Four-Star DE Keeshawn Silver Aims For Basketball & Football Career; SI All-American Breaks Down His Game
In March, Rocky Mount defensive end, Keeshawn Silver, officially announced that he verbally commits to Mack Brown and the Tar Heels. Silver is rated as a 5-star prospect and 10th in the nation by ESPN.
Along with UNC, Silver listed Oregon, Georgia, Alabama, LSU, and Florida as his top 7 choices. The 6-foot-5, 255-pound lineman is now a part of North Carolina football's highest recruiting class in years.
Silver is just one of four of UNC's defensive end/outside linebacker 2021 class. He joins outside linebacker Raneiria Dillworth, defensive end Jahvaree Ritzie, and recently committed, and flipped, outside linebacker Trevion Stevenson.
Silver is striving for a Carolina legacy only done by 14 previous players such as Julius Peppers, Ronald Curry, Ed Sutton, Jesse Holly, and Greg Little during North Carolina's ACC era, playing football and basketball. The Rocky Mount native hinted on twitter that he would be a walk-on for Coach Roy Williams.
Silver has played both sports high school career. In basketball, he averaged, 7.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and .5 assists for three years; football, he recorded 48 solo tackles, 10.5 sacks and one fumble recovery during the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Here is Sports Illustrated All-American breakdown of Silver:
Prospect: Keeshawn Silver
Status: SI All-American Candidate
Vitals: 6-foot-5, 255 pounds
Position: Defensive End
School: Rocky Mount (N.C.) Rocky Mount Senior
Committed to: North Carolina
Projected Position: Defensive Line. Silver has the chance to play anywhere along the defensive front with his size and athleticism.
Frame: A long, muscular and wiry 6-foot-5 has developed into a more filled out version in the last year. He can stand to add as much weight as desired at the next level, dependent on position and role within the defense.
Athleticism: Silver is a gifted athlete with untapped potential at his size. He showcases this all over the football field, as a traditional defensive end, stand up talent and part time tight end with success as a steady blocker and pass catcher. He’s also a productive basketball player, averaging about a double-double against very good prep competition. The versatility is founded upon great length, improving size and elite body control. Silver is a balanced athlete despite the rare frame who can run well for his size.
Instincts: The elite length and increased strength makes Silver a weapon when rushing the passer or coming off of blocks. He extends and plays with power against blockers, redirecting with relative ease. He is at his best coming downhill and pressuring from the edge with some bend and a scary dip move en route to the passer. He is an aware athlete able to time up passing lane disruption, too, showcasing his coordination and quickness.
Polish: A prospect improving each time he’s seen, Silver is coming off of his best season in registering 20 stops behind the line of scrimmage in 2019. He looked to have shifted from somewhat of a finesse edge defender to one who could win with power as well as speed and quickness. He is using his hands more often outside of the extension game and holds his own at the point as well as against the read-option look that most offenses have incorporated.
Bottom Line: Silver’s best football is well ahead, a scary thought for offensive coordinators in the ACC. He looks like the type of trench prospect who could impact all three downs from a multitude of alignments with his combination of length and athleticism. As he incorporates more into his pass rush technique he will project as a true sack threat even on the defensive interior down the line. The year to year jump he made from his sophomore to junior campaign was one of the most impressive nationally in the class of 2021.
Stay with AllTarHeels for all your Tar Heel sports updates. We’ll update you as Keeshawn Silver story unfolds, as well as all other North Carolina recruiting updates.
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