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Some Weekend Football Evals: Malcolm Brown, Aaron Green, Brandon Carter, LaQuintas Wallace, Mike Blakely & Others
Posted by Scipio Tex on August 31st, 2010 under Football, Recruiting
I finally caught up on a bunch of DVRed high school games and wanted to share my thoughts on a few guys.
Manatee vs. Plant
This was a battle between Florida powerhouses and it was over in the first half. The best player on the field was Manatee’s Mike Blakely and though he is currently rated behind Malcolm Brown and Aaron Green on the lists, he has a better pure skill set than both. He’s a more athletic Herschel Sims. Great power for his size and quickness to burn. I don’t know his straight line speed and don’t really care. He dropped 140+ yards rushing and 3 TDs, threw for a TD, and had a 50 yard kick return. Pure all-purpose back with toughness who can beat you catching, running, returning.
Madison vs. Steele
Looks like Steele has a new offensive line and it gave me a new perspective on Malcolm Brown. Mostly for the better. I used to laugh at people who were in awe of Brown’s junior highlight tape – really, no shit, a FBS level back can run through a nine yard hole and run to the end zone untouched – wow- amazing!
So it was good to see Malcolm get his against tough sledding. The 88 yard run was absolutely sensational. He broke five or six tackles, showed fantastic balance, great strength, and the ability to finish. I like that he wore down a superior Madison defense with minimal OL support, doing the Cedric Benson end of run lunge to wring out an extra 18 inches.
From a developmental perspective, he’s 10 pounds over his ideal playing weight at this stage in his career (he’ll carry 225 when it’s distributed right) and that affected his endurance and burst. He has mediocre top end speed and the weight gain hasn’t served his lateral movement well. He’s not a super-elite generational talent as he has been billed and the comparisons to Adrian Peterson are idiotic. Or for people who can’t understand the difference between a 10.3 100 meter guy and a 10.8. He’s cut high like Adrian, has a similar body type, and he shares the same upright style. Ends there. Obviously, a very good player.
I like Aaron Green plenty though I still prefer OU verbal commit Brandon Williams as my in-state speed back. Green has real cut and go ability and he does a nice job of setting up defenders for an ankle break. He’s not powerful, but I wouldn’t call him soft either. The two red zone fumbles were distressing, but that’s something you can correct. Really quick and a nice complementary back for any program. Feed him 10-15 carries and 4-5 catches a game and get him involved in the return game.
Madison sophomore NG Vincent Taylor was the most dominant defensive player on the field. Legit 6-3 235, great motor, excellent strength, uses his hands, frame can handle big boy weight. OL don’t fear size – they fear quickness, explosiveness, and motor. Taylor has it. If he continues to develop, snap up this Energizer Bunny ASAP.
I watched OU commit Marquis Anderson quite a bit. He made one amazing play – a sack, TFL, forced fumble early that highlighted his speed and power – but as the game wore on, he wore down. Madison had a couple of big kids on his side of the OL and in the 2nd and 4th quarters he was waving the white flag. However, I saw plays that legitimize his ranking. His motor won’t be confused with Vincent Taylor though.
Steele QB Tommy Armstrong struggled with jitters, but he’s a good athlete. He looked every bit of 6-1 195 and looked like he ran a legit 4.6. As a junior, that’s worth putting on my ATH watch list.
Madison safety Andre Wiggins goes 6-3 200, benches 350, and runs track. He loved contact and had a nose for the ball. Apparently he was injured last year and totally flew under the radar. Fun to see these sleepers emerge.
Loved Madison FB Troy Williams. Great blocker for his size, good ballcarrier, excellent 1-2 with Green. He’s a UTSA commitment right now, but he may get an upgrade based on exposure. Not Texas good, but a fine little player.
Trinity vs. Tyler Lee
If Trinity had played SA Madison, the score would have been 42-7.
