This week, the Rivals.com recruiting analysts each will rank the 10 best prospects that they ever scouted in person during their careers. We kick off the series with Texas/Louisiana recruiting analyst Sam Spiegelman, who began his career in The Boot in 2012.
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1. DEREK STINGLEY
Stingley camped at LSU as a freshman and left with an offer in hand. That's Dylan Moses-level stuff for Louisiana. Watching Stingley was always an experience. It's incredible when a cornerback is routinely the best player on the field in any given setting. Stingley might have been the biggest priority prospect for the Tigers under Orgeron as he was so picture-perfect as a prospect that it was almost like he was designed and built in a lab.
2. LEONARD FOURNETTE
One of my first assignments after relocating to New Orleans was a St. Augustine game on a Saturday afternoon. There was rarely an empty seat at Tad Gormley when Fournette was in the lineup. On the sideline after the game, when I walked up to Fournette it almost felt like I was approaching a grown man. Despite the attention he commanded, he was incredibly humble. Later that year, Fournette refused to accept the Prep Player of the Year Award and instead handed it off to the quarterback of East Jefferson, which beat St. Augustine in the state championship game.
3. JOHN EMERY, JR.
A coach at Destrehan called me about Emery after his freshman season to tell me there was a special talent on campus. Georgia, LSU and North Carolina were the first offers to arrive for the running back, who was seemingly unstoppable as the centerpiece of the Destrehan offense. His senior year, Emery had such a unique blend of speed and power that he was pushing piles 10- and 15-yards downfield. The coolest part: Emery is an uncle to a 5-year-old named K'Amari and in many ways, she's the reason he wound up at LSU.
4. TYRON JOHNSON
Johnson's season opener his senior year was moved to a rarely used stadium in New Orleans East and pushed back to a Saturday. The new time and venue didn't seem to matter much, as the wide receiver ran, caught and returned multiple touchdowns as Warren Easton raced off to a vast lead in epic fashion. That was the theme of Johnson's senior season in which he posted video-game-like numbers before signing with LSU.
5. DONTE JACKSON
Jackson eventually went on to have a stellar career as a cornerback in Baton Rouge, but he was all over the field for Riverdale back in the day. Quarterback, running back, return specialist, cornerback ... Jackson didn't leave the field. I can remember one back-and-forth game against Lakeshore in which running back David Ducre was punishing the Riverdale defense. But for every rushing touchdown by Ducre, Jackson had an answer. Whether it was racing past the entire defense or returning an ensuing kickoff, there was no answer for slowing down Jackson.
6. POOKA WILLIAMS
There are people in Louisiana that believe in Pooka Magic – so much that they would say he was a better high school player than the aforementioned Fournette. Well, it's certainly close. Despite being a bit small in stature, Pooka was fast, quick, explosive and at times, unstoppable. Watching Pooka was something else. He defied the odds and led Hahnville on a historic playoff run to the Superdome. He was something different.
7. KELVIN JOSEPH
Joseph was on my radar after his freshman season at Scotlandville when his head coach told me his 14-year-old cornerback just committed to LSU. Joseph was a physically imposing defensive back that split time at corner and safety during his high school career and consistently made plays all over the field. As a senior, he was toying with an opposing quarterback during his spring game and bated him into an interception.
8. KRISTIAN FULTON
I had the opportunity to follow Rummel very closely and see the program multiple times over a tremendous three-year run. Fulton was an amazing luxury for then-defensive coordinator Nick Monica, who could essentially cancel out opposing team's top receiver. I remember a game in which Fulton shadowed now-Vanderbilt wideout Kalijah Lipscomb and frustrated the all-district receiver, making it look easy. Fulton's skills were never in question and it's fantastic to see him back at LSU, preparing for his second season as a starter.
9. DE'JON HARRIS
John Ehret was loaded back in the day. Harris was one of three standout linebackers along with Michael Divinity and Robert Green, who broke the team's sack record and eventually signed with Army. Amid of Ehret's state championship run, quarterback Ca'Ron Baham went down with injury and Harris slid in under center. For multiple weeks of the season, Harris was splitting time at quarterback, running back, middle linebacker and punter. He lifted Ehret as far as the Class 5A title game before falling short to Lindsey Scott Jr. and the high-powered Zachary offense.
10. JA'MARR CHASE
While watching Fulton's spring game his senior year, I noticed a freshman catching balls downfield from quarterback Chase Fourcade. The receiver was making acrobatic grabs during warm-ups and continued to do it in the spring game -- for an offense that liked to run it 30-something times a game. I asked legendary coach Jay Roth about the receiver after the game. It was Chase, who to this day is unguardable.
