Gridironstuds.com Blog

If there’s one thing you need to play the game of football it’s feet.  They have to be nimble,  they have to be quick and it’s great when they are powerful.  Daniel Braverman has always had a great pair of feet.

Braverman’s feet kicked off the 2010 season for the University School Suns in grand fashion when he returned the opening kickoff of the season against Lehigh for a touchdown.   That was just the beginning.   Along the way Braverman danced, returned, faked out and even kicked his way by University School’s opponents as the team marched to Orlando for the state 2B championship.

Along with returning kicks,  Braverman played in the backfield,  caught passes at wide receiver,  occassionally lined up at safety and kicked field goals for the Suns.  His value soared throughout the season and has landed him on the radar of several division one schools.

An early start as youngster playing the game of soccer developed Braverman’s quickness, change of direction and ability to read a defender.  It has driven opponents crazy and makes him standout in 1-on-1 and 7-on-7 situations.  He recently made the highly publicized South Florida Express 7-on-7 team and played with them in the Badger tournament earlier this month.

Braverman is not resting on his 2010 laurels and has set some lofty goals for himself for 2011.

“I want a kick or punt return for a touchdown every game.  75-80 receptions for 1,000 yards,”  said Braverman.

Tough goals for sure considering teams are likely to kick away from him most of the season.

“I want more yards after the catch,”  Braverman added.  “I want to show that I’m a real playmaker from anywhere on the field.

Braverman has displayed enough playmaker ability to get Division I schools on his trail.   Currently, Kansas, Duke, Miami of Ohio, Ohio, Louisiana Tech, Marshall and FAU have issued verbal offers.

“West Virginia is probably going to offer me in the Spring,”  added Braverman.

This offseason he has been to both the University of Miami junior day and the South Florida junior day.  Braverman enjoyed himself at both events but was intrigued by South Florida.

“The facilities and how they are making everything new.   They players really emphasized family,”  said Braverman.

Right now Kansas and West Virginia are Braverman’s two favorites but he would also like to hear from Oregon and Boise St.  He is partial to wide open offenses that like throwing the football.  It suits his skills well.

With feet of fire,  schools will be beating down Braverman’s door in 2011 while he and the Suns chase down a state championship.

Click here to view Daniel Braverman’s 2010 highlight video

High School Football daniel braverman

Ray Buchanan is a familiar name to those who have followed the NFL but his son is making a name for himself in the Georgia Prep football scene at Peachtree Ridge H.S.   Buchanan Jr”s film is full of those things you like to see a defensive back do like break on the ball, stick to receivers, make interceptions and come up to make tackles.  He’s following in the old man’s footsteps and is one of the newest members of the Gridironstuds.com Recruit Watch List.

Joining Buchanan as a recent addition is Sierra H.S. (California) wide receiver Sean Ryan.  If you need a ball caught,  Ryan is your guy.  He makes the impossible catches seem routine and has become a reliable target.  His deceptive speed puts him behind defensive backs more than they would like and his production is sure to build on itself this upcoming 2011 season.

A pair of South Florida prospects are also new additions.  Hallandale H.S. went from winless in 2009 to the playoffs in 2010.  Head coach Dameon Jones was awarded Broward County coach of the year and rightfully so.  Jones will have a loaded squad this year and one of those talented players will be wide receiver Dwight Davis.  Davis is as smooth as a marble counter top.  He eats up defensive back cushions, gets behind them and keeps going.  However,  he can also go across the middle and make the tough catch.  Be on the lookout for this prospect.    Miramar high school has produced some solid talent over the last few seasons under head coach Damon Cogdell.   Last season’s group was led by quarterback Cameron Hudge.  Hudge runs the quarterback position well but most likely projects as an athlete at the next level.  He can do many things and he displays that on film with great throws, runs and decision making.

