Didn’t make it to Vegas for Adidas Summer Championships, Fab 48, etc. because of a canceled flight, so I got to watch today’s HYPRR Camp instead. There was a lot of talent, even though most of the HYPRR Hangout visitors didn’t play. Several of the visitors were still there watching (I saw Gibson, Okonji, and Teague), as were a handful of Gopher football players (Celestin, Hickcox, and several more that I’m forgetting).
HYPRR Hangout is already underway. There’s a cookout going on right now. The recruits also have a campus treasure hunt the staff set up that lets them explore campus.
At quarterback, Cole Kramer and Graham Mertz were the standouts. Both are 2019s.
Kramer is Eden Prairie's quarterback and started for the Eagles as just a sophomore last year. He’s not very big, but he seems to move pretty well (couldn’t get a great eval on that today) and throws a really good ball with pace on deeper routes, especially for someone his size. Kramer’s definitely a 2019 target to know about.
Graham Mertz is from Overland Park, Kansas. He’s bigger and a little bit less mobile but showed good touch and really good arm strength. This fall will be important for Mertz because he didn’t start last year on his high school team, which won a state championship. I’m told that Minnesota really liked Mertz coming into today’s camp and that they’d be watching his first couple games this fall closely.
Nolan Edmonds did not play in the camp but is still planning to be at HYPRR Hangout. The best back today was 2019 Anthony Williams from Simeon in Chicago. Williams already holds offers from Arkansas State, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Northern Illinois, and South Dakota State. Williams was the smoothest running back. He’s fast, has quick feet, and cuts really well. Of course I wasn’t able to see his ability to break tackles and his physicality, but Williams definitely looked the part as a Power 5-level running back.
Erik Gibson watched camp. Rashod Bateman landed around noon and will be at HYPRR Hangout tonight but wasn’t able to watch camp. The standout receiver today was Jarel Miller, a 2018 receiver from Dallas who’s really undersized and only holds an offer from Morehead State. Miller is incredibly quick and gets in and out of his breaks really well. I only saw seven or eight of his reps, but I didn’t see him drop any passes and most were not contested because of the separation he created for himself. Miller could do really well in a slot, jitterbug type of role.
At offensive line, Nathan Boe and Bryce Benhart did not compete but there was still plenty of talent. Grant Norton, Joshua Ezeudu, and Rain Slater all impressed. Norton measured at 6’8”, 260 today with a 4.9 40, so he’s an ideal athlete at tackle. The Gophers love his upside. He’s also exactly the type of tackle Fleck looks for. Fleck’s always prefered the more mobile, athletic, leaner tackles with big upside. That’s Norton. Getting leverage will naturally be a problem for someone that’s 6’8” and that showed when he had to go against smaller and quicker DEs, but he has long arms and seemed to time extension well when making contact and when he made contact, it was game over. I also was impressed with how quick his feet were for someone his size during the drill portion.
Ezeudu is another one that should hop in the boat this weekend (I posted a thread about him a couple hours ago). He’s a little bit more compact and his frame is a little more filled in than Norton, but he still has a big base and wide shoulders. He’s got power and I think could be a great run-blocking tackle. He seemed to have a lot of natural upper body strength and showed as good of punch as you can show without pads. I thought he won the majority of reps against Logan Richter, although that’s probably to be expected as Ezeudu is used to playing football year round in Georgia and Richter is a little more of a raw, high ceiling prospect.
Rain Slater was a breakout star, as he was a name I hadn’t heard before camp. He was strong, had good balance. He’s listed as a tackle but I could see him moving to guard at the next level. I also thought that he won the majority of reps against Richter.
Logan Richter’s an excellent athlete for his size and really fights. Joe Rossi yelled several times “I love your how!” Richter has a tendency to get too high but he’s still able to move lineman from his pure strength. Richter’s listed at 280 on Rivals, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s more. He could shed some bad weight but has an excellent frame and will be able to hold quite a bit of weight.
Terrance Taylor is a defensive end from Mt. Carmel in Chicago that’s really explosive. He’s 6’4” and really slim at this point but has the frame to add a lot more weight. He was the fastest player at camp, and I could see him in the R position. I would say he’s definitely on offer watch.
