Prep football Big 15: No. 12, DeMarcus Townsend, Gulf Coast
DeMarcus Townsend is fast earning a reputation as one of the most explosive athletes in Southwest Florida.
Gulf Coast coach Pete Fominaya shared a story about his junior running back’s exploits at a recent satellite camp hosted by the University of South Florida at North Fort Myers High.
Townsend fired out of the start and won the heat, beating the speedy Felix — a three-star recruit, himself — by a few steps.
“As soon as they were done, (USF coach) Willie Taggart offered DeMarcus a scholarship on the spot,” Fominaya said. “He’s an elite-level athlete. There’s very few young men who can do the things he does on the football field. He's one of the fastest kids in the country in his age group. He's extremely explosive, very physical, a ton of tools. But he's also very coachable and a leader around his teammates. We're really excited he plays for the Sharks."
Townsend, the No. 12 prospect on the News-Press/Naples Daily News Big 15, has already received offers from Division I schools Appalachian State, Iowa State, Eastern Michigan, Southern Mississippi and USF. Many more are expected to roll in during the next two seasons.
Townsend is eager to show Southwest Florida what he is capable of. He missed half of last season with injuries, and saw more time at cornerback than running back, with senior Brendon Drugan starring in the backfield. He showed his explosiveness, though, averaging 10.5 yards on 25 carries and gaining 262 yards with four touchdowns.
This year, he's healthy and ready to go. In March at a Nike Camp near Fort Lauderdale, Townsend posted some of the best numbers in the country. His 4.40-second 40-yard dash time is in the 99th percentile in the country, just 0.04 seconds slower than the fastest time in the Class of 2018, according to ESPN. ESPN also lists Townsend's 43.3-inch vertical leap as the best among all sophomores in the country. His SPARQ rating — a measurement used by Nike that stands for "speed, power, agility, reaction and quickness" — also is No. 1 in the Class of 2018.
“He's a freak athlete. Anytime he touches the ball, he can turn it into a 50-yard gain. He's going to be a great player for us in the backfield.”
Gulf Coast QB Kaden Frost on teammate DeMarcus Townsend
"I've really been focusing on getting faster and stronger, since that's a big key in being a good running back," Townsend said. "A lot of work in the weight room, a lot of speed drills to get ready. … I haven't shown my full potential yet, not even close."
Gulf Coast quarterback Kaden Frost has known Townsend since their FBU days in seventh grade. Townsend played his freshman season at St. John Neumann, suffering through an injury-plagued campaign. When Townsend transferred to Gulf Coast, Frost knew all about the talent. With another year of getting faster and stronger, the sky appears to be the limit.
"He's a freak athlete," Frost said. "Anytime he touches the ball, he can turn it into a 50-yard gain. He's going to be a great player for us in the backfields.
Gulf Coast appears poised to stake its claim as one of the top teams in Southwest Florida. Under a steady rebuild from Fominaya, the Sharks have improved in every one of the coach's four seasons. Gulf Coast has made the playoffs in back-to-back seasons, including a 7-4 mark last year. The Sharks feature seven players who have already received Division I offers, and that breeds friendly competition among the players.
"We're all kind of feeding off each other," Townsend said. "And I think we could have even more Division I kids. It's a great team to be a part of, because the competition in practice is so intense."
Fominaya can't wait to get the season started, and he hopes to see his squad take another step in its development.
"Excited is an understatement," he said. "It's been a hard four years developing this program. We knew it wasn't going to be an overnight success. But we're hoping this year is the culmination of everything we've gone through, playing younger kids and developing kids. We're very excited about the future of this program, and DeMarcus is a big part of that."
