First Impressions from Practice, Alabama High School Football All-Stars
With a plethora of players to watch, a handful of players were focused on throughout tonight’s practice, which lasted just under two hours. The host city for this year’s Alabama versus Mississippi game is Hattiesburg, Miss.
Attempting to pick just five players was hard, and this list could have easily been 20 so keep that in mind. It’s also more about just picking a player and following him for a bit, so that’s also important to note. There’s no specific order below.
Harvey Ray
Harvey Ray Tight End Homewood (Ala.) High School
Vitals: 6’5”, 230 Pounds
Position: Tight End
HIgh School: Homewood (Ala.) High School
Recruitment: Uncommitted. Several smaller FBS schools have offered, but he looked and played much better than that tonight.
Ray is a lean tight end with lots of room to grow. He looks very thin at 230. He could be a player that fills out at 255, perhaps 260 pounds. He ran very well tonight, had good knee bend, caught the football, and just played hard. Really good looking athlete.
Jarell Stinson
Jarell Stinson, Cornerback, Opelika (Ala.) High School
Vitals: 5’10” 160 Pounds
Position: Cornerback
HIgh School: Opelika (Ala.) High School
Recruitment: Committed to Ole Miss over numerous offers like Auburn (formerly committed), UCF, Florida, Penn State and Tennessee.
One of the most natural looking football players on the field. Stinson quickly adapted to anything Defensive Back Coach Sam Shade asked him to do. Incredibly quick cuts and bursts of speed. He’s a 10.3 100 meter sprinter, so he’s likely to make an impact at Ole Miss based on that alone.
Interestingly, with a plethora of cornerbacks, Stinson worked at safety some this evening. He adapted quickly to that as well.
TJ “Bull” Dudley
TJ "Bull" Dudley, Linebacker, Montgomery (Ala.) Catholic
Vitals: 6’1” 215 Pounds
Position: Linebacker
HIgh School: Montgomery (Ala.) Catholic
Recruitment: Just decommitted from Oregon. Auburn, Florida, Alabama, UCF, Texas, and Clemson are among the schools attempting to get a visit. He’s now likely heading for a February decision. He was on the phone with UCF Head Coach Gus Malzahn before practice earlier this evening.
As for practice, Dudley moved very well in space. In fact, he really did a nice job of flashing to the football during a crossing route. With his natural penchant for playing the run (film does not lie), seeing him in coverage solidifies why he’s so highly rated. He’s going to be a big-time college football linebacker because he can play in any situation or scheme. Athleticism off the charts, instinctive, and plays hard. That’s all one can ask for.
Justice Finkley
Justice Finkley, Defensive Line, Trussville (Ala.) Hewitt-Trussville
Vitals: 6’2”, 255 Pounds
Position: Defensive Line
HIgh School: Trussville (Ala.) Hewitt-Trussville
Recruitment: Committed to Texas over Alabama, Florida State, Michigan, Auburn, and many others.
Extremely flexible despite incredibly well built upper legs; explosive out of a three-point stance. His first step during 11-on-11 drills was impressive, too. Once he places his hands on someone, that’s not going to be fun to rework him away from the quarterback. Finkley is a player to really watch. He might be the most physically impressive player on the Alabama roster, and that’s saying something.
Omari Kelly
Omari Kelly, Wide Receiver, Trussville (Ala.) Hewitt-Trussville
Vitals: 6’2”, 180 Pounds
Position: Wide Receiver
HIgh School: Trussville (Ala.) Hewitt-Trussville
Recruitment: Committed to Auburn. UCF was his only other official visit, but he also had offers from programs around the country including Notre Dame, Florida State, Florida, Alabama and Georgia.
Smooth, relaxed release from the line of scrimmage. Catches the football with his hands and attacks it in the process. Does a good job of turning up field quickly after the catch. Can be a vertical threat or work the underneath routes.
Look for Kelly to make an impact at Auburn. He’s about as natural a wide receiver as one will find. The Tigers need help at wide receiver, too.
Look for more coverage from All-Star week with coverage of the Mississippi players tomorrow.
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