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Friedman's Takeaways: Roman's Soldiers Showcase

CLASS OF 2020 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | State | Position | Team

MORE: Takeaways from the Tom Lemming Photo Shoot

Roman Oben, NFL VP for Youth & High School Strategy, held the annual Roman’s Soldiers Showcase on Sunday and the turn out was impressive. One of the first major camps of the spring in the Northeast, the former NFL offensive lineman and Super Bowl Champion hosted players from New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Take a look at the recruiting storylines and some of the best players that showed up to test their abilities.

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RIVALS SET TO HOST FOUR-STAR DEFENSIVE BACK

Jordan Mortant (in jacket)
Jordan Mortant (in jacket)

Four-star defensive back Jordan Morant has laid low the last couple months but his recruitment is about to pick up again. The Oradell (N.J.) Bergen Catholic star is visiting Michigan and Ohio State this weekend and he wants to take official visits to USC and Miami. A commitment from Morant will likely come in August and his current leader is Michigan but there is still a lot he wants to figure out before pulling the trigger. Morant wants to take an unofficial visit to Notre Dame over his spring break but that isn’t locked in yet.

At this point it sounds like Michigan has a fairly strong hold on Morant but Ohio State and Notre Dame are the two other major contenders and you can’t count them out. Defensive coordinator Don Brown and defensive assistant Anthony Campanile have a very strong relationship with Morant and Campanile’s brother is Morant’s head coach at Bergen Catholic.

RIVALS100 RUNNING BACK TO CHECK OUT THE WEST COAST

Jalen Berger
Jalen Berger

Rivals100 running back Jalen Berger has quietly made some progress in his recruitment. The Ramsey (N.J.) Don Bosco star has been keeping in touch with coaches at a number of schools everyday. Berger didn’t single out any schools that are standing out but did mention the conversations he’s had with coaches at West Virginia and Maryland about how they would use him have caught his attention. Michigan, Penn State and Ohio State remain at the forefront of his recruitment but he doesn’t plan on releasing a short list at the moment. Berger has a trip to Oregon coming up for their spring game on April 20 and there is a chance he visits LSU during his spring break.

BELIEVE THE HYPE

Kyle McCord
Kyle McCord

So far 2021 quarterback Kyle McCord has lived up to the hype. He won the overall MVP award at the camp and it’s not at all surprising given his physical gifts and what he showed off last season. Proper mechanics, arm strength, touch, and accuracy are all areas McCord excels in and receivers at the camp on Sunday tried everything they could to get matched up with him.

As far as McCord’s recruitment goes, Ohio State seems to have some momentum with him and he is visiting next Friday and staying for the spring game. Clemson and Penn State are going to get visits at some point this spring or summer and he cited Michigan and Stanford as two other teams that stand out to him.

QUARTERBACKS OF THE FUTURE ON DISPLAY

Tahjmell Bullock
Tahjmell Bullock

McCord wasn’t the only Power Five quarterback prospect at the camp on Sunday. In the 2020 class, the quarterback that stood out was Nasir Montgomery. The East Orange, N.J. star is a fantastic athlete and showed off a surprisingly strong arm. As a quarterback, Montgomery is very raw but his speed, hands, and athleticism make him a definite Power Five prospect. Rutgers and Virginia Tech are his biggest offers so far.

Paramus (N.J.) Paramus Catholic 2021 quarterback Dorian Nowell has grown an inch or two and still has the impressive arm strength we’ve come to expect from him. Nowell’s touch is improving and more schools have their eye on him now that Syracuse has offered. The other 2021 quarterback that looks very promising is Jersey City (N.J.) St. Peter’s Prep’s Tahjamell Bullock. At 6-foot-4, 215-pounds, Bullock is an imposing presence in the pocket. He delivers the ball quickly and puts plenty of zip on his passes plus his mobility gives defenders plenty of other problems. College coaches need to monitor Bullock as the recruiting process continues.

DEEP GROUP OF BACKS

Shakhi Carson
Shakhi Carson

Berger was easily the most skilled running back at the camp but other running backs had impressive performances as well. Berger’s teammate at Don Bosco, Kyle Monangai, is an accomplished prospect himself. A stoutly built back, Monangai holds offers from a number of Group of Five and Ivy League programs. Don’t be surprised to see a Power Five team eventually enter the race for Monangai’s commitment.

In the 2021 class, Christian Abraham made some outstanding plays. A few major Power Five schools like Michigan, Rutgers and Kansas have offered Abraham as a safety but he could easily be a Power Five running back. West Orange, N.J. running back Shakhi Carson isn’t the biggest running back but he has great burst and plays with a ton of energy. His top end speed is eye-catching and that’s probably how he grabbed the attention of the Kentucky coaching staff, Carson’s only Power Five offer.

MORE STANDOUTS

... George Rooks isn’t far from becoming a household name when it comes to the recruiting world. The 2021 defensive lineman out of Jersey City (N.J.) St. Peter’s Prep has gotten much stronger and seems to have a better understanding of playing with leverage and proper hand placement. Rooks has an offer sheet that features many of the nation’s top programs but he hasn’t done much research yet.

... Like his teammate Rooks, 2022 defensive lineman Keith Miles Jr. has a very bright future ahead of him and his offer sheet reflects that with schools like Tennessee, Penn State, Michigan, and others already extending verbal offers. Miles has added a lot of weight but expect him to drop some of the bad weight by the time August comes around. He still has his burst around the edge but his inside moves are stronger than last year.

... Linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr., son of the former NFL star by the same name, has been progressing nicely since the season ended. He’s added some mass to his frame but still covers a lot of ground when playing in space. Trotter was one of the more disciplined and physical linebackers at the camp.

... Recent Rutgers offer Charles Finley showed off his skills as a flex tight end on Sunday. The Wayne (N.J.) De Paul Catholic standout presented defenders with a lot of problems because of his combination of size and quickness. Finley played much stronger than he did last season and it will be interesting to see how he matches up with defenders that have more well-rounded skillsets.

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