High School Football cameron hudge, dwight davis, ray buchanan jr., sean ryan

Brett Goetz has always been good at putting things together.   He once put together picnics for underprivileged kids.  He brought back an optimist football program in South Beach, Florida.  He even arranged for trophies to be handed out to kids with perfect attendance in elementary schools in Miami Beach.    However,  nothing he has put together has brought him more attention than the amassing of high school football talent he has harnessed over the last four years.

Once a small gathering of local football talent to go compete in a 7-on-7 tournament,  the South Florida Express tryout has turned into a grand thoroughfare.

“When we started four years ago we invited 30 kids to tryout and 35 kids showed up,”  said Goetz.  “Now we get 200 kids to tryout.”

Kind of reminds you of the progression of Rocky Balboa drinking raw eggs in a tiny apartment in Rocky I to Rocky Balboa the sports car driving mansion owner in Rocky IV.   This year’s South Florida Express tryouts drew as Goetz said, roughly 200 of the most talented football players in South Florida and probably the country.   It also attracted approximately 40 reporters from a wide range of recruiting publications looking to get the jump on next year’s hot recruiting prospects

“I started this to get the kids some attention,  never thought it would get this much,”  Goetz explained.

Last year’s version of the South Florida Express brought home the Badger Sports  national 7-on-7 tournament championship.   This only meant that more eyes would be on the gathering of talent this year and boy has it ever.   Talent has never been an issue for Goetz’s teams,  in fact,  after falling short the two previous tournaments,  the Express was starting to feel some heat for failing to win it all.   Goetz’s teams theoretically were the most talent rich in all of the tournaments but could never seem to win it all.

Taking a look at the list of players who have come through the roster,  you can see where people were coming from: Jamal Berry (Ohio St.),  Etien Sabino (Ohio St.).  Geno Smith (West Virginia),  Ivan McCartney (West Virginia),  Steadman Bailey (West Virginia),  Jeremy Cash (Ohio St.),  Ethan Grant (TCU),  Jakhari Gore (LSU), Eduardo Clements (Miami),  Tony Grimes (Ole Miss) just to name a few.

Last year,  Goetz’s South Florida Express team was the runner up in the regional tournament in Tampa and gained a berth to the national tournament in Alabama.  As a treat for the players,  Goetz,  once again put something good together and took his players on a college tour.  On their way to Alabama,  Goetz and South Florida Express made stops at Florida St., LSU, Ole Miss, Alabama and Florida.  It was an opportunity for players,  most of which could not afford to take unofficial visits,  to see several of the schools that were recruiting them.   This year,  Goetz has preliminary plans to take the Express to Georgia Tech, Georgia, South Carolina, Clemson and Alabama.

The attention that has been received as a result of all this talent coming together has not all been positive.  Goetz has been called a “street agent” and a shill for certain colleges among other things.

“I guess it’s hard to believe that someone can do this for the kids as opposed to everyone else that’s trying to make money on these kids,”  said Goetz.  “I’ve been working with kids and giving back for a long time.”

One of the biggest attacks on Goetz has been that he is on Ohio St.’s payroll and is somehow getting compensated by the Buckeyes to steer his athletes their way.  Goetz believes that was likely started by a fan of a school that missed on one of his players.  It was spearheaded by three of his early participants,  Etiien Sabino, Travis Howard and Jaamal Berry attending Ohio St.

“What people don’t know is that their (Sabino and Howard) assistant coach at Krop was Sonny Spielman (father of Chris Spielman) and a huge Buckeye fan,”  explained Goetz.  “He was the one who told Sabino to go to their summer camp after his sophomore year and he fell in love with it.”   Goetz would further explain that Howard wanted to play with Sabino so he checked out Ohio St. and loved it too.  A year later,  Berry became a Ohio St. signee and Goetz got painted as a shill for the Buckeyes.

“I grew up a Cane fan and went to every game as a kid,”  said Goetz.  “Then I became a Gator fan when I went to school there.”   Goetz points out that five of last year’s South Florida Express players signed with  Louisville earlier this month so he’s expecting the Cardinal payroll rumors to get cranked up any minute now.

