High School Football In Virginia In The 2003-04 School Year!
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12-14-03
I went to the University of Richmond stadium to scout two Group AAA (large schools) underclassmen in the final day of high school football season here in Virginia: 6-1 189 sophomore halfback Evan Royster (wearing number 24) of the Westfield High School Bulldogs, and 6-3 274 sophomore defensive end Dominique Smith (wearing number 75) of the Massaponax High School Panthers. Royster was playing for his 13-0 Group 6 team in their state championship game against the Landstown High School Eagles, and Smith was playing for his 13-0 Group 5 team in their state championship game against the Hopewell High School Blue Devils.
In the Westfield-Landstown game, Westfield wore black jerseys and socks, brown shoes, gold helmets, lighter-than-gold-looking pants, and white numerals. Landstown wore white jerseys, black pants and socks, silver helmets, and greyish/dark-blueish numerals. In the Massaponax-Hopewell contest, Massaponax had black helmets, black pants, and white jerseys. Hopewell had blue helmets and jerseys, white pants, yellow numerals, and yellow face bars on their helmets. The stadium was three-quarters full, with only the end zones empty. This was the coldest day of the football season in Virginia, around 32 degrees, and a tremendous amount of food was sold to the thousands of fans. There's nothing like non-stop eating to keep you warm when it's 32 degrees at a game: the usual pizza, Arby's food, soft drinks, candy bars, french fries, etc. The stadium lights came on for the second game, which turned in to a night game. It was strange being in a stadium that permitted cigarette-smoking, and there was a lot of it. High schools from the Virginia Beach area do not do well in the state playoffs, and this was a rare time when one, Landstown, had made it this far.
In seeing these two underclass players play, I also saw some high school seniors play, some of whom I had never see before. But still, I try to see players before they become high school seniors. The University of Richmond is building a newer, smaller stadium to replace this one, but this old stadium is horrible-looking: the paint is peeling and it doesn't look like it's been painted in 40 years. Why does a state need six state champions? The high school coaches in Virginia need to realize that coaching and getting your student body interested in playing football and going out for the team mean much more in determining wins and losses than the size of the enrollment does.
Hopewell won the Division 5 state title this afternoon with a 41-14 win over Massaponax High School of Fredericksburg. Westfield High later won the Division 6 state title with a 35-14 win over Landstown High of Virginia Beach.
Royster is very smooth: he has a slender stomach but is muscular. Tacklers don't get a good shot at him. He smoothly goes through the line or around end over and over, and does not fumble. He has great balance: you can't knock him over. And he accelerates fast. He doesn't mind putting his head down and running over a tackler. He's going to be better than ex-UVa running back Thomas Jones !
Royster does not "fight himself" like some athletes do: his running style is effortless, and he almost seems to have no competition on a high school football field. He ran for over 1.600 yards this year, and may be headed to Parade High School All-American status by his senior year. Just a sophomore, he deserves to be first-team all-Group AAA this year. He ran for 91 yards on 16 carries in the first half alone in this game, scored two touchdowns in the game, and although he gets great blocking, he's a big-time prospect who only needs to keep working in the weight room.
Smith needs to tone up his body fat, but projects as a Division 1-A prospect. However, Division 5 football is not particuarly good competition, and he was the only 1-A prospect to be seen in the Massaponax-Hopewell game. He rushes the quarterback well, sometimes forcing the other team to double-team him, and he has a lot of potential.
I had never seen Westfield High School receiver Eddie Royal (wearing number 5) play. Royal gained a lot of recruiting attention this past summer when he ran a 4.29 40-yard dash, and he's rated among the nation's top 100 prospects. However, there have been rumors on the internet that his academics need work. Hopefully, he'll improve them, even if it means going to prep school, because Royal was terrific in this game! That's just the way it is sometimes: some of the top players just don't have the grades, which is why there are often more NFL prospects in Division II colleges in Virginia than in Division 1-AA. He controlled the game, no matter what you may read in the paper: Massaponax was so hesitant to punt to him after he ran back a punt for a TD that they decided to punt out-of-bounds, giving Westfield High the ball on Massaponax's 33-yard line. From there, Westfield eventually scored, breaking the game open. On defense, Royal had a timely blitz from his defensive back position, sacking the Massaponax quarterback on a key play. And as a wide receiver, Royal was unguardable. He was not only the best player in this game (even though Landstown High has 4 Division 1-A skill position prospects!), but he may well be the top high school football player in the state of Virginia, PERIOD. When he gets a step on you, forget it. It's six points! Throughout the game, the Westfield High fans as young as 10 years-old chanted "Edd-ie! Edd-ie! " He is a sensational high school player who is even better than his statistics.
