NoCal OL still hot
One of the most sought after offensive linemen on the west coast is Allen Carroll (6-4, 280, 5.0) from Oakland (Calif.) McClymonds. His performance at the NIKE Camp at Palo Alto was much anticipated and though he ran out of gas before the one-on-ones, his stock among D-I coaches is still on the rise.
Carroll came out of the box and flew through the SPARQ drills displaying his outstanding athleticism. There were plenty of D-I coaches watching him drill and was jacked up.
Advertisement
The young man ended up ran out of gas and was spent, but he fought on even though he ended up getting sick.
Carroll wasn't happy with his overall performance, but when you're a competitor anything less than perfect is bothersome and there are very few perfect performances.
New McClymonds' coach Eric Culberson, explains Carroll's feelings.
"Allen felt he could have done better," Culberson said. "He wasn't expecting the pace. Like all players of his caliber, he wants to always do better.
"Allen has been working very hard since I arrived here to get ready for his senior season and he's such a humble kid," Culberson said. "I really like that about him.
"Allen is the type of kid who will take what he learned at the (NIKE) camp, good and bad then be motivated by it," Culberson said. "ASU and Cal came by the school after the NIKE Camp because they want to build a relationship.
"All the Pac 10 except Stanford have thrown their names into the hat," Culberson said. "All of the school that have come by really like Allen because of his tremendous upside.
One of the main reasons colleges are tapping into Carroll is because he is a virtual neophyte to the game of football and hasn't come close to tapping into his potential. He was primarily playing basketball until his freshman year (ninth grade).
Carroll has certainly picked up the game at a fast pace even though he still raw. He was Camp MVP at the Cal Bear camp last summer.
The athletic big man also plays basketball for McClymonds. He has everything you want in an offensive lineman. The versatile Carroll has the potential to play all five offensive positions on the D-I level further enhancing his recruitment.
The scouting report on Carroll is he's very physical and has outstanding feet. He's a good pass blocker, but is looking to improve his run blocking.
Carroll has legitimate offers on the table from Arizona, Arizona State, Oregon, UCLA, Washington, Washington State, Fresno State, and Nebraska.
There have been rumors circulating that UCLA and Arizona are slightly ahead of the pack.
It still very early and according to Culberson his talented tackle is very open.