Uncommitted Steals of Pennsylvania, Part One
In this article:
Elijah Beaty PA #134 DB #14 HEIGHT 6'0" WEIGHT 170 POS DB CLASS 2023 View Profile Elijah Beaty Instagram Twitter State: Pennsylvania School: Bonner-Prendie A staple in conversations with college coaches in need of a DB. Elijah Beaty Elijah Beaty…
Access all of Prep Redzone
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingA staple in conversations with college coaches in need of a DB. Elijah Beaty Elijah Beaty 6’0″ | 170 lbs | DB Bonner-Prendie | 2023 State PA has matured into one of the more technically sound corners you can find in Eastern Pennsylvania. Beaty has developed just like we expected, this senior year being a vast improvement on already one of the better junior tapes you’ll watch. Just his second year as a starter, already proving he can run with speed and match muscle with muscle. At this point in his evaluation, I am trying to poke holes in this kid’s game. What doesn’t the tape prove? The competition level is high night in and night out. He’s part of a winning program. He can run with kids on the field and in a camp/combine setting. He’s seasoned in DB tech, he’s an outstanding worker. Ball skills are good enough, fluid feet, flexible hips. The young man is ready to be molded to college coaches liking. He could change the direction of a recruiting class.
This rank is going to change. A top 250 floor. Watching Marcus Sweeney Marcus Sweeney 6’2″ | 180 lbs | ATH Hershey | 2023 State PA work in open space is a delight. You don’t see 6’2 playmakers often, Sweeney is one whose stride and gait have him flying past would-be tacklers like he’s a 5’9 change of pace back. Except he’s a filled-out 6’2, 180-pound athlete. Watch Sweeney move when returning kicks, I refuse to believe he has no offers with tape this good. I usually scream to the mountain tops that kids could make money with a permanent move to DB, especially a kid with the frame Sweeney possesses. That being said, I like this kid’s playmaking ability too much to leave him off the offensive side of the field. Who cares what I think, someone needs to make this kid a priority. The theme of this piece is kids who could swing your recruiting class in the right direction. Marcus Sweeney Marcus Sweeney 6’2″ | 180 lbs | ATH Hershey | 2023 State PA fits that mold.
Another kid who I refuse to believe doesn’t have an offer. What an awesome senior season this kid has put together. 2,000+ yards on the ground in District One football. 24 touchdowns, all done under 300 carries. Incredible production from a young man who might be a better OLB/DE. 6’2, 200 pounds. A good 200 pounds I might add, great frame that keeps him viable for multiple positions at the next level. Game-wrecking blend of strength and speed. Incredible balance through the trenches. His second-gear will translate to the next level. Many bigger backs look unnatural in space, G doesn’t. There’s power in his stride, there’s also pacing before he hits that stride. A lot to like from a prospect I’d offer right now.
Highlights
I still remember watching this kid for the first time last year. I remember him carrying his Interboro squad in all facets of the game, almost single-handedly beating a loaded WC Rustin squad filled to the brim with talent. I’ve been the biggest Abubakarr Kamara Abubakarr Kamara 6’1″ | 200 lbs | ATH Interboro | 2023 State PA fan ever since. He’s another frequent name I bring up anytime I speak with coaches. Supreme athleticism. This list is full of phenomenal athletes, I don’t think any match Kamara’s full spectrum of athleticism. I’ll leave projecting a future position up to whoever inevitably picks him up. Quite the problem to have. Ball skills, incredible hand-eye coordination, and rockets under his feet to sky over kids for balls. Watching him play, at times you can’t help but shake your head and laugh. He’s got a bit of magic to him, improvisational skills on the go are special. I advise watching his full junior tape when going to see what he’s about. He’s a 4.0 student as well. He will change the direction of a program 2-3 years from now.
Ethan Shine Ethan Shine 5’10” | 215 lbs | RB Central Bucks East | 2023 State PA has seen some of the FCS interest I was clamoring for way back this time last year. Here’s to hoping one of those FCS programs makes him a priority sooner rather than later, they won’t regret it. A tank of a running back with some of the best power and balance I’ve seen from any back in his class. He reminds me a ton of Bonner-Prendie’s Mason Peterson, a bull of a back who just doesn’t know when to quit. Central Bucks East has some real talent around Shine, yet when game-planning against them, Ethan Shine Ethan Shine 5’10” | 215 lbs | RB Central Bucks East | 2023 State PA needs to be priority number one. I can imagine a future where a program like Holy Cross or Bryant U takes him and molds him into an elite FCS linebacker via the weight room. His options are open, sign him before it’s too late.