Goetz never played the game of football but if you’ve seen him at the tryouts or any of the South Florida Express practices,  he’s got everything under control.  Goetz’s mastery of bringing things together has included garnering help from some of the best local football minds at the high school level.  While they are cooking up the X’s and O’s,  Goetz is making sure that everyone has what they need; from the kids, to the coaches to the reporters that are trying to get the info they require on the prospects.

When you get 200 plus players to show up for your tryout,  it’s almost impossible not to put together one helluva talented team and that is certainly the case with this year’s edition of the Express.

“I still need more time around these guys to see if there’s chemistry like last year but we are deeper this year as far as talent,”  said Goetz.   Few would argue.  Anyone familiar with the South Florida high school football scene realizes that the roster is a who’s who of playmakers in the southern tip of perhaps the most talent rich region of the country.   One of the roster members,  Deon Bush, has pulled down 20 offers since the tryouts two weeks ago.  Another,  Tracey Howard,  has been invited to the Army All-American game.

It will be another crazy ride for Goetz and his South Florida Express team but it’s all in an offseason’s work for the mastermind Goetz and his crew.

High School Football, Hurricane Sports Nation aj leggett, akeem jones, amari cooper, avery johnson, brandon snell, daniel braverman, dashad tucker, david reed, deandre jasper, deon bush, devonte mathis, dinero moss, duke johnson, ej hillard, eric kinsey, freddie davey, gunnar holcombe, hugs tieene, isaac mcdonald, jeremiah mckinnon, joseph mcclary, keith brown, macgarrett kings, malcolm lewis, nequan phillips, ricardo lewis, sojurn shelton, sony michel, stacey coley, tracey howard, tyler cameron, willie bailey

The Under Amour All American All Star Game was played last week and featured several of the top college football prospects in the country.

Prospects like top rated quarterback Jeff Driskell out of Hagerty High School, Florida.  Driskill did not disappoint showing off his arm on a few throws and displaying his dual threat abilities with a 64 yard run.  Driskell appears to have the goods to play early at Florida.

Other impressive performers in the game were Devon Blackmon who caught a long touchdown before announcing his commitment to the Oregon Ducks.   Safety Karlos Williams was a hit,  literally.  The Florida St. commit took A.C. Leonard’s head off and also took a pick to the house.   Defensive End, Anthony Chickillo who is a soft verbal commit to the University of Miami had 1 1/2 sacks and a fumble recovery to earn MVP honors for the red team.   Chickillo paired with Jadeveon Clowney to provide the red team with the equivalent of a college football defensive line

Quarterbacks Max Wittek (USC commit), Brett Hundley (UCLA Commit) and Kiehl Frazier (Auburn commit) all showed their worth with solid performances.  Wide receivers Malcom Mitchell (Valdosta H.S., GA) and Jarvis Landry were solid.  Landry had a game high eight catches.  Bradley Sylve (Alabama commit)  turned in the most electrifying play of the game as he returned a kickoff 91 yards for a touchdown.

You can check out all the highlights from the game below:

High School Football ac leonard, anthony chickillo, bradley sylve, brett hundley, devon blackmon, jadeveon clowney, jarvis landry, jeff driskell, karlos williams, max wittek, under armour

Since he landed in Coral Gables,  new Miami head coach Al Golden has rolled his sleeves up to his deltoids and has tackled the recruiting problem at the University of Miami.  Golden has certainly gotten around and made some in roads but until now it has not netted him any tangible results.

Thursday night,  Golden landed his first commitment as the head man of the Hurricanes when stand out Miami Central defensive back Thomas Finnie switched his pledge from South Carolina to the Hurricanes.

Finnie is a hard hitting cornerback standing at 5’10′ 170 lbs and possessing 4.4 speed in the 40.  A look at his film and you can see a lot of Dade County Florida in his style of play.  Finnie will bring an aggressive attitude to the secondary and will be the first in many commitments Golden will get for the 2011 class.  Golden and his staff has been successful to this point in making a lot of local South Florida prep stars rethink their out of state commitments in exchange for an opportunity to join the Hurricanes.   Stay tuned as the staff works hard to finish fast this recruiting season.