Trinity WR Brandon Carter is sensational and another example of a great Sooner evaluation of a player not considered an elite recruit. Odd. He pretty much jumps off of the screen, he was the best player on a state champion, and he scored the game winning touchdown in the state title game last year. He dominated this game too. And he can’t get recruiting list love? He’s skinny, but it’s wiry Iverson skinny, his quickness is off of the charts, and he has excellent ball skills. OU wants to play him at cornerback, but he looks like Mark Clayton.
He’s currently ranked as Rivals 2 star. Laughable. Double that, you fools.
Loved the Trinity OL. So physical and well-coached that you pity opposing DLs. Their skill players are all very good, but it all begins and ends with their Tongans hogs.
Tevin Williams is very solid. See OL comments. He should go to Utah/TCU.
Trinity QB Lahi Kautai is basically a more composed Tommy Armstrong from Steele. Strong, tough kid. Good leader. Not Texas good.
Tyler Lee sophomore LaQuintas Wallace was the most intriguing player in all of the games. REMEMBER THIS NAME. Electrifying. He’s not well utilized in Lee’s schemes (6 carries, 63 yards at halftime, including a 42 yarder – why doesn’t he have 15 carries? He finished the game with 7 carries – WTF?), but his athletic ability for his age is absurd. He looked every bit of 5-10 195 and he could really scoot – amazing ability to break his hips and explode when he plants a foot. He has to be the class of the 2013 RB class. If there’s someone better, I’d love to see him.
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Dude said:
August 31st, 2010 at 5:31 am
Totally agree in Carter and I wonder if the scale are based purely on size, which you address. He’s got talent and speed to burn. That said I’m really going to enjoy watching Kenny V try to remove his head from his body on a crossing route two years from now.
Dude said:
August 31st, 2010 at 5:35 am
Scale = evals
Hand Gestures said:
August 31st, 2010 at 8:03 am
Vincent Taylor was a bad ass. I wonder what our chances are with the kid?
SausageFest said:
August 31st, 2010 at 8:32 am
Watched both of Madison v Steele and Lee v Trinity myself, and came away with similar impressions:
Brown: hard to showcase your skillset when your porous O-Line is allowing 2 and 3 Madison defenders into the backfield every play. Coach Mike Jinks was determined to pound the rock inside no matter what, so there was little for the Madison D to do other than plug gaps. But I agree on the Brown review: it was good to see him have to earn those yards by himself, as it is a true reading of what kind of player he is. Strong, good forward lean, and finishes plays. That 88-yarder was EPIC.
Taylor: Player of the game, IMO. The soph did it all, and with drive and passion. He just wanted it more than everybody else. Has to be on the Texas watch list for 2013 now. Hopefully Akina has put a few bugs in his ear about wearing the burnt orange come graduation.
Wiggins: Absolute nose for the ball, and a solid striker. Wish he hadn’t have had to leave the game; was a real difference-maker in limiting Brown’s YPC.
Wallace: Ho-lee sheeat. This is THE GUY. So sudden, and hips like swivels. Great size for the position. The kid was a whirling dervish every time he toted the rock against a STRONG Trinity D. Absolutely can’t wait to see what he grows into…agree on him being a list-topper in 2013.
SausageFest said:
August 31st, 2010 at 8:34 am
Snap, forgot Green:
Green: As advertised. The fumbles are troubling, but he played much more hard-nosed than I expected. I never saw his flat-out speed though, which I was really tuning in for. Definitely a Texas take if he’s available, as he’d be a nightmare on ST and in the speed packages that have been manufactured for DJ, Marquis, and Desean.
billfromlaketravis said:
August 31st, 2010 at 8:35 am
I totally agree on Blakley. He definitely made an ass out Wilder Jr. Jimbo Fisher has to be thinking of ways to talk Wilder Jr. into playing linebacker in college. Wilder Jr. did not look comfortable at all playing running back or even defensive end for that matter. Fisher is the odds on favorite to pull another Lies Miles, Wilder Jr. will be at OLB by his sophomore year. Count on it.
