South Florida '23 - EDGE

itsdolphhh

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South Florida should be called Polygon City the way we've got all these edges coming out the last few years. The amount of pass rush specialists coming out of the tri-county area have put the national recruitniks in an absolute frenzy & have me excited about the future prospects. 2022 on paper might have been the deepest year for pass rushers in South Florida history. We were full to the brim with prospects, and were able to land stud Nyjalik Kelly. 2023 is a significant drop down from 2022, but there's some guys I feel will be studs.

Lamont Green, Jr., Gulliver Prep (6'3.5" 228) - Southwest Miami transfer. Wins with athleticism & an array of pass rush moves. Absurd production as a senior (20 sacks, 29 TFLs.) Relentless pursuit to the QB. Claims 4.76 40 & 4.19 shuttle. Smallish frame & may fit best as a 3-4 OLB. Never dropped in coverage, simply told to pin his ears back & rush the passer every play. Will need to get bigger & stronger before seeing the field. Dad starred at linebacker for FSU in the 90s before playing for the Atlanta Falcons. FSU signee.



DeeJay Holmes, Pahokee (6'3" 230) - Freakish production last two seasons of high school (52 sacks, 105 TFLs.) Plays with hair on fire. Twitched up violence. Also plays off-ball LB and looks great in coverage. Better suited as a 3-4 OLB. Arrested for fleeing police back in April, will fit right in in the SEC. Ole Miss signee.


Kerrington Lee, Dwyer (6'4" 230) - Lanky pass rusher with plus athleticism. Basketball background. Played offensive line earlier in career before moving to defense as a junior. 17 sacks and 24 TFLs last two seasons of high school. Still raw & learning the ins and outs of the position, but has a bright future. Wake Forest signee.


Maverick Gracio, Cardinal Newman (6'3" 220) - Twitched up pass rusher that wins with great first step & pursuit. Production is flat out bonkers (34 sacks, 49 TFLs last two seasons.) Plays with his hair on fire. Will need to get stronger in college. Pittsburgh signee.



Zakaih Saez, St. Thomas Aquinas (6'4" 230) - Started out at Lake Worth, before transferring to The King's Academy, then finally finishing his career with STA. Basketball wing with great twitch. Great agility, can move sideline to sideline. Will need to work on bend & pass rush moves. Still very raw but has all the potential in the world. 58 tackles and 12 sacks as a senior. Oregon State signee.


Toddrick Brewton, Miami Northwestern (6'3" 225) - Athletic, physical pass rusher from football factory. Wins reps with great first step & hand placement. Also plays baseball & batted .361 as a junior. Brother, Calvin, played safety at FSU and Old Dominion. FIU signee.


Justin Tedim, Western (6'3" 220) - Physical two-way player with surprising twitch. Also plays tight end and I think he may have a brighter future at that spot. 3 sacks & FF in Crib All Star game. Lacrosse player. Colgate signee.


Keyshawn Johnson, St. Thomas Aquinas (6'2" 230) - Belle Glade native & Palm Beach Central transfer. Elite senior season with 18 sacks & 30 TFLs. Absolutely wrecked shop in state title game against Homestead with 4 sacks & 9 TFLs. 3-4 OLB frame. First step looks like he is shot out of a cannon. Delivers pop as a hitter. Underrated. Grambling State signee.


Jayden Massey, Cardinal Gibbons (6'1" 225) - Plantation transfer. Hot & cold motor. Good first step. Frame of an off-ball LB but doesn't appear to have the agility necessary to play there. FCS Presbyterian signee.


Steven Curtis, Cardinal Newman (6'4" 225) - Dwyer transfer. Teamed with Maverick Gracio to form one of the 561's best pass rushing attacks. Ideal DE frame. Good motor and length. Also plays TE. Illinois State signee.

 
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Did I wait too late? These threads are getting way less engagement than I expected.

I think the fact these dudes are all committed just places them in a weird "in-between" time for 2023 kids. We know where they all ended up, but haven't seen them on the field yet to have any sense of what type of player they'll evolve into. I think in the coming seasons, people will come back to these threads (like we always do for the South Florida position threads), so it's a very worthwhile endeavor, IMO (even if people aren't responding just yet).
 
Did I wait too late? These threads are getting way less engagement than I expected.
These are great. I watched a lot of these guys before their junior year but haven't seen them as seniors. Going to set aside some time to watch the videos in your threads. Some guys (like Gracio) emerged later and flew totally under the radar.

Most importantly, these are the threads that get bumped a few years down the road.
 
Don't know if yall remember but I posted Saez on here years ago.
I was this 🤏🏻 close to getting him at Deerfield before he had any offers and he was mainly a basketball player. Had a feeling he'd turn out to be a decent prospect.

Tedim is a badass. I coached him in The Crib all star game, where he had 3 sacks and a FF. If he was a couple inches taller we'd be talking about him going P5. (he's closer to 6'2")
 
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Kinda feel bad for these lower tier programs who land gems. Basically with NIL they've become a minor league system for major p5 schools.
Yup.
Now I hear people/kids talking about "developing" at lower tier schools and possibly hitting the portal.

