Coverage of Philadelphia Combine

THE DEFENSE
The Under Armour Northeast/Philadelphia combine brought out some talent from all over the Northeast as this section focuses on the defensive talent who competed at Camden Catholic this past Sunday.

On the defensive line, Austin Johnson, (6-foot-4, 276 lbs) of St. Augustine was the standout at the position working as a defensive tackle. Johnson used his brute strength to bullrush the opposition, winning a majority of his 1 on 1 battles.


Jimmy King (6-foot-2, 220 lbs) of Notre Dame was relentless and physical coming off of the edge as he worked as a defensive end. It was evident why King had 17 sacks last season when you see the type of motor he possesses.

Big 2014 prospect Andrew Stevens (6-foot-1, 285 lbs) from Camden High held against the older competition which is no surprise considering that Stevens started 3 varsity games last season.

At linebacker, Matthew Satchell made the short trip across town and stood in both the drill portions, as well as in the 1-on-1's and 7-on-7's. Satchell showed versatility as he defended tight ends, running backs and wide receivers successfully.

Matawan's Larry Alston (6-foot-1, 217 lbs), Combine 360 MVP Darnell Davis, and Patrick Murphy (6-foot-2, 185 lbs) from Tottenville all made a number of plays throughout the course of the day.

At defensive back, the headliner was Tre Bell who is now the hunted instead of the hunter on the combine scene after his recent performances. Bell didn't have his best day and started off slow but still performed very well, showing great hips with the ability to change direction as well as the unique ability to locate the ball when it was in the area during 7-on-7's.

Playing the role of David to Carlton Agudosi's Goliath was North Bergen cornerback Denzell Leitch (5-foot-6, 131 lbs). Leitch who ran the fastest 40 time at the event with an electronic 4.58 was matched up with Agudosi numerous times during the 1-on-1 not backing down from the stiffest of competition.

"He's big, and I'm little but I wanted to go at it," said Leitch about the matchup. "He's one of the best around so that's who I want to go against. We were going at it at the Nike event at Rutgers and went at it today. He got two very good catches against me and I shut him down once but he's a very good player."

Despite his size, Leitch is the prototypical lock down corner, playing aggressive "bump and run" man to man.

Leitch also did a great job of getting his head around once the ball was in the air, allowing him to make a play when the opportunity arose.

After garnering position MVP honors at a previous combine this spring, Anthony Smith of Pope John was very solid throughout the course of the day. 2013 prospect Chris Oliphant (5-foot-11, 185 lbs) of Point Pleasant Boro made some great plays and 2012's Khaliq Gadson (5-foot-10, 170 lbs) of William Penn of Delaware has an good performance in the 1-on-1's but really thrived in the 7-on-7's when he was able to move to his more natural position of safety.

THE OFFENSE

The Under Armour Northeast/ Philadelphia combine brought out some of the best talent from all over the Northeast with some familiar names shining as usual along with some new names bursting onto the recruiting landscape.

In the combine portion of the day, three 2012 athletes came out of the unknown to score to register the three highest Combine 360 scores on the day.

2012 linebacker Darnell Davis of Union (6-foot-1, 228 lbs), who plays at Avon Old Farms registered the highest score with 291 points. In second place with 260 points was 2012 athlete Brian Verbitski of Burlington, who lined up at wide receiver at the event, but lined under center last season.

Verbitski (5-foot-11, 160 lbs) posted some eye popping numbers including a 4.19 shuttle, 32.5 inch vertical along with a 10 foot broad jump. Lastly, all the way from Connecticut, 2012 running back Louis Fenaroli from Newtown (5-foot-9, 206 lbs) finished in third with 284 points highlighted by a 4.62 40 yard dash which was one of the fastest times on the day, along with 21 reps on the bench press at 185 lbs.

Once the testing was complete the players broke into position drills, 1-on-1's and 7-on-7's where a number of standouts emerged.

Amongst the running backs, there were a number of great athletes who had impressive performances throughout the course of the day. Rutgers commit Desmon Peoples showed great explosion with a 9 foot, 9 inch broad jump and a 32 inches vertical and great agility with a 4.18 shuttle that he showcased in the positional drills.

His cousin Brandon Peoples, fresh off his first offer from St.Francis (PA) also performed well with a 4.62 40 yard dash and impressive footwork during the drills and 1-on-1's.

Fresh off some previously impressive combine performances this spring, Nigel Jones of Holy Spirit had another great all-around performance including the fastest 3 Cone drill time at 6.96 to go along with 4.61 40 yard dash (3rd overall), 4.19 shuttle (Tied for 4th) and 24 reps on the bench at 185, which tied for 3rd overall.