High School Football thomas finnie

The Florida High School Athletic Association released it’s new football classification assignments for the 2011 season.   The biggest change has been the changing of classification labeling to now have class from 1A-8A.   Of note in Class 8-A,  Miami Columbus no longer has to deal with the likes of Miami Northwestern and Central.  Their biggest challenges coming from the South will be South Dade, Cypress Bay, Deerfiel Beach and Miramar.   There are a host of changes in the classifications and districts.  For a complete look at the new classifications,  visit the FHSAA website,  click here.

High School Football northwestern high school

He may be in New Mexico but his running style is all Texas.  La Cueva High School tailback Ronnie Daniels will be headed back to the Lone Star State when he heads to college next Fall.

On Monday,  Daniels made his college choice and it was for Texas Tech and new coach Tommy Tubberville.

“I’m really excited and confident about my decision,” Daniels said.  “I feel Tech is the best fit for me.”

Daniels is originally from Longview, Texas and emigrated to New Mexico at the age of five.  He has been ripping up the varsity football gridiron since he was a freshman at La Cueva High School in Albuquergue and attracting attention from all over the country.  Daniels was holding offers from Arizona, East Carolina, Illinois, Minnesota, New Mexico, New Mexico St., San Diego St. and Tulsa before committing to the Red Raiders.

Watching Daniels’ highlight video,  it’s easy to see why he has drawn comparisons to another native Texan,  Adrian Peterson.  “I hear that a lot,” Daniels said. “along with Eric Dickerson and Jim Brown.”

Despite Texas Tech being close to home,  Daniels found other reasons to make Tech his choice.

“The conference they play in is very competitive and they play in a great atmosphere every game,” explained Daniels. “I built a close relationship with the coaches.”

Daniels’ rugged, downhill style is a fit for any style of offense but he’s happy with the system that Texas Tech is running.  Their spread attack gives him more room to work and abuse defenders one one one.  Tech fans will certainly have a lot to feast their eyes on when Daniels shows up on campus ready to take the Red Raiders to new heights.

Check out Ronnie Daniels’ highlight video, click here.

High School Football ronnie daniels, texas tech

The summer recruiting season is heating up and with each day comes new commitments.  One of the latest D-I BCS recruiting commitments comes from University School in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida.

Cornerback Devin Gaulden was starting to turn heads and rack up offers when he received an offer from the Auburn Tigers.  That was all Gaulden needed to put an end to the process.

“I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity Auburn was offering,” said Gaulden

Things happened fast but fate also had them fall in place.  Gaulden and his family were headed to Alabama last weekend for a family reunion and it just so happened to be the same weekend that Auburn was having their camp.

“Coach Thigpen and I spoke on the phone and he wanted me to come to the camp,” Gaulden explained. “So I went and I killed it.  The entire staff loved me and everything went from there.”

Late Monday night Gaulden felt like an offer from Auburn was coming and indeed it did on Tuesday.  After a conversation with the staff,  Gaulden made the commitment to Auburn.

“What really got me was the coaching staff” said Gaulden.  “Coach Thigpen and Lolley, they are the secondary coaches and they can help take my game to the next level. Plus I love the atmosphere around campus.”

Gaulden played sparingly in his first year as a varsity player due to injury  in 2009 but his potential is apparent any time you watch him.   He has been a standout at every camp he has attended and received Defensive Back MVP honors at the Schuan’s National Underclassman combine in Orlando.    Gaulden is the second Division-I commitment from University School this offseason after Roger Harriot’s squad had six Division-I signees for the 2010 class.

Gaulden is looking forward to becoming a complete cornerback and to majoring in either sports management or sports medicine at Auburn.