I also had never seen 6-4 190 senior quarterback Sean Glennon (wearing number 7), headed to Virginia Tech, of Westfield High play. Glennon had great career passing statistics, that may make him look better than he really is. Due to a little lack of foot speed, he was not highly-recruited. He has a lot of poise, however. Will he ever start at Virginia Tech? Maybe, but not until his fifth year.
I had seen Landstown High play before. Landstown only has 44 players on its varsity, and Westfield has 91, so that alone was a bad omen for the Eagles. The interest and participation in high school football in northern Virginia is tremendous. I had seen 6-3 188 senior quarterback Terry Mitchell (wearing number 5, and headed to West Virginia) play before. He had a nightmarish game today, running for his life and having to throw desperation passes. His arm seemed weak today, which was surprising. Still, he threw 44 touchdown passes this year (the all-classifications state record is 45), and is a steal for West Virginia University. I had seen 5-9 senior wide receiver Jeremy Gilchrist (wearing number 9) play (although he has great career statistics, he has no Division 1-A offers due to a lack of size. He just couldn't cover Royal today.) I had seen outstanding junior defensive back prospect 6-1 208 Deveon Simmons (wearing number 10) play (he had a bad game, fumbling and appearing awkward, but he's still a big-time prospect for next year). And I had seen blue-chip sophomore wide receiver Percy Harvin (6-0 180 and wearing number 11) play. Harvin actually appears taller than his listed 6-0, and just has a look about him that says "NFL." After Westfield held Harvin to just 19 first-half receiving yards, Landstown seemed to give up trying to get him the ball. I'm not sure why. Harvin has been projected to be a future high school All-American: how could Landstown not try to get him more touches on offense?
Deveon Simmons and Percy Harvin are still players that UVa and Virginia Tech should offer scholarships to: today!
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12-7-03
Kent Hicks, the 6-3 210 senior safety for Culpeper High School, has turned down both the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech, and is headed to the University of Maryland. This is a big loss for the state of Virginia. However, Maryland had a better year than either UVa or Virginia Tech did, so both schools had to settle for defensive back recruits that weren't as good a prospects as Hicks. Hicks has an NFL body, and the NFL is where you'll see him one day.
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11-21-03
As I try to just scout underclassmen (ninth, tenth, and eleventh-graders), I went to see 6-4 240 junior quarterback Greg Boone of Chesapeake, Virginia Oscar Smith High School Tigers play tonight. The weather was warm in that part of the state near the ocean, but 20 degrees colder back in the middle of the state, where I had driven from. Boone had helped lead Oscar Smith High to it's best record in 39 years: 9-1. He had made 2nd-team All-Southeastern District as a QB this season, and 1st-team All-District as a defensive back, playing a lone safety position in Oscar Smith's defense.
However, I came away just as impressed with Deveon Simmons, a 6-2 208 junior linebacker/running back for the Landstowne High School Eagles of Virginia Beach, Oscar Smith's opponent in tonight's regional semi-final game, which was played at the football stadium at the Sportsplex in Virginia Beach. Landstowne High is onlyh in it's third year of existence. Simmons is a headhunter. If he can make the switch from middle linebacker to safety at the collegiate level, and I see no reason why he can't, then he could be an excellant Division 1-A prospect. Landstowne High was 10-0 using their pass-on-every-down offense, and before seeing them, I had figured that they just outscored opponents but didn't have much of a defense. Actually, their defense is as good as any I've seen in high school football in Virginia this year even though they're a new school just in their third year of existence, and that includes Hampton High's and Phoebus High's, partly due to Simmons.
Landstowne High's quarterback, senior Terry Mitchell, came in to the game having thrown 36 regular-season touchdown passes. With a year at a prep school to get more muscular, he could be a Division 1-A prospect: he's listed at 6-3 185, and has come from out of nowhere to be a star.
I was also impressed with number 11 for Landstown, wide receiver/defensive back, William 'Percy' Harvin ,(6-0 181)who The Norfolk Virginian-Pilot called 'one of the best sophomores in the nation,' and a 'possible Parade High School All-American.'Harvin seemed to be all over the field on nearly every play, catching passes, making tackles, and constantly running. However, it was Simmons who called the defensive signals for Landstowne.
Boone wore number 6. Mitchell wore number 5. Simmons wore number 10. Behind 14-0 at the half, Oscar Smith lost 35-6, ending it's season. The combination of Mitchell throwing to ACC prospect Jeremy Gilchrist, a 5-11 184 senior transfer student from nearby Salem High,
was just too much for Oscar Smith.Gilchrist is a Division 1-A caliber player, although he looked lighter than his listed 184 pounds, and could use a redshirt year in college. He's what I'd call a "B-List" player, a player Virginia Tech or the University of Virginia would recruit if they struck-out on a Super Prep All-American. Super Prep All-Americans are the nation's top 25 players at each position. As far as Boone goes, he could play quarterback at the Division 1-A level, but were he to go to Virginia Tech or the University of Virginia, because both schools are loaded with quarterbacks, he'd be switched to another position. Fullback maybe? Linebacker? Or, he could put on 20 pounds and become a defensive end. He could fill many roles, being 6-4 240, fast, and a player who doesn't mind lowering his head and running over tacklers. Few of his passes were caught in this game: his teammates couldn't get open, so he threw 4 interceptions. But he has a strong arm and threw spirals.
The Sportsplex is on the edge of Virginia Beach, surrounded by completely flat land in all directions. It's a modern, great-looking stadium, but for whatever reason, only has stands on one side of the field. It has a big scoreboard with a big screen on it, and the usual advertiser ads plastered on it: Altel, ESPN, the Virginia Lottery, Huyundai, Coca-Cola, Soccer Plus, etc.
It says it's "The Home Of The Mariners," whoever they are.
Boone wore black socks: his team wore black shoes, blue pants, helmets, and numerals, and white socks and jerseys. Landstowne High wore very dark blue jerseys, and silver pants, helmets, and numerals. Simmons taped his wrists, which gave him kind of an "NFL" look. Also playing in this game was senior first-team All-Southeastern District halfback Matthew Scott of Oscar Smith High, who wore number 4. Scott appeared to be his listed size of 5-11 190. However he was playing injured, and didn't do well: he only gained 37 yards on 13 carries in the first half. Another first-team All-Southeastern District prospect: 6-3 195 senior wide receiver Dexter Manley , who wore number 84 for Oscar Smith High. Is he related to former NFL star Dexter Manley ? No. But, he has nice hands, and is a Division 1-A prospect.
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11-15-03
Since I follow the college basketball of all of the colleges in the state of Virginia, I took in the game tonight between the University of Virginia and a group called "The Big Apple All-Stars." UVa won easily, but the game meant nothing: The Big Apple All-Stars were about as good as a decent junior college team. But I have to say one thing: Derrick Byars, the 6-7 sophomore forward for UVa, has, outside of Ralph Sampson, the most NBA potential of any UVa player I've ever seen.
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11-14-03
By this time of the year, the hot summer nights of the early part of the high school football season have been replaced by the winter-like temperatures of high school football in November. And crowds are smaller, as people start to realize that their favorite high school team isn't going to challenge for a state championship after all. The crowds are often mostly high school students who just walk around the outside of the jogging track during the game, socializing, and rarely pay attention to what's going on on the field. Or, they form a herd that clusters around the snack bar, buying junk food endlessly. The high school male students mostly seem to be trying to dress like pro basketball player Allen Iverson . If you're lucky, the game you go to has game programs available for sale, usually sold by 90-pound female cheerleaders, so that you have some idea as to who you're watching play. If not, you have to, ahead of time, ask the athletic director at a high school to fax you their roster.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch had recently mentioned that a high school sophomore for Meadowbrook High School in Midlothian, Virginia, had gone to a football combine with high school seniors, and stood out for his size, speed, and agility. His name is John Graves , and having seen him play, there's no doubt that both the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech will some day offer him scholarships, as long as his grades are okay. He's listed at 6-3 242 on the Meadowbrook High School website, and The Times-Dispatch had listed him as being 6-3 250, and I'd say he weighs at least 250. He plays left offensive guard (if you're facing the Meadowbrook High School offensive line), and right defensive end (if you're facing the Meadowbrook defensive line). In college, he could wind up playing linebacker, or if he continues growing, one of the defensive line positions. He wears number 74 for the Meadowbrook Monarchs.
Graves is almost a clone of University of Virginia linebacker Ahmad Brooks as far as size, build, and physical appearance. His knees are kind of curved an inch "back" (in kind of a reverse-c) towards his heel from where most people's knees are, which may give him more potential to add even more strength to his legs. Is he as good a high school player as Brooks? No. But he's a rarity in that he seems very relaxed and natural on the field, almost as if he were born to play football. This is a special athlete who has strength, never seems to tire, and has little body fat.
The game was held in Manchester High's Lloyd L. Swelnis Stadium. Manchester had a 7-2 record and visiting Meadowbrook was 6-3. The temperature was so cold that all throughout, I heard people complaining about it. But I was dressed warm. Anyway, Meadowbrook won 20-14 in overtime, but I was there to see Graves ,not report on the game. A player that I've mentioned before, Manchester High halfback/defensive back Kavell Connor , played well for Manchester, as expected. Although most players exaggerate their height and weight, Connor , who wears number 33, seems taller and heavier than the 6-2 190 he's listed as. Connor appears at right, courtesy of "The Richmond Times-Dispatch".
Also, being a year younger than most high school juniors, he may have a lot of untapped potential. As I've mentioned below in a report on Connor , he should be recruited by both UVa and Virginia Tech next year. In this game, he scored on the first play for Manchester, after the Manchester Lancers recovered a Meadowbrook fumble. Connor ,already has over 1,100 yards rushing for the second straight season. The Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that he has averaged over 13 yards-per-carry (!) this season, but that's hard to believe: in the two games I've seen him play, he's done nothing like that. But he has even more potential as a collegiate defensive back!
Meadowbrook wore white jerseys and pants, with two, dark parallel lines down the side of their pants, and wore dark helmets and dark numerals on their jerseys. Manchester wore dark blue jerseys, dark blue pants, and orange helmets.Graves wore long sleeves under his jersey, and fairly short socks: he seemed unaffected by the cold. Manchester's football stadium is located on the edge of the school property, near the woods, and both teams brought their marching bands. After a long delay introducing the cheerleaders who would be cheerleading in their final home game, the game had begun, and it was filled with unsportsmanlike penalties and 15-yard penalities for things that players yelled at the referees. In fact, when Manchester faced a 4th down and 3 yards-to-go in overtime, to either tie the game at 20-20 or lose it, 20-14, Manchester was flagged for two unsportsmanlike calls, which turned their 4th-and-3 to a 4th-and-33! LOL. It was a bitterly-fought game, even though both teams are headed for post-season play.
For some reason, the price of admission to high school games is going up: it's now $6 instead of $5. You'd think that the least coaches could do as long as they're making a living off of high school students would be to publicize their own players by handing out rosters.
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11-11-03
Since I follow the college basketball of all of the colleges in the state of Virginia, I took in the game tonight between the University of Virginia and a group called "The Big Apple All-Stars." UVa won easily, but the game meant nothing: The Big Apple All-Stars were about as good as a decent junior college team. But I have to say one thing:
Derrick Byars, the 6-7 sophomore forward for UVa, has, outside of Ralph Sampson, the most NBA potential of any UVa player I've ever seen.
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11-03-03
I went to see junior quarterback
Cody Brodus(pronouced "Brode-us") play. He's been listed as 6-3 or 6-4 in height, and from 190 to 215 in weight, but in tonight's game program he was listed at 6-3 218.
Brodus
is listed by The Sporting News High School Football Yearbook as one of a half-dozen 11th-grade quarterbacks to watch, out of just 50 or so juniors nationally. He wears number 5.
Sometimes high school quarterbacks turn out to be better collegiate players than anyone could have predicted when they were in high school. (Remember University of Virginia quarterback
Don Majkowski
who was an unknown player from up-state New York before going to Fork Union Military Academy?) Or they may be stuck on a high school team that has slow receivers. (See former Virginia Tech quarterback
Michael Vick.)
They may be stuck on a high school team that has receivers who have bad hands. (Remember University of Virginia quarterback
Shawn Moore
from Martinsville High?) Or they may be coached by a coach who runs an antiquated three-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust offense, and who doesn't use the talents of his quarterback as he should. (Remember how NFL QB
Vinnie Testerverde
arrived at Fork Union Military Academy as an unrecruited quarterback from Long Island, NY?)
So, here I was, at Todd Stadium, the grey, concrete city stadium of Newport News, Virginia, on a Friday night, waiting to walk through the metal-detector. I had stopped at McDonald's, 7-11, and Wendy's on the way, so I was ready for some football.
Brodus'
team, Warwick High of Newport News, VA, was taking on visiting Heritage High of Newport News, Virginia.
Brodus'
head coach at Warwick is
Tommy Reamon
a former NFL player who just came out with a book on his experiences as a high school football coach.
Reamon
wore a suit on the sidelines, along with a Warwick cap, and was frequently on the field. (The game was televised live, although there were perhaps just a few hundred people in the stands.)
Reamon
, had earlier coached college superstar (and NFL star QB)
Michael Vick
, at Warwick High, and had also coached present-day NFL star quarterback
Aaron Brooks
, of the New Orleans Saints at a previous high school that was dissolved in to Warwick High, plus he had coached Parade High School All-American QB
Marcus Vick
, and the starting quarterback for Norfolk High, yet
Reamon,had proclaimed before this season that
Brodus,would eventually be the best quarterback he had ever coached!
Neither team has much talent this year, although Heritage may have a Division 1-AA prospect in 6-2 285 junior center
Lesimuel Green, who wears number 74. The Heritage Hurricanes have fallen a long way from the 14-0 state-championship team of three years ago that produced University of Virginia players
Michael Johnson, and
Darryl Blackstock.
As for Warwick, Brodus was leading the Peninsula District in passing this year, with 1,105 yards, and after 7 games he was 82-166 passing for 8 TD's and 6 interceptions, while running for 443 yards and 7 touchdowns on 102 carries. In contrast to Hampton's city stadium, Darling Stadium, which is in a gloomy, dark part of town, Newport News' city stadium, Todd Stadium is one you have to pass through miles of restaurants and malls to get to. Because of the strange architecture of Todd Stadium, it is possible to stand outside of the ballpark and look under and through the bottom row of seats and watch the game, although that's not what I did.
I paid for my $5 ticket, walked in, and bought a game program. Then I went to watch Brodus warm up. The game was about an hour away, and there was only one other fan on the Warwick side. I always wear sweat pants under my regular pants, and take a winter coach, gloves, hat, and pancho to every football game, no matter how hot it is, because the weather can change in a hurry. I had no interest in the game itself: I was just there to scout Brodus. However, the game was a great game, I have to admit. Heritage won 21-14, as Brodus,
lost two fumbles while being sacked in the last quarter, and also threw an interception on the last play of the game...
Does this mean he was overrated? Not necessarily. He did score both of his team's touchdowns, and he intercepted a pass from his defensive back position. And his receivers would have a hard time catching a cold, much less a football, and that includes #9, receiver Linwood Richardson , who at 6-1 185 has been mentioned as some sort of college prospect. Richardson , dropped almost every pre-game punt he tried to catch. And Brodus , was attacked like a swarm of sharks any time Heritage blitzed. Brodus, also threw an interception in the first quarter, when a pass flew off of the hands of one of his receivers. His receivers seemed to be batting his passes down more than they actually caught them.
