His coach Anthony Davis played at Va Tech so I woudn't be surprised if some Va Tech creaps into this young mans recruitment over the next two years.
Go Canes
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Here is the video interview link
http://www.baynews9.com/content/news/baynews9/sports/video.html?clip=http://static.baynews9.com/newsvideo/bn9/web_video/blake_shavar_spring.f4v&vtitle=BHSN%3A%20Shavar%20Manuel%20brings%20spotlight%20back%20to%20Blake
Here is the article link
http://www.baynews9.com/content/news/baynews9/sports/article.html/content/news/articles/bhsn/2014/5/15/top_prospect_shavar_.html
Star Shavar Manuel helping Blake get back on the map
TAMPA ----- It's easy to spot Shavar Manuel.
He towers over every single one of his Blake teammates, even in shorts and a Nike "witness" t-shirt.
Even while sitting out the first practice of his life Thursday with a knee injury (it was precautionary, don't worry), you could still feel the 6-foot-3, 262-pounders presence when he strolled out to practice.
Darryl Gordon, the third-year head coach of the Yellow Jackets, is constantly reminded as he fields countless phone calls per day from college coaches asking about his sophomore stud.
"Shavar is probably going to demand a lot of double team and triple teams," Gordon said, cracking a smile from ear to ear. "...he's a big, young kid. We're proud to have Shavar. Right now, he's opening the door for us."
The spotlight is back at Blake, for the first time in 47 years. That's when Leon McQuay was making defenders look silly, in 1967.
"It has been a long time," said Gordon, who remembers watching Blake football practices as a youth, peeking through the fence facing Stewart Middle School's field, which hugs the Hillsborough river.
Working with former Tampa Bay Buccaneers lineman Anthony Davis, who's an assistant coach at Blake, Manuel has already caught the attention of every college coach in the country, and apparently the recruiting services. He's ranked as the No. 1 defensive end prospect in the Class of 2016, and the No. 2 prospect overall in the country. And he didn't have to go to one of the "big name" schools to get it.
"If you have confidence, it ain't all about the Armwood, Plant and Sickles," Manuel said. "You can go anywhere and ball out."
With 29 sacks and 36 tackles for loss in two years, he has done just that. Actually, the whole team has.
Blake (64) was 18th in the country in sacks last season.
"We hunting quarterbacks down, we hunting anything with the ball, we hunting anything that moves," junior linebacker Julian Jackson said.
They're hunting for wins. Blake hasn't had a winning record in over a decade, but that could change real soon, especially with two more years of Manuel.
"We're excited about 2014, and not only because of Shavar," Gordon said. "We have other talent, too. We were babies coming up, now we feel like we've grown up."
Go Canes
_----------_-----------------------------------------------------------
Here is the video interview link
http://www.baynews9.com/content/news/baynews9/sports/video.html?clip=http://static.baynews9.com/newsvideo/bn9/web_video/blake_shavar_spring.f4v&vtitle=BHSN%3A%20Shavar%20Manuel%20brings%20spotlight%20back%20to%20Blake
Here is the article link
http://www.baynews9.com/content/news/baynews9/sports/article.html/content/news/articles/bhsn/2014/5/15/top_prospect_shavar_.html
Star Shavar Manuel helping Blake get back on the map
TAMPA ----- It's easy to spot Shavar Manuel.
He towers over every single one of his Blake teammates, even in shorts and a Nike "witness" t-shirt.
Even while sitting out the first practice of his life Thursday with a knee injury (it was precautionary, don't worry), you could still feel the 6-foot-3, 262-pounders presence when he strolled out to practice.
Darryl Gordon, the third-year head coach of the Yellow Jackets, is constantly reminded as he fields countless phone calls per day from college coaches asking about his sophomore stud.
"Shavar is probably going to demand a lot of double team and triple teams," Gordon said, cracking a smile from ear to ear. "...he's a big, young kid. We're proud to have Shavar. Right now, he's opening the door for us."
The spotlight is back at Blake, for the first time in 47 years. That's when Leon McQuay was making defenders look silly, in 1967.
"It has been a long time," said Gordon, who remembers watching Blake football practices as a youth, peeking through the fence facing Stewart Middle School's field, which hugs the Hillsborough river.
Working with former Tampa Bay Buccaneers lineman Anthony Davis, who's an assistant coach at Blake, Manuel has already caught the attention of every college coach in the country, and apparently the recruiting services. He's ranked as the No. 1 defensive end prospect in the Class of 2016, and the No. 2 prospect overall in the country. And he didn't have to go to one of the "big name" schools to get it.
"If you have confidence, it ain't all about the Armwood, Plant and Sickles," Manuel said. "You can go anywhere and ball out."
With 29 sacks and 36 tackles for loss in two years, he has done just that. Actually, the whole team has.
Blake (64) was 18th in the country in sacks last season.
"We hunting quarterbacks down, we hunting anything with the ball, we hunting anything that moves," junior linebacker Julian Jackson said.
They're hunting for wins. Blake hasn't had a winning record in over a decade, but that could change real soon, especially with two more years of Manuel.
"We're excited about 2014, and not only because of Shavar," Gordon said. "We have other talent, too. We were babies coming up, now we feel like we've grown up."
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