Blakely on the other hand, wow, if Gray, or Sanders Jr. don’t work out, please make Blakely an offer. Kid looked electric with the ball, frame is big enough , powerful enough, elite speed, quickness and vision.
I think Armstrong is faster than a 4.6. I’m not saying he’s Aaron Green fast, but Armstrong can burn. Would be a great slot receiver. I think he’s Texas good and gets an offer at ATH.
Bring Wallace down in 2013. Running backs from Tyler have worked out pretty good for Texas.
You have to give Gooner credit, Texas is stomping their heads in on top Texas recruits, so they go back to the drawing board and emerge leaner and more focused. OU can’t beat Texas head to head in recruiting top Texas recruits with 3.8 GPAs, but they can take a Trey Metoyer, Brandon Williams and possibly Charles Jackson and do pretty damn well. You can compete if you’re second on the Texas recruiting feed trough. Sooner is also doing a good job evaluating Texas players that UT overlooked, taking top Texas players with grade or off the field issues, plucking kids out of the Midwest and plundering Southern California. Stoops is a survivor, and while a prick, a worthy opponent.
I pray that Texas will get into SoCal recruiting with a series with UCLA and USC. It’s the logical next step.
Taylor should be a top target in 2013. Hopefully he’ll camp and the coaches will step up with him.
Anderson’s lapses are why he’s not the top DT in the state, if OU can light a fire under him, Anderson could do a lot of damage.
I was impressed with Wiggins also, Kansas, Baylor, Iowa State, and Kansas State should come calling very soon.
Troy Williams is very good compact back. SMU, TCU, Houston should offer pretty soon. I would think this kid wants to avoid playing on a team where walk ons will be starting his entire collegiate career.
I read somebody compare Brown to Jonathan Stewart the other day. I think that is more apt than the AD comparisons. I will definitely take it.
Great job by the Madison coaching staff on how they utilize Green, he’s not out there to get three yards and a cloud of dust, Green is out there hit homers and get one on one with defensive players in space. Great compliment to Brown. We need them both. I am hoping for Reservoir Dogs Roommate Action at Texas.
We get Green if Brown wants him abroad.
Bohls predicted in his 9 things column that we get Green and Gray. Hopefully Tubbs takes his recruiting medicine next year.
maninblack said:
August 31st, 2010 at 9:47 am
I liked what Taylor was doing. He had two Steele O-Lineman leaning on him most of the night. You could tell that he was getting gassed in the 2nd half as well. Has the tendency to stand up and lose leverage at the sanp but that’s correctable.
I’ve always thought the Malcolm Brown/Adrian Peterson comparisons were absurd hyperbole. Walter Payton…imo
Capt. Insano said:
August 31st, 2010 at 11:50 am
Vincent Taylor at DT. Yes Please.
beowulf said:
August 31st, 2010 at 11:58 am
Wiggins will make someone a very good LB. Wouldn’t mind if he came to Texas at all. Baller.
HenryJames said:
August 31st, 2010 at 1:41 pm
Anderson’s sack and strip came on a play where the lineman assigned to him collided with a running back.
Scipio Tex said:
August 31st, 2010 at 2:24 pm
He has telekinesis.
Barking Carnival | Cartography said:
August 31st, 2010 at 2:42 pm
[...] I watched the much ballyhooed Malcolm Brown / Aaron Green showcase showdown over the weekend and was glad to see Scipio had shared his thoughts on Brown, Green, et al. [...]
TTP, Fred said:
August 31st, 2010 at 4:00 pm
I thought Manatee DT #90 Quinton Pompey was unstoppable, as well.
Orangechipper said:
August 31st, 2010 at 4:28 pm
Not as high as you guys on Blakely. Anyone can post a strong stat line. Heck our future FB Bergeron went 23 carries for 273 yards. No one would say he’s a top 25 prospect, though. I guess I just find it too early to replace ONE game from 2010 for all of 2009… yet.
