Xavier Nwankpa was the defensive headliner for tournament champions Tucson Turf, patrolling secondary school and forcing opposing quarterbacks to look the other way. The four-star Altoona, Iowa, Southeast Polk security had a handful of pass separations that quickly broke him on football. From a physical point of view, it was difficult to find a player who looked as ready for the next level as Nwankpa. Clemson, Notre Dame, the state of Ohio, Texas, and USC are among the programs the nation’s number 7 safety-rated program wants to attend before making college choices.
It wasn’t just a one-man show for Tucson Turf as Cole Martin (pictured) had a huge impact on the nickel game all weekend. Martin, a top 100 prospect in Chandler (Ariz.) Hamilton’s 2023 class, looked comfortable on the border and went well with the sound engineering. He was slick through his back pedal to stick with wideouts and perhaps most remarkable seemed to be always knowing what was coming of the opposing offense. Martin’s father, Demetrice, is a seasoned assistant coach who is now in Colorado.
In terms of pure ball arts and shielding wideouts, Khamauri Rogers was a given for the bootleggers. The Lexington (Miss.) Holmes County Top247 prospectus has a towering frame with length and space to fill in, and we liked its toughness, which fits one on one against high quality passport catchers. Ole Miss currently has a head start in the 247Sports Crystal Ball.
Another defender who excelled in male situations was Jamel Johnson, a physical corner of Arlington, Texas Seguin. The 6-foot-1,175-pound Seguin can hit another gang-down field and did well changing directions to stay with the receivers during their breaks. His ability to dissect games under and near ball carriers helped True Buzz score a number 1 post-pool game.
The three-star athlete Cannon DeVries, a jack-of-all-trades from Ogden, Utah Weber, was one of the most prolific players in Beehive State last fall and carried that over to the passing league. DeVries had a handful of interceptions for the Pink Outlaws during the two-day event and showed great body control when taking possession of the ball. He’s holding an early offer from Weber State but should continue to attract more attention if last weekend was any sign of it.
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