SI All-American Candidate Cristian Dixon Highlights and Evaluation
Prospect: WR Cristian Dixon
Projected Position: Wide Receiver
Status: SI All-American candidate
Vitals: 6-foot-1, 185 pounds
School: Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei
Committed to: Michigan
Frame: Fair width in shoulders and length in arms. Solid upper-body/abdominal definition. Has above-average sized thighs and hips, along with tight calves.
Athleticism: Posted a vertical jump of more than 32 inches, along with a 4.57 shuttle time and 4.63 40-yard dash last spring. Plays faster than his times. Has excellent release and lateral quickness at the line. Very good internal tempo and consistent play urgency. Easy feet in speed cuts at breakpoints. Tough and willing play through catch points while anticipating contact.
Instincts: Laterally elusive in release versus press coverage with decent hesitation/rocker-step technique. Good discipline in route running - understands how to attack with good initial stemming. Decent to sell vertical stems with proper tempo to collect information versus off coverage. Flashes a solid armbar while tracking downfield throws.
Polish: Plays in the boundary, No. 2 in tight bunch alignments, and also as stacked receiver 2x2 stack sets. Solid diversification in his route tree. Runs posts/bang-8’s, fades, go’s, comebacks, deep outs, slants, and seams. Flashed a light stair-step on deep cross concepts. Must increase strength to and use of hands to combat physical press coverage. He also needs to improve his ability to grow gaps out of secondary releases.
Bottom Line: Dixon uses good release quickness and plays speed to make plays versus the elite competition at Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei. While he has limited statistical production, he’s a solid route-runner with a varied tree. He projects well as a “Z” receiver in an offense with spread or pro-style passing concepts.