Mike Vick and his V7 Elite All-American Combine Series rolled into Nashville, Tennessee and TSU’s Hale Stadium and the talent which showed up also showed out. There were 28 high school players who participated presently rated 4 stars or higher in their respective classes by the Rivals Rating Service. Admittedly, we here at Kentucky Prep Gridiron, are partial to our Commonwealth of Kentucky prep stars and why shouldn’t we be? We are, after all, homers. That aside, as far as this analyst is concerned, there really weren’t two players who displayed their vast talents any more convincingly than Cory Trice, the Class of 2018, 6’4″ Safety for Christian County High School or Justice Dingle, the 6’2″ 235 pound LB from Bowling Green High School. Although not a Kentuckian, 6’5″ 205 pound right handed, flame throwing of a QB, Jacob Buie, Class of 2018, from University School of Jackson (Tennessee), the same school which produced Trey Smith, 2017’s ESPN number 1 national prospect, looked awfully good to me making his drops, setting up, stepping down the hall way and getting the ball out, timely, and on target to receivers, some of which suffered from butterfingers. 2020 Hopkinsville High School QB, Jay Bland, was smooth, moved well, and made some nice down field throws. There were really too many QB’s competing in the combine so some of the older more assertive kids hogged the reps, but Jay still showed why the Coaching Staff at HHS is excited about his potential.
On the middle school level, some 2021 kids really looked good. One whom showed very well was L’Ray Coleman, who most recently played for CCMS. L’Ray ran good routes, showed fantastic speed for his size and soft, nimble hands. L’Ray got off the Jam at the line effectively and exhibited the same fantastic ball skills participating in both the Middle School and the High School Combines. As for 2021 OL/DL/MLB William Long, well, what can be said? It is almost unfair for him to compete as a middle schooler anymore. He is just too fast, agile and strong; but, he is an eighth grader, at least on his birth certificate. William dominated, plainly and simply, shutting pass rushers completely down at the line of scrimmage and burying many of them in the turf at a stadium aptly nicknamed “The Hole.” It would have been nice to see 2021 superstar Toleo Malone and William Long matched up against each other but the staff never got that together and, consequently, each one of them looked like grown men repping against middle school boys. Oh well, we’ll see if the Directors of the Tennessee-Kentucky Future Stars Game (Josh Jones and Ricco Hughes) can get that match up for us to see in Clarksville later this summer.
On the whole, it was a fantastic event with a fantastic and deep amount of talent which benefited from the contributions to the combine being made by the immense talent which migrated south from the Bluegrass. Remember ballers…PLAY THROUGH THE WHISTLE!
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