DeBell making a smooth transition

One of the top offensive line prospects in the Tampa Bay area is Zach DeBell from Tarpon Springs, Fla. DeBell, 6-7 and 260 pounds, play offensive tackle. He made the transition a year ago from the defensive side of the ball as a defensive end.

"It has actually been easy for me," DeBell said. "You think more as an offensive lineman and I am starting to get the hang of it. You know the snap count and where to go. On defense you have to read everything.

"My strengths as an offensive tackle are my quick hands and good feet. I have an 82" wing span so I have those long arms. Hopefully I can be 300 plus pounds by my sophomore year (in college). I want to be 280 at the beginning of my senior year. I know I need to keep working on my leg strength and just get better overall. Of course I need to work on playing lower with pad level."

One thing about DeBell is that he has some serious upside as an offensive tackle prospect and college program are starting to take notice. He was first offered by Minnesota, then by UCF, Iowa State, and Florida International. Over the past few days he has been offered by South Carolina and USF. In fact the Bulls offered him just a few hours ago.

"That first offer from Minnesota was pretty exciting. I got a big envelope from Minnesota with my number on it. It was a surprise with my first offer and I thought it was crazy because they didn't show that much interest before.

"USF offered about two hours ago. That is kind of exciting. I really like the new staff and I get along with the coaches. I talked with coach (Skip) Holtz for a while and enjoyed that. I am very excited about USF."

DeBell said that teams like Miami, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Maryland, Missour, FSU and others are recruiting him and showing interest.

"I went to FSU this past Sunday and met coach (Rick) Trickett and coach (Jimbo) Fisher. They seem like really good guys. I have also been to USF, South Carolina, Miami and UCF. I am going to the spring game at Miami this weekend and going to UCF next Saturday.

"Right now I am open with everything and don't have a favorite. I want to have a good relationship with the coaches because you have to get along with them if they are going to coach me for four or five years. You have to have that respect."