If you’re worried about the competition level that Razan Parker Razan Parker 5’11” | 210 lbs | ATH South Philadelphia | 2023 State PA is facing in the Public League in Philadelphia, fine. He might not wow with measurables, that’s fine too. Put on the tape and watch him work. Bring him out to your camps, watch him work like everyone in the world is watching. Some of these kids are head-scratchers when wondering about their recruitment, that’s not necessarily the case with Parker. He’s a true “diamond-in-the-rough” that only the best recruiters will find. I know recruiting in Philly is tough. I can vouch for the young man’s character and grades, his tape speaks for itself. Where ever Parker eventually straps up, I can already see him making an instant impact. Parker is going to have to be given a chance, hoping whoever provides that chance gives me a call before doing so.
Highlights
Let’s get this out of the way. Yes, Staring Reaves Staring Reaves 5’10” | 175 lbs | DB Chichester | 2023 State PA is small, and yes his frame is slight. Turn on the tape, talk to the coaches that have been around him, or his teammates. Come watch a Chichester or Upper Dublin game. Look at the production, look at the film. You won’t find a young man with a bigger chip on his shoulder. Ball skills, and confidence that is necessary for the position he plays. Cerebral when utilizing all areas of the field to shut kids down in the passing game. An athlete with the ball in his hands as well. Being real, it’ll be tough to turn an FCS-level program around and convince them of a kid Reaves size. Yet I guarantee a PSAC school that takes a chance on Reaves won’t be disappointed. The young man has overcome obstacle over obstacle. He deserves a shot.
I can quit harping on Madden Locke Madden Locke 6’1″ | 205 lbs | LB Bloomsburg Area | 2023 State PA being unoffered. Lock Haven put an end to that thankfully. Locke debuted on our ranks after I fell in love with his tape this past Summer. He doubled down on all the things he did well in his junior year. How about 150 tackles from his linebacker spot, athletic enough to produce at all three LB spots if need be. How about 17 TFLs and numerous game-changing hits. Locke’s linebacker tape alone should warrant D2 looks. Watch what he’s capable of doing at RB/WR/TE and you’ll see why guys like me are so high on the young man. 1,000-yard rusher, with capable hands. Thinking of Locke’s future as a collegiate player, I could see a future where he dominates against the run at MLB. A year in a real weight room, with a focus on the linebacking position, a program that takes a shot on this kid will get a potential three-four-year starter manning the middle of their defense.
Zach Boyd Zach Boyd 6’1″ | 185 lbs | WR Elizabeth Forward | 2023 State PA ranks as a top-ten wideout in his class, yet I’m not sure his recruitment reflects that. Hardly to his fault. Since our ranking, he’s done nothing but solidify that top-ten notion. 33 receptions, 1,100 yards receiving, and 21 touchdowns. A whopping 33 yards per catch. We thought we were doing him justice by ranking him as a top 150 prospect, he might be better than that. Yet to this point, Zach Boyd Zach Boyd 6’1″ | 185 lbs | WR Elizabeth Forward | 2023 State PA ‘s recruitment has been relatively quiet. Boyd has four offers under his belt, all of which I’m sure he’s grateful for, yet one FCS offer out of Marist is his lone D1 letter. Clarion and Mercyhurst have pulled the trigger, yet I’m surprised Robert Morris or Duquesne have yet to do the same. If Zach Boyd Zach Boyd 6’1″ | 185 lbs | WR Elizabeth Forward | 2023 State PA winds up playing D2 ball, he’ll be a huge steal to whichever program lands him.
Highlights
My first impression of Xavier Nelson Xavier Nelson 5’9″ | 160 lbs | ATH Bishop Canevin | 2023 State PA will end up being a lasting one. I really can’t say enough about this kid’s game. He impacts every facet of the game, so much so that game-planning against him is pretty much futile. You’re going to have to live with his athleticism and hope he doesn’t torch you on both sides of the ball. This list is full of potential stock risers, I am not sure if any one prospect on this list deserves more of a jump on our ranks than Xavier Nelson Xavier Nelson 5’9″ | 160 lbs | ATH Bishop Canevin | 2023 State PA . I believe Group of Five schools are close to pulling the trigger, I see the interest he’s earned from said programs. That being said, FCS and PSAC schools need to be all in on this kid. Despite his incredible production, tape, and position versatility, his measurables might keep those G5s at bay. Whoever ends up with this kid, they’re going to get quite the steal.