South Florida '19- The OLs

DMoney
DMoney
6 min read
South Florida offensive linemen get better every year. It’s no coincidence that Miami’s local OL signees tend to outperform their out-of-state peers. I’m happy with Searels’s recruiting, but I’d love to add someone from this group to the mix. This might be the deepest OL group I can remember in terms of legit Power 5 prospects. And some of the lower-level FBS guys have the potential to blossom into NFL players.

* means verified

Dontae Lucas- 6’4, 333, 5.66* (IMG)- People mover who fits best in a gap scheme. Strong hands. Plays some tackle but projects as guard. Comparable to ’18 signee Cleveland Reed. Spent his sophomore year at Booker T and his junior year at Miami High. Committed to FSU.




Mark Fox- 6’4, 262, 5.44* (Northwestern)- Rock-solid prospect who can contribute at tackle or guard. Not an elite athlete but plays with balance, strength and positioning. Committed to South Carolina and skipped the camp circuit, which limited his hype. Qualified for states as a shot putter. Good player.




Wardrick Wilson- 6’5, 311* (Carol City)- Massive, top-heavy specimen with very long arms. Moved to the United States two years ago from the Bahamas. Raw. Average bend but can get to second level in run game. Transferred from Edison to Norland to Doral to Carol City, where he should face top competition. Committed to Florida.

Rivals Camp Highlights

Maurice Smith – 6’2, 276* (Central)- One of my favorite players in the class. Plays LT in high school but projects as a pure center. Dominated in camp circuit despite being smaller than most of his opponents. Athletic, balanced and aware. Boston College commit with all-conference potential.

Junior HL

Kaleb Boateng- 6’4, 290, 5.81* (Ft. Lauderdale)- Smart, athletic blocker with easy movement skills. Powerful hands to toss defenders. Natural bend. Needs to get stronger. 4.15 GPA. Really like his upside in a college weight program. Offers from Louisville, Pittsburgh and Purdue.

Junior HL

Jamari Williams- 6’3, 295, 5.13* (Cardinal Gibbons)- Bottom-heavy blocker who plays with a mean streak. Always looking for someone to hit. Loves to twist defenders to the ground a la Ereck Flowers. Stout. Gets off the ball quick. Plays guard and tackle but projects inside. Louisville commit.

Junior HL

Vincent Murphy- (St. Thomas)- Flexible center who wins with leverage and technique. Tenacious finisher. Locks up and keeps his feet pumping. South Carolina commitment.

Junior HL

Jake Pope- 6’6, 271, 5.66*(St. Thomas)- Tall, versatile lineman with major growth potential. Projects best at RT. Earned a bunch of offers in spring and has his best football ahead of him. Kentucky commit.

Junior HL

Joshua Blanchard- 6’4, 279, 5.80*(Norland)- Powerful G/T from an underrated NFL factory. Delivers a jolt on contact. Long arms. Good frame that can carry quality weight. Can get to the second level. USF commit.

Junior HL

Michael Cartwright- 6’5, 293* (Champagant)- Another raw talent from the Bahamas. Lanky, projectable frame. At the Opening, he looked dominant for one rep and then got whooped the next one. Still learning the game. Big upside if he figures it out. Committed to Indiana.

Junior HL

Julian Hernandez- 6’3, 295, 5.75* (St. Thomas)- Western transfer. Mobile blocker who projects as a center at next level. Flexible in stance. Pumps his feet and finishes blocks. Offers from Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Vanderbilt.

Junior HL

Ronald Folkes- 6’3, 272* (Dwyer)- One of the more athletic linemen in South Florida. Natural mover in space. Can pull and gets to the second level with ease. Needs to improve strength and conditioning. Also plays defense. Has offers from Western Kentucky, FIU, UNLV, Southern Miss and Western Michigan. Underrated with upside.

Junior HL

Vashon Bailey- 6’7, 286* (Somerset)- Intriguing small-school sleeper. Basketball player with tall, lanky frame. Also plays defensive end. Committed to Central Michigan, which has a history of developing tall, athletic NFL tackles (Joe Staley, Eric Fisher). Keep an eye on this one.

Junior HL

Robert Boyd- 6’6, 300 (Deerfield Beach)- Big, raw offensive tackle transfer from Dillard. Plays too high but has natural tools to improve pad level. Like Cartwright, he has high upside if he puts it together. Offers from Illinois and Temple.

