MSL Made their debut in Atlanta
last summer, and MSL has spent the better part of the last year honing their
product and honing the process that is the MSL Combine. That process is a
revolutionary way of scouting players and promoting the players to colleges.
Every aspect of the MSL Combine is meant to simulate what a prospect would see
at the NFL Combine. From the interview to the position drills, high school
players get their first taste of what it takes to compete on the next level.
The most amazing part of these combines is that every aspect of it is video
taped on an individual basis and logged into a master database. In short, every
time prospect does a drill, he is video taped. That video is logged to a number,
and immediately after the combine, a college can request a prospect's film from
the combine, and it's available.
As a scout, this tool is invaluable to me and TheInsiders.com team. As much as I
like to try and see and many players as I can. It's impossible to evaluate an
entire camp in one day. With the MSL Combines, I won't miss anyone. If I do, all
I have to do is request a prospect's film from MSL, and it is readily available.
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Two of the Four Cameras Filming all of the Action
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There is nothing else like this available for players, and the MSL Combines
are the very best way of making sure a prospect's every move is seen. It's
recorded on high end video equipment. It's going to be seen.
Because of the individual attention every player gets, the amount of players
that are allowed at the camp at any given time is capped. This allows individual
testing results as well. The 40 yard dash is timed by NFL Coaches running one
player at a time on field turf. Danny
Langsdorf and Bob
Palcic of the New Orleans Saints were the coaches on hand to test the 40
yard dash.
Prospects are not used to having a neutral watch on them, and several were
disappointed with their times, but I helped put it in perspective for them. As
they were walking off I asked them if they had heard of LSU wide receiver
Michael Clayton. Being in New Orleans, I got resounding "yes's" for
answers. I mentioned that he ran a 4.66 at the NFL Combine with an NFL watch on
them, and all of a sudden the kids were much happier with their own times.
The MSL Combine is going to redefine what is considered a fast time for a high
school prospect with precise, accurate times. For example, my 1st Team All-South
Linebacker for the Class of 2004 Josh Johnson ran a 4.94 forty on field turf last year with an NFL
watch on him, and he has more than enough speed to go sideline to sideline.
Alonzo Horton of Marion Abramson easily had the best height/weight/speed
combination of any player at the combine at 6-2.3 and 209 pounds and a 4.73
forty. I ran into his coach after he ran his time, and his coach was thrilled
with his performance. "That's about right," said Jerome Woods. "I
know he ran a 4.6 at one camp last year, but some of those high school coaches
can get a little overzealous with the watch," added Woods with a
laugh.
After the testing, the players go through a battery of drills conducted by the
camp's staff as well as some of the area's top high school coaches. Again, each
player gets filmed on every repetition they do, on every drill.
NFL Pro Bowler Chuck Muncie Drills the RB's |
Each prospect gets an equal shot to show what he is capable of throughout the
day, and several prospects jumped out as players to keep an eye on this fall.
Ryan Perrilloux was the top overall prospect without a doubt. He lived up
to the advance billing with a strong arm, tight spiral, and very good
accuracy. He had the best camp performance that I have seen since I saw
Chris Leak in the spring of 2002. Perrilloux looks to be a lock for 1st
Team All-South this year. I will have a full camp review including video on Perrilloux tomorrow. |
Darrell Nevis of John Ehret High School showed a big time arm. He is a raw
prospect with a lot of potential because of the strength of his right arm. |
Corey Leonard of Covington arrived a bit late, but quickly made a name for
himself in the drills. He was on target with virtually all of his passes
and had good zip on the ball. Reminded me a lot of Joe Joe Brown who
signed with Kentucky last year. |
Jeremy Thomas of Hancock High School in Mississippi made the short drive
over to New Orleans, and he showed up a big league arm with his velocity. |
Non-Contact camps give elite running backs the chance to do something they
don't do much in high school... catch the ball out of the backfield. Here
Kirk Bush of John Curtis Christian makes a great catch. |
The Class of 2006 was well represented Sunday as well. Courtney Smith was
the best of the bunch at the wide receiver position, and he is just a
sophomore right now. He ran with the receivers, but he could end up being
a tight end by the time he gets done growing. |
Jamal Simmons of Edna Karr had the catch of the day in drills on a ball
thrown behind him. This one was just out of his reach, but he showed the
ability to make the acrobatic catch on Sunday. His coach told me that
Simmons had been playing linebacker when he arrived, and he has taken like
a duck to water at the wide receiver position. |
Earnest Jones of St. Augustine was the biggest camper, and at 6-4 and 337
pounds, the big man was light on his feet. Here he works against Matthew
Matherne of Hahnville High School. |
Kerry Raymond of East St. John helps protect Perrilloux in the pocket, but
with a 40 Inch vertical, maybe he should be out in patterns! Raymond is
the younger brother of Korey Raymond. |
There was no more physically imposing player on the field than the
chiseled 6-2 and 285 pound Seth Adams at defensive tackle. The big man
moved extremely well through drills as well as testing. He is a player to
keep an eye on for certain this fall. |
Reco Norton set the standard at the combine on Sunday with 31 reps of 185
pounds. Norton moved well through his drills as well. "I had a great
time at the camp. I loved everything about it. I liked the drills and I
loved the coaches. I hope they come back to Louisiana next year. I want to
watch" - Reco Norton. |
Did I mention the Class of 2006 was well represented? Destrehan's Chaz Washington was another one of the top sophomores at the camp. One of the
local high school coaches mentioned to me. "I saw Chaz and Darryl Richard, and Chaz was the better player LAST year." He'll be one to
watch in the Class of 2006 for sure. |
As stated earlier, the best overall athlete on the field Sunday was Alonzo
Horton. He showed unbelievable quickness in his drills, and it's not
surprising why, his 9'7" standing long jump was tops on the day. I
ran into his coach at during the drills, and he said that Horton led the
state in sacks and was unblockable at defensive end because of his
quickness. |
| I didn't get a chance to watch the linebackers in action much yesterday,
but talking with the coaches, the players that stood out were Cedric Hooper of John F. Kennedy, Brandin Jordan of John Curtis, and Robert Russell of L.B. Landry. I'm looking forward to watching the logged video of these players... again, a huge benefit to attending the MSL Combine. |
Dennis Holmes of Baker High School had the play of the day with a circus
catch for an interception during the one on ones. The play was especially
impressive considering the rain was beginning to come down and the ball
was getting slick. |
Those are just a few of the top players from the MSL Combine held at Tulane
University on Sunday. The players and coaches all had a good time. We will have
continued coverage this week including an in depth look at the Brightest Star
among several Bright Stars: Ryan Perrilloux.
The MSL
Combine has really matured in its short time, and I'm looking forward to the
next three camps in the Deep South: Miami, Gainesville, and Atlanta.... and for
those of you outside of the South, you don't want to miss this! See you
there!
Camp Schedule: