Linemen Recap:
Top Offensive Lineman – Wooster (Ohio) center Jake Burns continues to be dominant force at off-season camps. He gets out of his stance and gets his hands on defenders quickly and his strong punch shocked several of his opponents. He is tough and confident. He may not have the prototype meausureables, but someone is going to overlook that and get a great player.
Sleeper who emerged – Clinton Township (Mich.) Chippewa Valley’s Charles Wesley is similar to Burns. Very technically sound, tough, and lost very few reps on the day. Build-wise, he’s a college guard/center. He had a really nice showing.
Top underclassman – Fenton (Mich.) 2021 Josh Thompson is a big (6-4, 290 pounds) youngster who has continued to improve each time we see him. He is strong, competes hard, and has already drawn quite a few FBS looks and that should only increase.
Others: Jalen Johnson, River Rouge (2021), Adam Sarjo, Grand Rapids Christian (2021), Ossian Harris, Oak Park (2021), Raymen McDonald, Southfield A&T (2021), Tyson Wheeler, Macomb Dakota (2020)
Top Defensive Lineman – Grand Rapids (Mich.) Godwin Heights 2021 Ru’Quan Buckley and Clinton Township (Mich.) Chippewa Valley’s Daniel Lawson share the honors here for us. Buckley, who was recently offered by Kentucky and Central Michigan, was participating in his first camp of this sort and acclimated himself well. He’s a great looking kid on the hoof and in a sink or swim situation against this kind of competition for the first time, he swam. Lawson does not have any offers yet, but interior guys with his quicks are hard to find so it should only be a matter of time. Williamston (Mich.) defensive tackle Eston Miles also deserves mention here as he had good battles with Burns. An injury kept him from finishing out the camp, but the big, powerful Miles showed why he has several FBS offers.
Sleeper who emerged – Ari Curtis from Lake Orion is a quick edge rusher whose first-step gave blockers some trouble.
Top underclasman – Canadian prospect Kaeden Jajal is a 2021 with a big frame, already pretty developed lower body, and won his share of 1-1s. I liked the athleticism of Gibraltar Carlson’s Nicholas McArthur, a 2021 kid, but I am not sure what position he fits best at yet. It could be tight end, it may even be offensive line one day, but he has a nice frame and moves around well.
Others: Tremayne Oliver, Oak Park (2020), Tyler Wells, Clinton Township Chippewa Valley (2020), William Kerr, Cranbrook (2020), Tyson Watson, Warren Mott (2021)
Quarterbacks:
Top Performer – Zack Keen from Utica has a live arm and was consistent with his placement and accuracy. He showed he could make the necessary throws and did it well when asked to make them on the move.
Top Underclassman – There were several 2021s and a 2022 who threw the ball well, but Cranbrook-Kingswood 2021 Jacob Bousamra, in our estimation, was the most consistent of the bunch.
Others: Tanner Slazinski, Bloomfield Hills (2021), Ahlon Mitchell, Detroit Country Day (2020), Colin Parachek, Dexter (2021), Kyler Vanderjagt, Grand Rapids Northview (2022), Gregory Piscopink, Bloomfield Hills Brother Rice (2020), Keegan Robertson, Saginaw Heritage (2020)
Running Backs:
Top Performer – Jamason Jodway, Auburn Hills Avondale was competitive in drills and 1-1s and regularly got open.
Top Underclassman – Teavion Warren, Grand Blanc (2021) – ran past defenders deep and showed good ball skills.
Wide Receivers:
Top Performer – Justin Gabriel, Walled Lake Western’s 2021, Southfield 2020 Arron Foulkes and Davison 2020 Latrell Fordham share these honors. Fordham went both ways, but had several nice grabs at wide receiver and Gabriel got deep a couple times and showed his route-running skills as well. Foulkes has quicks and created separation about as well as anyone at the event.
Sleeper who emerged – Hudsonville Unity Christian’s Isaac TeSlaa made several nice plays. He is a longer kid, smooth in his stride and went up and caught the ball in traffic when he needed to. He might be a college safety, but there is frame, competitiveness and athleticism to work with here.
Top Underclassman – Trevor Jones, a 2022 from Belleville made several highlight reel plays including a one-handed catch that was undoubtedly the play of the day. East Lansing’s Andrel Anthony, a 2021 prospect, was also very impressive. He is smooth and athletic,
Others – Pierce Muthui-Edwards, Harper Woods (2022), Roy Whimper, Kalamazoo Central (2020), Malachi Love, Grand Rapids Christian (2020), Brian Hunter, Grand Rapids Christian (2021)
Defensive Backs:
Top Performer – Fordham had one of the best days of the DBs also, getting his hands on a couple passes.
Sleeper who emerged – Walled Lake Western’s Mackenzie Elebra continues to make the transition from wide receiver to defensive back. He has the length and tools to do it and is an intriguing prospect as a result.
Others – CJ Brown, Walled Lake Western (2020), Braden Babich, Warren De La Salle (2020), Gage Ashley, Goodrich (2020), Giovanni Larkins, Oak Park (2020), Justin Reed, Kalamazoo Central (2020)
Linebackers:
Top Performer – Solomon Bell from Southfield A&T is a strong, physical kid who covered well. Michael Young from Warren De La Salle did both linebacker and defensive line and had a nice day. The question is what will he play in college? But a hybrid role suits him well.
Top Underclassman – Sebastian Smith, a 2021 from East Lansing has nice size and looked the part in drill.