Keenan Allen and Da’Rick Rogers are now five-star prospects on Scout.com. They were borderline before the 2009 season and we have seen enough to move them up early on this fall.
Allen is 6-foot-2, 194 pound athlete out of Greensboro (N.C.) Northern Guilford that plays safety and wide receiver. He has great size, great length, a great burst, and great athleticism.
He had a strong showing at the Scout Combine in Charlotte back in the spring and where he spent more time at receiver than he did defensive back. He showed great leaping ability, great hands, good acceleration, and body control there in shorts and t-shirt.
From there he worked hard over the summer and showed early in 2009 that he was one of the best.
He could play offense or defense on the next level, but we like him at safety. He has great size for that position and he has a defensive mentality back there. He plays physical, he has great closing speed, he has exceptional ball skills, and he has instincts that can’t be taught.
Alabama, Clemson, and Oregon are the three schools still on Allen’s list at this time in recruiting.
Joining Allen is Rogers. He is one of the top athletes in the country and we knew that going into the year. The combination of size, speed, and explosiveness has been seen in the past, but he became a true and consistent play-maker this year.
At times he would go missing in the past, but he has made plays game after game this season. He has returned kick-offs for touchdowns and made many plays at wideout throughout the first half of the season.
Like Allen, Rogers came out to a Scout Combine in the spring and dominated in Atlanta. He could not be covered and he was impressive each time he got the ball thrown his way.
He is one of the most impressive receivers in the country and he has the size at 6-foot-3, 208 pounds, the speed (sub 4.5 in the 40 yard dash), and the explosiveness (over 40 inch vertical) all look for in a receiver. He still has to fine tune his game in route running, but he will play at Georgia in game one.
Through four games, Rogers had 18 receptions for 419 yards and seven touchdowns. He also had 419 return yards and a touchdown.
When two guys move up then two guys have to move down. The two guys that have dropped are defensive lineman Brandon Willis and Jonathan Dowling.
Willis is definitely a top 100 player and he will compete for early playing time at Tennessee, but he has not been as dominant this season as expected. He has played well this season, but his teammate Corey Miller has really shined the most on the Byrnes defensive front. Willis plays on the edge now, but will likely move inside at UT.
Dowling has really struggled at safety this season, especially when playing the run. He does not have good technique when coming up in run support and really needs to get better there and add strength. He still has great ball skills and could end up at receiver on the next level if he doesn’t improve at safety.
Allen and Rogers have moved up to five star status while Willis and Dowling have dropped to four. There will be more changes made to the top prospects in the South later on this fall.
Chad Simmons is the Recruiting Manager for the South Region and he can be reached at ChadSimmons@Scout.com.