High School Football auburn tigers, devin gaulden

Only going into the 9th grade but he already has numbers that would put many high school seniors to shame.  With that, Peyton Newell walked away with National Underclassman Combine Ultimate 100 Combine King honors.  Newell,  standing at 6’2″ 221 lbs. ,  was the strongest 8th grader ever at the event after cranking out 31 reps at 135 lbs.  In addition,  he ran a 4.81 in the shuttle and 5.24 in the 40 yard dash.  To quote the folks and NUC “Newell has major potential”.   He has plenty of time to improve on those gaudy number since he won’t be graduating until 2014.  Congratulations to Peyton Newell.   Click here to view Peyton Newell’s highlight video |  Click here to view his NUC 100 Combine highlight video.

High School Football, In the Pit peyton newell

Offensive football has been all the rage over the last few years.  Football has turned from a competitive game of smash mouth and breaking wills  into a science of point compilation and quarterback accuracy.   No where is that more true than in South Florida high school  football.

To combat the point totals that look like basketball final scores,  teams need to be armed with cornerbacks that can cover receivers.  That’s where a player like Devin Gaulden comes in.  Gaulden does not have much experience playing high school football but he’s long on the tools needed to be a shutdown corner.  Speed, quickness and tenacity are just a few of the traits Gaulden employs when rubbing out wide receivers from game plans like a wrong answer on a math test.

Until last season,  Gaulden’s sport of choice was basketball.   His array of skills and talent helped him excel at the guard position.  Apparently hours of crouching down in front of rim attacking opponents honed Gaulden’s cornerback skills.  He appeared at University School in 2009 just as green as the grass below his feet.  However,  his God given talent,  good coaching and a will to compete helped Gaulden speed up his learning curve and transform himself into a D-I worthy prospect.

Due to injury,  Gaulden only appeared in five games for the University School Suns (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) in 2009.  He displayed his great potential in those contests but did not lay down enough body of work to send a rush of colleges to his doorstep.

“At this point,  schools have not been in contact with me,”  Gaulden explains, “but I don’t let that it get to me.  I just use it as motivation because I’m definitely one of the best DB’s in South Florida.”

Nowhere was Gaulden’s potential more apparent than when he appeared at the Shuman’s National Underclassman Combine in Orlando earlier this month.   It’s one of the top events for potential college prospects that takes place across the country.  Gaulden put his money where his mouth is by putting up a 4.50 in the forty, 4.2 in the shuttle and the handcuffs on all of the receivers he went up against in one on one drills.

“My press coverage technique is a huge strength of mine,” said Gaulden.  “I am very physical at the line and I also have good feet to move with receivers.”

Gaulden’s performance was strong enough for him to walk away from the event as the Defensive Back MVP and an invite to the Top 100 in Atlanta this summer.  The Top 100 takes the best of the best from the various combines across the country and brings them to one location to compete alongside and against each other.

It’s only a matter of time before the colleges come knocking on Gaulden’s door looking to secure his services.   It’s a moment he has prepared for but he’s more focused on advancing University School’s team goals for 2010.

“My primary goals are helping my team in any way I can because last year was a disappointing season,” said Gaulden. “My individual goals are playing in all games this year and simply dominating opposing wideouts but my team goals come first.”

The 5’10″ 175 lb. Gaulden says he watches a lot of film on Darrelle Revis of the NY Jets.   Not lost on this is how much Gaulden resembles what many feel is the best cornerback in the NFL right now.  From the physical line of scrimmage play,  the explosiveness and even the slightly bowed legs,   Gaulden has picked a good man to emulate.   Putting together Revis-like film will certainly bring Gaulden to scouts attention and while he says he will play for anyone,  there a couple of schools he really likes.

“Since I was younger,  I’ve always been a huge fan of the University of Florida.  I watch all their games and my room is filled with UF (Florida) posters.  The home town school UM (Miami) is a favorite of mine as well.”

With Gaulden’s plans to dominate the opposition, aid University to a strong 2010 season and set up a desolate island of his own for opposing receivers,  perhaps a knock on the door from the big time schools in and out of Florida is in his future.

High School Football devin gaulden