March 22, 2006
After finishing up with the state of Florida, Tom Lemming checked in with NCSA for an evaluation of the talent in one of his Prep Football Tour's most promising stops: South Florida.
"I thought last year was really a bad year for talent in South Florida," said Lemming. "But this year it seems like things are back to normal and it's a good year."
South Florida has always been known for producing great talent on the football field. "I think South Florida is one of the best areas in the country in terms of talent," he said. "As a matter of fact, in terms of NFL players, it's one of the top five."
Lemming then gave a little insight as to why South Florida will once again be a hotbed of college recruiting. "A lot of the schools have more than one player and a lot of the skill position players are guys that can fly." In fact, you could probably plug some of these players into collegiate starting lineups this fall.
"The Miami Dolphins let me use their practice facilities for this stop. We had everybody meet up there at Nova University." But the first player Lemming mentioned from the South Florida stop never even made it to Nova.
"Noel Devine wasn't able to make it because he was across the state. This is a ball player who earned a lot of publicity last year. Not only was he all-state (in football), he's also one of the favorites for the 100 meters. In my opinion, he's got to be one of the most exciting players in the country, and there are two of them like that just in Florida this year with Devine and Chris Rainey. He's got unbelievable ability when it comes to open-field running. He averaged over 10 yards per carry and he's already been offered by everybody in the South."
With his amazing ability and jaw-dropping moves, Devine was an easy place for Lemming to start. But after that, listing the rest of his super South Florida prospects somehow seemed even easier. There are so many guys from this area who not only could be the best in the state at their position, they could be the best in the country.
In fact, even with his seemingly superhuman ability, Devine might not even have the clear cut distinction of being the best running back in the state thanks to Armando Allen.
"One of the premier players in the nation is Armando Allen," said Lemming. "There may not be a better pure back when it comes to all-around running backs. You've got Devine and Rainey who are smaller and faster, but this guy's got great hands, he's an excellent blocker and he can run. He averaged 11.5 yards per carry last year and with all the speed guys at the San Antonio combine, he was the only guy who ran under 4.4 in the 40. He ran a 4.38. He's the real deal. Wherever he goes, I think he could be an instant impact player. I'm very impressed with him."
Sticking with offense, Lemming turned to Belle Glades Central and mentioned three of their best offensive weapons: wide receiver Deonte Thompson, quarterback Bryan Mann and offensive tackle Earnest McCoy.
"Deonte Thompson is the biggest name at Belle Glades," said Lemming. "He's another 10.4 100 meter sprinter. There are four (10.4 100 meter guys) in the state this year, all football players. Deonte looked great at the Army Combine in San Antonio. He was one of the fastest kids there and he's gotten offers from just about everybody."
Bryan Mann, the guy responsible for utilizing Thompson's speed, also caught Lemming's eye. "He plays quarterback but is being recruited more as a defensive back. He's a 6'1" 185 pound quarterback who a lot of people like as a free safety, but he did accumulate over 2,000 yards of total offense last year. So he can do the job."
And while Lemming claims that Earnest McCoy will be one of the most recruited offensive linemen in the state, as long as he qualifies academically, the distinction of most promising offensive lineman in the state goes to Hallandale's Kevin Bryant.
"What a tank. This guy might wind up being the best offensive lineman in the country. He's 6'7" and 365 pounds with great feet. He plays right tackle and the field just tilts toward him wherever he plays. He's just a tank of a guy. He showed up at the Dolphins camp and he was bigger than all the Dolphins at only 17 years old. If he gets the right coaching, he'll be a monster. He could be the number one pick in the draft in four years. But, he's not there yet. When I watched him on film, he's not quite dominating yet, but he's got all the skills to get to that point."
On the defensive side of the ball, there were two standouts among a group of very talented athletes: Major Wright, out of St. Thomas Aquinas and Dontee Nicholls from Ely High School in Pompano Beach.
"I've watched a lot of film this year and obviously I'm still on the road, but the hardest hitting defensive back I've seen without a doubt is Major Wright. I was watching film this weekend and every single play he hits people hard. Someone's going out of bounds and he hits them, the play is over and he hits them. He's a Ronnie Lott, without a doubt. He's got confidence and I think this is going to be one of the premier players in the country. His coach was bragging about him, but I thought that was just typical of most coaches. But he's even better than what I expected. Man does he hit hard."
Nicholls garnered some praise of his own. "One of the nation's premier defensive tackles is Dontee Nicholls," said Lemming. "He's another guy, when you watch him on film, his motor is always running. He's got kind of a Warren Sapp type body where he has unusual quickness and great strength and he just dominates the line of scrimmage. Every single play I saw of his he was being double and triple teamed."
And fear not, fans of the kicking game, South Florida has something for you as well, as Lemming singled out Michael Groody. "He is the best punter that I've seen in the country," said Lemming. "He averaged 41 yards per punt last year. He has great hang time on his kicks. Other guys will average more yards per kick, but Groody can really get that ball up in the air and hardly anybody can return his kicks."
While it's almost unfair to limit the list of outstanding South Florida football players, it would be simply impossible to mention them all. But it's safe to say that South Florida will be well represented during recruiting season next year.
After wrapping up Florida, Tom Lemming will check in with NCSA in the near future to offer his list of players to watch for in the Carolinas.