Aune, Henderson, Oliver, Rush, Sori-Marin, and Smith all were not at camp but should be at HYPRR Hangout.
HYPRR Hangout is already underway. There’s a cookout going on right now. The recruits also have a campus treasure hunt the staff set up that lets them explore campus.
At quarterback, Cole Kramer and Graham Mertz were the standouts. Both are 2019s.
Kramer is Eden Prairie's quarterback and started for the Eagles as just a sophomore last year. He’s not very big, but he seems to move pretty well (couldn’t get a great eval on that today) and throws a really good ball with pace on deeper routes, especially for someone his size. Kramer’s definitely a 2019 target to know about.
Graham Mertz is from Overland Park, Kansas. He’s bigger and a little bit less mobile but showed good touch and really good arm strength. This fall will be important for Mertz because he didn’t start last year on his high school team, which won a state championship. I’m told that Minnesota really liked Mertz coming into today’s camp and that they’d be watching his first couple games this fall closely.
Nolan Edmonds did not play in the camp but is still planning to be at HYPRR Hangout. The best back today was 2019 Anthony Williams from Simeon in Chicago. Williams already holds offers from Arkansas State, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Northern Illinois, and South Dakota State. Williams was the smoothest running back. He’s fast, has quick feet, and cuts really well. Of course I wasn’t able to see his ability to break tackles and his physicality, but Williams definitely looked the part as a Power 5-level running back.
Erik Gibson watched camp. Rashod Bateman landed around noon and will be at HYPRR Hangout tonight but wasn’t able to watch camp. The standout receiver today was Jarel Miller, a 2018 receiver from Dallas who’s really undersized and only holds an offer from Morehead State. Miller is incredibly quick and gets in and out of his breaks really well. I only saw seven or eight of his reps, but I didn’t see him drop any passes and most were not contested because of the separation he created for himself. Miller could do really well in a slot, jitterbug type of role.
At offensive line, Nathan Boe and Bryce Benhart did not compete but there was still plenty of talent. Grant Norton, Joshua Ezeudu, and Rain Slater all impressed. Norton measured at 6’8”, 260 today with a 4.9 40, so he’s an ideal athlete at tackle. The Gophers love his upside. He’s also exactly the type of tackle Fleck looks for. Fleck’s always prefered the more mobile, athletic, leaner tackles with big upside. That’s Norton. Getting leverage will naturally be a problem for someone that’s 6’8” and that showed when he had to go against smaller and quicker DEs, but he has long arms and seemed to time extension well when making contact and when he made contact, it was game over. I also was impressed with how quick his feet were for someone his size during the drill portion.
Ezeudu is another one that should hop in the boat this weekend (I posted a thread about him a couple hours ago). He’s a little bit more compact and his frame is a little more filled in than Norton, but he still has a big base and wide shoulders. He’s got power and I think could be a great run-blocking tackle. He seemed to have a lot of natural upper body strength and showed as good of punch as you can show without pads. I thought he won the majority of reps against Logan Richter, although that’s probably to be expected as Ezeudu is used to playing football year round in Georgia and Richter is a little more of a raw, high ceiling prospect.
Rain Slater was a breakout star, as he was a name I hadn’t heard before camp. He was strong, had good balance. He’s listed as a tackle but I could see him moving to guard at the next level. I also thought that he won the majority of reps against Richter.
Logan Richter’s an excellent athlete for his size and really fights. Joe Rossi yelled several times “I love your how!” Richter has a tendency to get too high but he’s still able to move lineman from his pure strength. Richter’s listed at 280 on Rivals, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s more. He could shed some bad weight but has an excellent frame and will be able to hold quite a bit of weight.
Terrance Taylor is a defensive end from Mt. Carmel in Chicago that’s really explosive. He’s 6’4” and really slim at this point but has the frame to add a lot more weight. He was the fastest player at camp, and I could see him in the R position. I would say he’s definitely on offer watch.
Aune, Henderson, Oliver, Rush, Sori-Marin, and Smith all were not at camp but should be at HYPRR Hangout.