Junior HL

DeShawn Richardson- 6’4, 290 (Pahokee)- Physical interior lineman with good, lean frame. Has the athleticism to chop block and the power to maul. Interest from Louisville.

Junior HL

Antonio Serrano- 6’2, 280 (St. Thomas)- Technical, strong player who originally came up in Belen’s Wing-T offense. Good base. Below-average athlete but can function in space.

Junior HL

Luis Cristobal- 6’2, 295 (Columbus)- Wide-body blocker with good strength. Plays tackle in high school but projects at guard. Average athleticism. Committed to Georgia State.

Junior HL

Jimmy Darr- 6’11, 400 (West Broward)- Enormous lineman with decent enough movement skills. Plays both sides of the ball for a smaller program. Has a future in professional wrestling if he does not pursue football.

Junior HL
 

Comments (94)

Decent year for OL in Dade and Broward...Suprised we didn't go a little deeper in offers with only 2 committed? (Mo Smith, Wardrick Wilson)
 
Advertisement
Why are none of them committed to Miami

Searels is focusing on other guys from different parts of Florida right now. He has Tarquin and Eguakun (both real good players) locked up, and is zeroing in on Evan Neal and Darius Washington as tackles.

Can't blame him, those guys are good. But I'd love to add one of the local dudes to the mix, especially if they start blooming as seniors. We lose four OL this year.
 
Advertisement
I like Maurice Smith. Good feet and technique. He could play here after a redshirt to get stronger at center. This is a deep group of OL for South Florida.
Wilson could play here as well. For as raw as he is hes pretty put together. If they miss out on Neal and company wont be surprise to see them turn back around.
 
I like Maurice Smith. Good feet and technique. He could play here after a redshirt to get stronger at center. This is a deep group of OL for South Florida.
Wilson could play here as well. For as raw as he is hes pretty put together. If they miss out on Neal and company wont be surprise to see them turn back around.
But I doubt we take two guys we think will end up centers in Eguakan and Smith.
 
Wardrick Wilson, Mark Fox & Josh Blanchard are Miami caliber lineman.

They may not be takes right now because we have higher rated guys already committed & other players we're targeting, but make no mistake those kids are legit prospects.

O Lineman aren't finished products in High School, even kids as good as Donaldson or Alex Leatherwood still progress & get better after 3+ years in college with proper S&C program & nutriton dietary adjustments.

The Ravens just drafted an OT named Greg Senat who was a 260lbs 2-star recruit coming out of HS from a small prep school in NY & went to Wagner University. He's now well over 300lbs & is a 6th rounder that will make the team.

Point is, kids develop at a different pace & OL is no different. Are any of these kids takes, no not yet, but that doesn't mean they won't go to whatever school they sign with & ultimately become good players.
Josh Blanchard is not Miami caliber right now. He would have to make a huge jump.
 
Advertisement
Wouldn't be surprised to see one of the OL on this list signing with us this year.

Searels does well with his recruiting. I'm sure we'll end up with a solid OL class this year.
 
Josh Blanchard is not Miami caliber right now. He would have to make a huge jump.
I'm not talking about right now, I'm talking about 3 years down the line with development.

The whole point of my post was that just because a player isn't a take for us doesn't mean he's a scrub.

The NFL has a bunch of guys that played at non P5 schools & even has players from the FCS level.
 
It’s no coincidence that Miami’s local OL signees tend to outperform their out-of-state peers.

That or maybe cause out of state OL recruiting has been abysmal. We haven't brought in any highly rated OL guys in awhile. It has mostly been projects.
 
Advertisement
Searels is focusing on other guys from different parts of Florida right now. He has Tarquin and Eguakun (both real good players) locked up, and is zeroing in on Evan Neal and Darius Washington as tackles.

Can't blame him, those guys are good. But I'd love to add one of the local dudes to the mix, especially if they start blooming as seniors. We lose four OL this year.
What's the latest on Darius Washington? Is he another Stacey Wilkins? Interest on twitter but no real interest?
 
But I doubt we take two guys we think will end up centers in Eguakan and Smith.

Yea i know im just talking on his talent level. He camped alot with us and literally committed a day or 2 after camping with us so im sure he knows where he stands.
 
@DMoney It appears that South Florida Junior and Sophomore OL class is a lot more talented. With two committed to UM and from memory 3 more with legit offers. Did Lucas returned or is he still planning on playing for IMG?
 
Back
Top