I guess these eyes find it hard to evaluate in a week 1 game when its hard to gauge the relative strength of the competition.
Good stuff as always, Scip. Now I have SEVERAL fantake blogs to peruse daily. :)
Scipio Tex said:
August 31st, 2010 at 7:58 pm
Chipper -
If Blakely’s stat line were the reason for my opinion, that’s all I would have posted. Read some of the words around the stat line.
TxHorns989 said:
August 31st, 2010 at 9:38 pm
Orangechipper – I think Bergeron is the #28 ranked RB on Scouts, haha. So I guess you’re right. But he’s close. Finally got to see some of his tape thanks to 247sports on YouTube. He’ll be a good FB and should be able to tote the ball for us every now and then. Excited to see how he and MJ McFarland develop, I think both of them often get overlooked.
And I’ll agree with you on these blogs, I’m a new addict of Burnt Orange Nation, Recruitocosm, and BC… anything else I should be looking at?
Scipio Tex said:
August 31st, 2010 at 9:47 pm
TxHorns -
There’s a list of 25+ blogs to your right. Most of them teams Texas will be playing this year. Click away, amigo.
TxHorns989 said:
August 31st, 2010 at 9:56 pm
Thank you sir, I will enjoy reading them each week before we play one of them. And thanks for all the work you do on here, much appreciated.
Orangechipper said:
August 31st, 2010 at 10:09 pm
I read your words, Scipio. I just wasn’t left with the same impression I guess because I’m largely ignorant of the quality team Manatee and Plant are. It seemed like Plant mentally quit when their QB got hurt. I just read that the highly rated Plant team only returned 4 starters from last year. Paper tiger??
I agree that Blakely looked good… but one game doesn’t undo or overwrite the 3 prior seasons we have on all these players. Let’s just say that I’m withholding judgment on him. After all, he only had 5 carries on the game. Just not enough there for me to say he’d be a better all-around back than Green or Brown… yet.
Got curious and looked up his stats vs Plant last year in the 2009 state championship game.. Blakely had 17 carries for 64 yds and 1 TD. He also had 5 catches for over 100 yds. Wilder last year in the same game went 20 carries for 137 yds. Very interesting what an off-season and losing 18 starters can do to a team.
dedfischer said:
September 1st, 2010 at 5:01 am
TCU commit Trevone Boykin is legit. I would imagine he’ll play another position than QB in college, but it will be tempting as he does have good arm strength and throws a pretty ball. Most impressive player I saw this weekend.
Hiphopopotamus said:
September 1st, 2010 at 7:28 am
I’m not sure how you expect me to remember the name LaQuintas. How generic.
Hand Gestures said:
September 1st, 2010 at 9:08 am
I have a raging clue for McFarland. That kid is gonna be legit when all is said and done.
Bergeron and McFarland are the two most underrated recruits we have, and I have a feeling they’re gonna end up being the two that put us over the top for another NC.
Just a feeling
Scipio Tex said:
September 1st, 2010 at 10:44 am
I agree with you on the Bergeron part.
TxHorns989 said:
September 1st, 2010 at 9:06 pm
I agree with you on both. I think people are severely underrating McFarland.
Schedule said:
October 30th, 2010 at 3:57 am
Maybe you could change the blog subject title Recruitocosm | Some Weekend Football Evals: Malcolm Brown, Aaron Green, Brandon Carter, LaQuintas Wallace, Mike Blakely & Others to more catching for your webpage you make. I loved the post still.
LSR Breakdown – The Balance | Recruitocosm said:
May 26th, 2011 at 7:57 am
[...] RB, LaQuintas Wallace, Tyler Lee (5-11, 185) Scipio offered this last August. The link is worth a look if for nothing else than to marvel at how far bill’s paragraphing has come: [...]