The Rivals 3 Stripe Camp Series presented by adidas is winding down, but a couple more Midwest stops remain before the regional events conclude. Sunday’s stop in Columbus is expected to showcase some of the region’s top prospects, from Pittsburgh to Indianapolis and from Cincinnati to Detroit. Here are five to keep an especially close eye on.
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Better known as “Blue Smith,” the southwest Ohio athlete is one of the most talented prospects in the 2018 class and also one of its biggest enigmas. He considered playing football and basketball in college, then made a decision to pursue just football before pulling back and leaving the question about primary focus in college open. He has the size of a tight end with the skill set of an outside wide receiver. College coaches know they want him, they just don’t all know where they want to play him yet. At the end of the day, Smith is one of the most intriguing and least understood prospects in this class.
Gill probably would not have made this list had he not broken his leg in his junior season. We have seen so much of the Ohio State commit over the last three years that we knew what to expect from him – and it was always a high-level performance. However, missing basically his entire junior season and coming back from that type of an injury raises some questions. Will he regain the explosiveness? Can he be as smooth and effortless as he has looked in the past? Has the rest of the talent in the region caught up to him? Knowing Gill’s work ethic and hunger to compete, we expect he will answer those questions positively on Sunday, but we just don’t know for sure.
Young has been a heavily recruited prospect for the last two years and it's easy to see why when you turn on the tape. He brings a tenacious attitude to the defense and is a physical presence in the middle of the field. Young's instincts and ball skills help him create a lot of turnovers and his anticipation helps him be in the right place at the right time. Penn State has been putting in a lot of work to land his commitment, but Maryland, Clemson, Ohio State, West Virginia, and plenty of others are trying to stay in contact with him so they can move up his list.
Similar to Gill, Gervin is a player we have seen extensively over the last couple years and there is not a lot of mystery about what type of performance he will come with on Sunday. What makes Gervin intriguing is that the Rivals100 prospect just stepped away from a three-month commitment to Notre Dame last weekend. It is unlikely to affect his play on the field at this juncture, though it certainly is something that has weighed heavy on his mind for the last several weeks. What perspective a week of being uncommitted will give him and what schools may be rising to the fore is going to be interesting to find out when we chat with him Sunday.
Smith played his first game of high school football just this past year after starting his prep career focused on basketball. He entered his junior season with over a dozen scholarship offers, however, despite having no game film. So far Smith has rewarded those schools who showed early trust in the athletic defensive end prospect. He was dominating this past fall before a broken leg shortened his junior season. Rehabilitation was quick, and Smith has already been dominant on the camp scene this off-season. Another big performance this Sunday could put him in the discussion for a Five-Star Challenge invite.
