HAYWARD, Calif. - The fifth stop of the 2018 Rivals 3 Stripe Camp Series presented by adidas will take place in the Bay Area on Sunday at Chabot College and the roster for the event is impressive. Below, Rivals.com tries its hand in predicting some of the major storylines that will unfold at Sunday’s event.
MILTON WILL BE OUTSTANDING
Kendall Milton rushed for more than 1,500 yards and 23 touchdowns in his sophomore season. He’s a 6-foot-2, 210-pound running back who has been coming to Rivals camps for a couple years. It’s expected the 2020 standout from Clovis (Calif.) Buchanan will have an exceptional day.
The 2020 class in the West is absolutely loaded with top-end talent, and there’s little question that Milton could be one of the best running backs in the entire country. That’s why Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, USC, Washington and many other national powers are involved in his recruitment. On Sunday, Milton can make a real statement that he should be under consideration for an early five-star ranking.
A STAR IS BORN?
It is so early and these things are nearly impossible to predict, but there has already been a lot of hype around 2022 running back Raleek Brown, and it’s going to be interesting to see how he performs with players much older than him at camp.
Brown, who’s from the Bay Area, is expected to leave this summer to start high school in Orem, Utah, and that could be even more interesting down the line when his recruitment picks up even more.
So far, BYU has offered, but Brown could be the next big thing from Northern California, and people close to him say he has the ability to be as special as Najee Harris, the former five-star RB who’s now at Alabama.
QB GROUP WILL BE INTERESTING
The marquee quarterback expected at Sunday’s camp is four-star Michael Johnson Jr., who has 27 offers and is rated as the fourth-best dual-threat quarterback in the class behind Oklahoma commit Spencer Rattler, Michigan State pledge Dwan Mathis and fellow four-star Jayden Daniels.
But last weekend at the Rivals Camp in Los Angeles, Santa Clarita (Calif.) West Ranch quarterback Weston Eget was outstanding, and he’s expected back at the Northern California camp this weekend. Eget, who does not have any offers yet, was so good that he was right in the running for position MVP. Those two, along with many under-the-radar prospects, will be competing this weekend.
LINE PLAY WILL BE IMPRESSIVE
Massive offensive tackle Julius Buelow from Kapolei, Hawaii, is expected at Sunday’s camp and he’s one of the best-looking linemen in this class. He’s all of 6-foot-7 and 300 pounds and he moves well, too. Two other offensive linemen to watch are Auburn (Calif.) Placer’s Joey Capra, who has an Oregon State offer among others, and 2020 standout Reece Atteberry from Centennial (Colo.) Eaglecrest, who already boasts offers from Colorado, Colorado State, Kansas State and Nebraska.
On the defensive side of the ball, Fresno (Calif.) Edison’s Kwabena Watson has been making the rounds and he’s been impressive this offseason. Siale Liku is a powerful defensive tackle with offers from Cal, Colorado and others. Another prospect to watch is Modesto (Calif.) Modesto Christian’s Xavier Carlton, who at 6-foot-6 and 235 pounds has the size to be special.
UTAH KIDS WILL SHOW WELL
The camp is in Northern California, but there is an impressive group of prospects from Utah - led by four-star linebacker Lolani Langi - that are expected at camp. Langi, three-star receiver Puka Nacua and 2020 standout Jared Greenfield, who’s originally from the Los Angeles area, are only a few top prospects from the state of Utah that will be there. Top 2021 recruit Ricky Wolfgramm, who’s already committed to BYU, is signed up as well.