Brodus, is left-handed, and he wore a list of plays on his right wrist. His ankles were taped, and he wore black shoes. Warwick wore maroon pants and numerals, with gold jerseys and helmets. Heritage had silver helmets, purple jerseys and pants, and white numerals. First, one scoreboard stopped working, and then the second did also, so both were turned off, and only the words "WELCOME TO TODD STADIUM" were illuminated. Not knowing how much time remained on the clock affected both teams. Brodus is an impressive athlete, with a strong arm. Yes, he makes the mistake of staring at just one receiver, without looking to a secondary one. And yes, he fumbles a lot. But the physical tools are there. He can run the option. He can throw out of the shotgun: he puts his left foot in front of the right one and raises it for some reason when he's in the shotgun. He also punts (he's a lousy punter), and plays safety on defense (he dropped a pass interception that he should have had).
Anyway, with Heritage running out the clock (which players even knew how much time was remaining?), they fumbled the ball, a Warwick player picked it up, and ran with it all the way to the Heritage 19 yard-line, as bedlum insued on the Warwick side. Warwick was going to have a chance to win, after all! Broadus dropped back to pass, threw in to the end zone, the ball was intercepted, the player who intercepted the ball was tackled, and the public address announcer suddenly yelled, "And that's the end of the game!" (????)
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10-31-03
Hampton High School has been the top football high school in the state of Virginia for over 30 years. But you have to be careful when recruiting a Hampton High player: what you see may be the finished product. Coach Mike Smith gets so much out of his players that they may not have much more room to improve when they get to college. His players are pushed until they reach their potential, and often that potential is realized while they're still in high school. In tonight's game, Hampton High was wearing their red high-top football shoes, red helmets, red jerseys, and red pants with a long, arrow down the side, and visiting Menchville High was wearing yellow helmets, dark pants, and white jerseys.
Hampton High supposedly practices for four hours, twice-a-day once pre-season practices start. Smith has won state championships with rosters that had only a handful of players who weighed over 200 pounds! But almost everyone on his good teams can run, unlike other high school programs, which always have a number of overfed, very slow linemen. Two weeks ago, Hampton High stunned Phoebus High, which had won 30 straight games, two straight Division 6 state championships, and which had possibly the nation's most highly-publicized junior in running back Cody BrodusElan Lewis.
I went to this game, held at Darling Stadium, where Hampton High plays all of it's home games in a darkened, quiet, poor part of town, to see Hampton High's junior wide receiver, 6-2 175 Todd Nolen. Coach Mike Smith had recently told the Newport News "Daily Press," that Nolen is "the best receiver I've ever seen" (whatever that means).Smith
also once said that then-Hampton High quarterback Ronald Curry was the best quarterback in football: high school, college, or pro.
Anyway, Hampton was hosting Menchville of Newport News, VA on this Saturday night at 7:30. I'll put the suspense to rest right now: Hampton led 50-0 at the half, and won 70-0, agreeing to let the 2nd-half clock run even when players stepped out-of-bounds or threw an incomplete pass. Nolen now has 18 receptions, half (nine) of which have gone for TD's, and is averaging over 31 yards-per-catch after 8 games, as Hampton is now 8-0 and rated #3 in the state in Group AAA. Having seen Nolen play in person now, I can say that he's the real deal, and that he's someone that both Virginia and Virginia Tech should offer scholarships to next year. However, he's thin and will need a redshirt year when he gets to college. Unlike many Hampton players, he has a lot of room to get even better. His most impressive play of tonight's game occured in the second quarter, when Hampton High QB Mike Roberts threw a long ball to a streaking Nolen, who was going down the right sideline (if you were facing the Hampton offense.) The pass was overthrown by at least 5 yards, and there was no way that Nolen could have been expected to get it. But he did. The crowd erupted, and I realized that although Nolen is not as good a prospect as fellow 11th-grader Bosco Williams of Alleghany High, Nolen is certainly a Division 1-A prospect in his own right. Look for him to follow Hampton High's last three (Derrick Fenner of Maryland,Carlos Campbell of Notre Dame, and Ahmad Hawkins of the University of Virginia) wide receivers in to the Division 1-A collegiate ranks. As usual, Hampton High has many small college prospects, as well as late-bloomers who have paid their dues by playing behind more-talented players until they were seniors. For instance, senior halfback/linebacker Derrick Fairley, #5, is a 5-10 190 centerpiece of Hampton's team who's name is mentioned on almost every other play by the public address announcer. But look for Nolen to be first-team All-Group AAA this season, and up there with Elan Lewis of Phoebus High next year for state Player-Of-The-Year honors.
