Dobson is the top corner in the state. He’s a lab-built, smooth-hipped, lengthy corner prospect with ball skills, and a surprising physicality in the running game. He’s a sub-4.4 guy who can recover on the rare instances in which receivers gain any separation, and he locks down an entire side of the field, forcing the ball to the rest of the talented Hough defense.

Dobson is a lab-built corner with some of the smoothest hips and ankle flexibility you’ll find anywhere. He’s the rare blend of natural athleticism and refined technique. That athleticism plays out in the kick return game, and he also had success as a receiver last season. The natural ball skills translate, and because he’s so explosive, he’s able to break on balls most guys can’t dream of reaching. Because his acceleration out of breaks and transitions is so good, he’s able to stay in his backpedal longer with eyes on the quarterback. That’s led to some plays as a tackler and as a corner on another receiver that others wouldn’t make because their backs would be to the quarterback.

I could have written about a number of guys at the defensive back position, but Josh is a consensus highly-rated player who slides into the “Samari Matthews” role in the Huskies’ secondary as a cornerback who can take away a team’s top threat and be left on an island without a second thought. Josh has elite man coverage skills and excellent speed to stay with just about any receiver on the Huskies’ schedule this upcoming season. Josh recently committed to play college football at South Carolina, and the Gamecocks are getting a special player for sure.

I said a lot about Josh recently in our 704 Junior Bowl series, so we’ll take a look at how he fits in the Huskies defense. It’s really about as seamless as a fit can get, as they recently had a true high-level shutdown corner in Samari Matthews Samari Matthews 6'0" | 180 lbs | DB William A. Hough | 2026 State NC . Expect Josh to own the outside against opposing teams’ top receivers, and I expect teams to try to throw away from him as much as possible. Josh is lining up a number of official visits from a recruiting perspective, notably South Carolina and LSU, per his Twitter profile.

After winning the 8A State Championship, the Hough Huskies found themselves reloading at the defensive back position, picking up the talented Dobson from just across the border in South Carolina from Catawba Ridge High School. Dobson is considered one of the best defensive backs in the nation, and we have him as the best in his class in North Carolina. It’s safe to say he’s an easy consideration for this 704 Junior Bowl team, but what makes him so great is what you might be asking, since you probably haven’t seen him between the white lines.

First is the speed and agility – the way Josh transitions from start to stop and change directions is next level. Second is the discipline in both zone and man coverage – he makes it look the same at the snap so smoothly that it deceives quarterbacks into making bad reads. Third, is the excellent ability to tackle in run support and in the open field. Josh has tackling technique like a linebacker – he has been taught well, and applies it consistently throughout his highlights.

We don’t have enough time here to go through all of his offers, but it’s very safe to say Josh is highly recruited by multiple Power 4 schools. I’m excited to see when he narrows down his choices and ultimately where he decides to play college football on the next level.