One of our January showcase top performers is continuing his upward trend with more offers coming in daily. Manchester star defensive back Jayden Ballard Jayden Ballard 6'1" | 175 lbs | DB Manchester | 2026 State VA has offers from Fordham, Monmouth and Old Dominion. Like a number of of top prospects Ballard does not just star for the Lancer football team, he performs at a high level in the long and triple jump for the track team as well. 3.5 GPA and upwards trajectory are many of the reasons why you should expect to see him at the Division 1 level very soon.

Manchester’s Jayden Ballard Jayden Ballard 6'1" | 175 lbs | DB Manchester | 2026 State VA has a lot of positive momentum on the recruiting end recently. Picking up an offer the other day from Bryant University, that could be the turning point for more schools to come calling. That makes two division 1 offer so far for the top ranked defensive back.

Weighed in at a verified 177 pounds, a verified height of 6’1. Holds offers out of Dartmouth and Charlotte.

Easily the camp’s top overall performing combine tester. The top score among DBs in three out of the four drills tested. Registered one of the best Broad Jumps I’ve seen in person at a PRZ camp. An unbelievably explosive athlete who now has verified times/scores to leverage when speaking with college coaches. I will do my part to share his staggering numbers with important decision-makers at the next level. Proves he has straight-line speed and change of direction ability, did so on top of showing off the explosiveness in his lower body. Ballard performed well during 1v1s, ended the session early after a blow to the head. I nearly named him MVP still solely because of how well he performed during the combine session of our event.

Arguably the best prospect in attendance. Had some DB MVP moments in this one. His overall camp performance was a bit derailed due to a nasty spill he took covering a pass downfield. Ballard would return toward the end of the camp.

A junior out of Manchester HS. 6’1, 178 pounds. 3.5 GPA. Holds offers from Dartmouth and Charlotte. Speaking away from the camp performance for a bit, this kid is seeing his stock soar, especially if you line it up beside where I ranked him in August. 120-180 range suggests FCS talent, yet Ballard has a clear FBS ceiling, one that he might crack through this offseason. Ballard’s testing numbers were phenomenal, I’ll do my part to ensure the right people get their eyes on them. We might be looking at a future Top 100 prospect among VA 2026 prospects. I wouldn’t;t be surprised to see Ballard earn attention/offers from the likes of ACC/Big12 schools recruiting Virginia.

Back to his camp performance. Again, Ballard’s eval time was cut short due to injury, yet the young man still flashed greatness during 1v1s, Indis, and especially during our combine. I will break down his testing performance in a later piece.