RCS Kansas City: Top underclassmen

KANSAS CITY – Underclassmen populated both the offense and defense Fab 15 lists from this past weekend’s Rivals Camp Series presented by Under Armour in Kansas City, but still more impressed. Here are 10 class of 2018 and 2019 prospects who stood out.

RELATED: Fab 15 offense | Fab 15 defense | RCS Kansas City recruiting notebook

Recruiting wrap: Isaiah Azubuike holds early offers from Kansas State and Iowa State.

Performance: Azubuike was put together as well as almost any running back at the event, which becomes even more impressive when you learn that he’s just a freshman. He looked smooth and fast in drills, and won nearly all of the limited one-on-one reps he took. Azubuike’s size and physical tools make him a prospect with massive potential. He’s likely to have a long list of offers by the time he’s a senior.

Recruiting wrap: Jason Whittaker holds early offers from Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan.

Performance: Two things were evident after watching Whittaker on Sunday: he is young and still developing, and he has a sky-high ceiling. Already 6-foot-5 and 195 pounds, Whittaker has a prototypical quarterback build. His motion is long, but fluid and he does not have a lot of moving parts or hitches that will need to be ironed out. With quarterback recruiting starting early, we expect a big summer and fall for Whittaker on the recruiting trail.

Recruiting wrap: Kamryn Babb added offers from Indiana, Northwestern and Wisconsin last week. Missouri and Nebraska are the schools where he has the strongest early relationships.

Performance: The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Babb possesses all the physical tools necessary to be a productive outside wide receiver at the college level. Just a sophomore, he physically looks the part right now and he has the speed and agility to create consistent separation. His talent is in making the difficult look easy, and the Rivals100 sophomore was doing that consistently Sunday.

Recruiting wrap: Kilifi Leaaetoa’s recruitment is just beginning.

Performance: Leaaetoa played primarily linebacker as a freshman at King’s Academy, but worked out with the defensive backs Sunday and showed excellent coverage skills. Leaaetoa looked taller and leaner than his listed 6-foot and 203 pounds, and future position may be determined by physical growth. He made several impressive plays in one-on-one work, though, including undercutting a pass for an interception.

Recruiting wrap: Michael Thompson holds 10 offers, including one from Ohio State he received Tuesday.

Performance: Thompson was attending his second camp in as many days but maintained a high motor and jumped in as many one-on-one reps as he could take. The 6-foot-4, 273-pound sophomore played on both lines last fall and his position will likely be debated for the next couple years. No matter which side of the ball he lines up on, though, Thompson has great size, plus-athleticism and is beyond his years in the strength department.

Recruiting wrap: Ronnie Perkins holds three early offers from Bowling Green, Memphis and Miami (Ohio).

Performance: The 6-foot-4, 245-pound Perkins has the frame to project either at strongside defensive end or three-technique defensive tackle at the next level. He is going to be a plus-athlete for either of those positions. Perkins is a natural and fluid mover who was especially impressive running through position drills at the start of camp. He did not take many reps during one-on-ones, but is definitely a prospect to watch.

Recruiting wrap: Masry Mapieu holds an early offer from Central Florida.

Performance: Mapieu is a young defensive tackle who has been blessed with outstanding size and physical attributes, and will certainly benefit from a few more years of experience and development. Listed at 6-foot-5 and 270 pounds, Mapieu knows how to use his size and strength to his advantage. If he gets the finer points of the position down, the Nebraskan could become a very highly-targeted prospect.

Recruiting wrap: Tyrik Henderson is waiting on his first offer and plans to camp at Illinois, Louisville and LSU this summer.

Performance: Henderson is listed as a safety, but looked very competent running from the cornerback position. He has good size and looked bigger and played longer than his listed 6-foot and 160 pounds. Henderson has the hips and agility to stay with wide receivers throughout their routes, and just needs to heighten his field awareness to become a standout defensive back prospect.

Recruiting wrap: Israel Antwine is waiting on his first offer.

Performance: Like Perkins, Antwine could project to the five-technique defensive end spot or three-technique defensive tackle in college. His evaluation is very similar to Perkins across the board. Listed at 6-foot-4 and 255 pounds, Antwine has a good frame for battling in the trenches and showed good power, quickness, played with solid pad level and is developing some pass-rush moves.

Recruiting wrap: Jaron Burks is just starting his recruiting process.

Performance: Burks is a tall, lanky wide receiver at 6-foot-3 and 174 pounds. He is a high jumper on the track, and he translates that to the football field, showing great leaping ability and high-pointing the football well on several reps during the one-on-one portion. Burks will certainly need to fill out his frame, but he’s young and that will come. He should generate a lot of interest next fall.