Hefner first hit our radar before his sophomore year. At that time, we weren’t entirely sure which position he’d play. He’s a hybrid box safety-outside linebacker who can come down and play the run (75 tackles as a junior) or drop in coverage. The biggest draw is his combination of size and speed, and he has the athleticism and technical ability to play in the slot, where I’d guess he’ll start his career. He also has some kick-returning experience and should be able to contribute early on multiple aspects of special teams.

Mason Hefner Mason Hefner 6'1" | 200 lbs | LB/DB Lake Norman | 2027 State NC is a physical specimen at linebacker and one of the more intriguing hybrid defenders in the state. At 6’0, 200 pounds, he has ideal size with the athleticism to match — moving faster than most defensive backs and showing excellent range in the open field. Hefner was all over the field last season, finishing with nearly 80 tackles, and his spring recruiting has taken a major leap with multiple FCS offers rolling in. He brings versatility, speed, and physicality to the second level and continues to trend upward as a prospect.

Continuing with the positional versatility theme, Mason has been one of my favorites in the defensive back category for a while now. Mason can also play an outside linebacker hybrid role as well, and I think he excels here. Mason loves to be physical and can tackle with the best of them from a defensive back perspective. Mason can play very well in pass coverage in both man and zone schemes, and his football intelligence consistently shows on film, knowing where to be and making the plays consistently when they come his way. I wrote about Mason recently, saying that recruiting interest would start to pick up soon. Since then, Mason has visited Clemson and has a junior day visit lined up with Wofford, and I think that will be just the beginning for him.

Mason is a physical player with range who can affect the defense at either the linebacker level or the defensive back position. You can feel his physicality come through his highlight film, especially when he is coming up in run support or making a tackle in the open field on a ball carrier. This past season, Mason had a major impact on the Lake Norman defense with 79 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, and 5 passes defensed in a hybrid outside linebacker/strong safety role. We mentioned his tackling, but Mason has good speed and athleticism at a nice size, which gives him a multitude of different roles he could play defensively on the next level. I’m expecting more college football recruiting interest to start to come his way once we get into camp season in the spring and summer.

Mason didn’t get a ton of time on the field in this scrimmage, but he was able to flash his tackling ability in space, as well as his speed and athleticism in getting to the football. Mason appears to be playing a hybrid linebacker/safety role this season, and he is showing that when he gets to the football, he has the talent to put offensive players on the ground with strong physicallity.

Hefner has the length and size that allows him to thrive as a safety. He put up 75 tackles as a sophomore and he’s flashed the ball skills to be an elite deep safety. I love his athleticism, the combination of length, size, and speed is excellent. Hefner is at his best in zone coverage and he functions well in limited space in the slot, allowing him to match up when teams flex out tight ends or try to put size in the slot.