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-39850" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/07/IMG_2419-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Danarius D.D. Hendricks, 5’10”, 170 pounds, Wide Receiver, (Class of 2021) Hendrix wasn’t on the practice field on Thursday. He is a transfer from Monroe Area High School. Oddly enough, his junior tape looks similar to Mack and Hodges. He is close in size to Mack, but he can do what both of the Gladiators’ receivers can do. They are all interchangeable pieces. Hendrix is a deep ball specialist. The first play of his junior year tape, the quarterback drops back and launches the football. Hendrix just outran the defender and ran under it. There’s a play later in the same game where Hendrix scores on a post route that be split the corner and safety and beat them both to the back of the endzone. Having Hendrix in the offense makes Mack and Hodges that much more lethal. Hendrix is every bit of the deep threat Mack is. There will be Fridays where one guy has to be featured because are focused on not getting beat deep. All three are slashers and can create space on their own with the football in their hands. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-39851" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/07/IMG_2219-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> [player_tooltip player_id="34017" first="Lucian" last="Anderson III"], 6’2” 200 Pounds, Quarterback (Class of 2023) Anderson has made the jump from Prince Avenue Christian School where he was surrounded by plenty of offensive talent. He jumped out of that boat and onto a cruise liner. Anderson is a talented prospect in his own right. Though he is still learning the Gladiators’ offense, Anderson looked sharp. He’s added some size in the offseason and looks comfortable. There wasn’t anyone chasing him on Thursday. He looked smooth in his delivery. There’s clearly been some added strength and private coaching for Anderson. The ball pops out of his hands. There isn’t any flutter or wobble. Anderson is also beginning to grasp when to use his iron and wedges instead of reaching for his driver all the time. Whenever his time comes under center for the Gladiators, he’ll put up big numbers playing alongside the aforementioned trio. Anderson could be on his way to becoming one of the top ranked signal callers in the state and maybe beyond. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-39852" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/07/IMG_2263-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Montavious Cunningham, 6’5” 280 pounds, offensive tackle (Class of 2021) Cunningham’s been the Gladiators’ best offensive lineman for at least two seasons. Even with that said, his best football may be ahead of him. Cunningham has only played the sport for three years. His upside is exciting. He’s been gifted long arms and a flexible frame. He moves well for his size. With the Gladiators expecting to be in the spotlight as one of 5A’s premier teams in 2020, Cunningham will benefit being able to showcase himself against some of the state’s best pass rushers. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-39853" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/07/IMG_2314-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Will Richardson, 6’2’ 215 pounds, Running Back, (Class of 2022) Richardson has a free reign to the bulk of the carries in the Gladiators’ backfield this season. He looks the part. He’s a big back. He isn’t a slow plunger back. He’s got soft feet and soft hands. He moves well and could surprise some teams with how versatile he is at his size in the Gladiators’ spread, up tempo attack. Richardson will likely have a big season in 2020. The Gladiators will have plenty of opportunities to throw the ball. That means they’ll be handing the football to a 215 pound back against six or seven men boxes. Richardson could be the breakout name of the season for the Gladiators on offense. <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-39855" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2020/07/IMG_2375-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> A.J. Jewell, 5’5” 130 pounds, Wide Receiver, (Class of 2022) Another wide receiver. Jewell will rotate with the trio of Mack, Hodges and Hendrix. He will have his time as the featured target in 2021. For not, Jewell will make his share of plays in 2020. He’s quick in short spaces and he’s got an extra gear in space. Jewell’s hands are one of his better attributes. With more balls he could be one to watch on the recruiting trail going into the next year and a half.