As the saying goes, anyone can pick out the prettiest girl in the room. In, easily, the defense’s smallest position group of the day Iliescu stood out and looked that damn good. The shore-native is already stout enough (5’8″ 180lbs) to crack the varsity lineup somewhere. I was really impressed with how thick his legs where. Those tree-trunks generated immense power and explosion. Iliescu had the ability to run smoothly and quickly on an angle better than everyone else as he worked to get to his pass drop. I wrote that he did this for a while actually, way down field. In a game or 7-on-7 scenario this would be inappropriate; however, he carried running backs running wheel routes while running on an angle. Impressively he did not turn his shoulders in any of those reps. When rushers ran across the middle, he stayed on them very well, even jamming many of them, dramatically throwing them off their route in the process. For as great as he moves, Iliescu is likely not to be found out of position too often. Lastly, he looks to play the ball with his hands, rather than bricks-for-hands as some other linebackers tend to.

Much like the offensive line group we highlighted yesterday, there weren’t a ton of linebackers in terms of numbers, but it was a very good position group from top to bottom. As part of a reoccurring theme in this write up, Niko Iliescu Niko Iliescu 5'8" | 185 lbs | LB Southern Regional | 2028 State NJ was part of the New Jersey 14U AYF All-Star team this past December. I’ve seen him play live multiple times since over the last two calendar years and his performance has always been excellent. At the New Jersey Prep Redzone Next Middle School Camp, Iliescu certainly looked the part of a future standout middle linebacker. Seeing him without pads/helmet and in a camp setting, you can appreciate the muscle mass he already has. As Mike linebackers should do, he moved very well in quick bursts, with his 5-foot-8, 185-pound frame clocking a 4.72 in the shuttle. Other linebackers may have tested a bit better, but the combination of his still-very good times and performance in drills earned him the MVP.

– Played for South

– Also plays lacrosse

Don’t refresh the page, Niko Iliescu Niko Iliescu 5'8" | 185 lbs | LB Southern Regional | 2028 State NJ is the twin brother of Lukas Iliescu Lukas Iliescu 6'0" | 185 lbs | TE Southern Regional | 2028 State NJ . Niko is certainly more of a middle linebacker/fullback type at this stage of the game. A thick thumper in the middle, he plays a very physical brand of football. Gets downhill quickly and is a stout defender against the run. Also looks comfortable in space if forced to cover out into the flat–but certainly more of a smash-mouth backer. He’s a few inches shorter than his brother at this point, but it suits the position-need.

Depending on what type of defense the 14U All-Star’s run in December at the tournament, opposing offenses could be staring at Brock Goodman Brock Goodman 5'10" | 200 lbs | LB Red Bank Catholic | 2028 State NJ and Niko Iliescu Niko Iliescu 5'8" | 185 lbs | LB Southern Regional | 2028 State NJ in the middle of the defense on every play. Niko Iliescu Niko Iliescu 5'8" | 185 lbs | LB Southern Regional | 2028 State NJ is about as thick as they come for a linebacker at this stage, listed at 5-foot-8 and 180-pounds (unverified) with a ton of compact muscle. Like Lucas Iliescu listed above, Niko also plays lacrosse and showed off some his quick bursts during the tryout. He looked very good during running back drills–a position he plays during the regular season for Southern–and wouldn’t be surprised to see him get a few carries around the goal line or fourth and inches. With the speed and stable of backs the 14U All-Star team should have on paper, look for the overwhelming majority of Iliescu’s play to come on defense, where he could be a double-digit tackle guy in each game.