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10-24-03
An hour before gametime, the stands were so empty that the loudest sound was a cricket chirping on the edge area of the field. The stadium's football field was about twenty feet down a flight of stairs behind the school. Although it was just 36 degrees, it felt colder than any high school football game I've ever been to when I went to see E.C. Glass play Culpeper tonight. But remember the name Anthony Davis. He plays for E.C. Glass High School in Lynchburg, Virginia.
Davis is a sophomore, and listed as being 6-3 290 pounds. He wears number 72. He basically plays right defensive tackle (if you were facing E.C. Glass's defense across the line of scrimmage). However, he also plays offensive tackle on short-yardage situations. And, like former Clemson All-American William "The Refrigerator" Perry, Davis carries the ball when E.C. Glass needs a touchdown around the goal line(!)
I went to see the E.C. Glass Hilltoppers visit Culpeper High, and Glass won 20-7, pushing their record this year to 5-3, with the 3 losses coming by a total of 21 points. By the time the game ended, several thousand students had paid to get in, and they spent the game constantly walking around the inner gates, socializing and ignoring the game.
It's hard to offer a scholarship to any high school sophomore, because how many 10th-graders have taken the SAT yet? Not many. But if and when Davis does take it and pass it, if his other academics are in order, look for all Big East and ACC schools to pursue him. He's a big-timer.
E.C. Glass was wearing white jerseys, and white/silver pants, with dark blue helmets, and white socks over dark blue socks. Visiting Culpeper wore dark blue jerseys, pants, and helmets, with gold numerals on their helmets and pants, and a double gold stripe down the sides of their pants. I go to these games to see underclassmen, not seniors, but of course, I had to take note of Culpeper High senior safety Kent Hicks. Hicks was recently listed by
Doug Doughty
of "The Roanoke Times & World News" as being the second-best high school senior in the state of Virginia. Hicks wears number 1. He is Culpeper's punter, plays wide receiver on offense, and even plays running back in some games when Culpeper needs to get him the ball. As a wide receiver, he was always double-teamed on every pass patern he ran, and sometimes triple-teamed! He's a powerful-looking defensive back who has been listed anywhere from 6-2 to 6-4 and 190 to 210. This is not someone you'd want to want to see coming at you if you were a high school running back. However, he was beaten badly on a deep pass that, fortunately for him, was overthrown. Defensive back will be his position in college, but he made a great one-handed catch on offense in this game, and showed very soft hands. He plays the same deep safety position for Culpeper that former Hampton High star Ronald Curry played not that long ago for Hampton.
Interestingly enough, Hicks did not enter the game until the second quarter started. Obviously he was being punished for something. Once he did enter, I think he played every offensive and defensive play for Culpeper for the remainder of the game. On one fake punt, he calmly ran the ball around the right end for 27 yards. He's a big-timer, to be sure. A future NFL player? Yes, I'd say so. He was also part of the homecoming court at halftime, as elected by the students of Culpeper High.
But don't forget about the sophomore Anthony Davis, also. He's at least as big as his size of 6-3 290, and the traveling E.C. Glass fans went bonkers each time he carried the ball. As for Hicks, both the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech have gotten commitments from other defensive backs this year: do they feel that Hicks is a "lost cause," and most-likely headed out-of-state?
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10-17-03