I had a CB who was a late bloomer in high school (played WR until his senior year). He ended up at FIU and was a Freshman All American last season. He's finally coming into his own. Now FIU is worried about keeping him. 🤦🏻‍♂️
They have to worry about bigger programs coming at him. So now school's like FIU have to double their recruiting efforts. They have to recruit kids out of high school, then they have to recruit their own kids into staying if they're good players.

You would love to see these kids stay loyal, because these lower tier programs ultimately believed in them, but as soon as bigger fish come calling (much like in high school) it's hard for them to resist. NIL money, better competition, more exposure, better chance at the NFL, etc. They consider of all this.
 
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This is why it's always great to revisit senior film. Saez looked average as a junior but took a leap as a senior. Maverick Gracio came out of nowhere. Excited to watch both of them at the P5 level.
 
I'm a big fan of Saez, Lee and Gracio but all three will need development.

Holmes is a beast but major off-the-field concerns.

Toddrick Brewton is a MAJOR sleeper but idk if FIU will help him develop. It's just a terrible environment over there. FIU got a few sleepers I like who I feel hesitant about due to the same reason.

Keyshawn Johnson is a dog but HBCU kids have a tendency to get disillusioned & lose their love for football.
 
South Florida should be called Polygon City the way we've got all these edges coming out the last few years. The amount of pass rush specialists coming out of the tri-county area have put the national recruitniks in an absolute frenzy & have me excited about the future prospects. 2022 on paper might have been the deepest year for pass rushers in South Florida history. We were full to the brim with prospects, and were able to land stud Nyjalik Kelly. 2023 is a significant drop down from 2022, but there's some guys I feel will be studs.

Lamont Green, Jr., Gulliver Prep (6'3.5" 228) - Southwest Miami transfer. Wins with athleticism & an array of pass rush moves. Absurd production as a senior (20 sacks, 29 TFLs.) Relentless pursuit to the QB. Claims 4.76 40 & 4.19 shuttle. Smallish frame & may fit best as a 3-4 OLB. Never dropped in coverage, simply told to pin his ears back & rush the passer every play. Will need to get bigger & stronger before seeing the field. Dad starred at linebacker for FSU in the 90s before playing for the Atlanta Falcons. FSU signee.



DeeJay Holmes, Pahokee (6'3" 230) - Freakish production last two seasons of high school (52 sacks, 105 TFLs.) Plays with hair on fire. Twitched up violence. Also plays off-ball LB and looks great in coverage. Better suited as a 3-4 OLB. Arrested for fleeing police back in April, will fit right in in the SEC. Ole Miss signee.


Kerrington Lee, Dwyer (6'4" 230) - Lanky pass rusher with plus athleticism. Basketball background. Played offensive line earlier in career before moving to defense as a junior. 17 sacks and 24 TFLs last two seasons of high school. Still raw & learning the ins and outs of the position, but has a bright future. Wake Forest signee.


Maverick Gracio, Cardinal Newman (6'3" 220) - Twitched up pass rusher that wins with great first step & pursuit. Production is flat out bonkers (34 sacks, 49 TFLs last two seasons.) Plays with his hair on fire. Will need to get stronger in college. Pittsburgh signee.



Zakaih Saez, St. Thomas Aquinas (6'4" 230) - Started out at Lake Worth, before transferring to The King's Academy, then finally finishing his career with STA. Basketball wing with great twitch. Great agility, can move sideline to sideline. Will need to work on bend & pass rush moves. Still very raw but has all the potential in the world. 58 tackles and 12 sacks as a senior. Oregon State signee.


Toddrick Brewton, Miami Northwestern (6'3" 225) - Athletic, physical pass rusher from football factory. Wins reps with great first step & hand placement. Also plays baseball & batted .361 as a junior. Brother, Calvin, played safety at FSU and Old Dominion. FIU signee.


Justin Tedim, Western (6'3" 220) - Physical two-way player with surprising twitch. Also plays tight end and I think he may have a brighter future at that spot. 3 sacks & FF in Crib All Star game. Lacrosse player. Colgate signee.


Keyshawn Johnson, St. Thomas Aquinas (6'2" 230) - Belle Glade native & Palm Beach Central transfer. Elite senior season with 18 sacks & 30 TFLs. Absolutely wrecked shop in state title game against Homestead with 4 sacks & 9 TFLs. 3-4 OLB frame. First step looks like he is shot out of a cannon. Delivers pop as a hitter. Underrated. Grambling State signee.


Jayden Massey, Cardinal Gibbons (6'1" 225) - Plantation transfer. Hot & cold motor. Good first step. Frame of an off-ball LB but doesn't appear to have the agility necessary to play there. FCS Presbyterian signee.


Steven Curtis, Cardinal Newman (6'4" 225) - Dwyer transfer. Teamed with Maverick Gracio to form one of the 561's best pass rushing attacks. Ideal DE frame. Good motor and length. Also plays TE. Illinois State signee.


Keyshawn Johnson was an FCS Freshman All-American. 5 sacks and 11 TFLs at Grambling.
 
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