Jones then went out and proved on the field why he has received offers from Rutgers, Temple and Western Michigan moving through the drills with ease while showing solid pass catching skills. Back to full health, Jones could be an absolute steal for some lucky FBS program.

A sleeper in the class of 2012 running backs who has been quietly been raising his stock this spring is Javon White (5-foot-10, 180 lbs) of Souderton, Pa who was on the top of the testing board in nearly every combine event.

Easily the most physically impressive looking athlete at the whole event, White ran the 2nd fastest 40 yard dash of the day (4.59 seconds), the fastest shuttle time (4.16), the highest vertical (35.5 inches) and the longest broad jump (10 feet, 5 inches).

White, who in limited time last season rushed for over 800 yards and 9 touchdowns will end up with his share of scholarship offers if he continues on this tear he's been on this off season.

Other running backs who opened some eyes include 2012's Ike Calderon of Neptune (5 foot 8, 185 lbs) who was participating in his first combine, after spilting carries with Rutgers signee Charles Davis last season as well as two backs from 2013.

Zaire Williams(5-foot-10, 190 lbs) of Cherokee who will become the main man in the backfield after spilting carries for the 2 time defending New Jersey South Group 4 champs and John Blyden (5-foot-10, 203 lbs) of Bishop Shanahan (Downingtown, PA).

The wide receivers were led by Rutgers commit Carlton Agudosi who has been dominating the competition at every event he has attend this spring. As usual, Agudosi showed great route running ability, and used his large hands to make some impressive catches throughout the day.

From the Jersey Shore, Tahjier Hammery (5-foot-9, 160 lbs) of Asbury Park from the class of 2012 showed great ability to beat press coverage on the line of scrimmage along with the ability to set up his routes very well, leaving multiple defensive backs turned around as he glided in and out of his cuts.

"I've been to 5 or 6 camps and I was trying to come here and work hard," said Hammery about his goals for the event. "I don't have any offers yet so I am just trying to earn some. There was some competition out there but I just wanted to go out there and make it look easy and dominate because that's what I do."

The biggest surprise from the wide receiver position was 2012's Greg Johnson(6-foot-3, 220 lbs) from West Orange. The big receiver played through a groin injury he suffered the day before as he muscled smaller defensive backs of the line of scrimmage and was very fluid in his route running, making numerous catches away from his body.

With Johnson not even being at full speed, and having the frame to have more weight comfortably, a move to Tight End/H-Back is something Johnson would consider.

"A lot of people see me as a Tight End possibly, with my athletic ability as a receiver I can be very good there. I am open to whatever can get me to the next level," said Johnson.

From the class of 2013, William Fuller from Roman Catholic of Philadelphia continued to show why he will be a name to remember over the next couple of months.

At Tight End, Zach Rush (6-foot-3, 212 lbs) made the trip from Bergen County for this event, displaying the ability to fight through press coverage off the line of scrimmage as the Tight Ends faced Linebackers in the 1-on-1's and 7-on-7's. Rush did a great job of disguising his routes, and making tough catches over coverage.

 Also making the long drive south was Khalif Joyner was giving the linebackers fits all day with his combination of size and athleticism.

The offensive line had a number of talented prospects who dominated the opposition on the other side of the ball. Fred Santarelli (The Hill School, PA) has attended a number of events this spring, and his improvement is evident. Santarelli looked very lean at 6-foot-5, 290 and his kick slide has improved over the past couple months.

"Every weekend I'm trying to attend combines. Been training with Tra Thomas (former Philadelphia Eagle OT) working on some OL technique and I have seen big improvement," said Santarelli.

After dominating the recently Rivals.com Northeast 5-Star event, Tim Donahue continued to prove that he has no lingering effects from the knee injury he suffered last football season as he continued to dominate pass rushers all day, showing great techniques in the drills.

On the interior, Lewis Simpson (6-foot-4, 280 lbs) from Camden, NJ made the short trip displaying great footwork and power as his stock begins to rise in the recruiting world.

From the class of 2013, Bradley Henson, (6-foot-4, 270 lbs) from Monsignor Donovan in Toms River, NJ has a great frame, great work ethic and has the potential to be a big recruit next year.

 Coming from New York City, Joe Scelzo, of Tottenville has a very powerful build, which he used to push around defenders in 1-on-1's.

 Last but not least, the quarterback group was led by 2012's Steve Cluley of Wall Township NJ. Cluley (6-foot-2, 195 lbs) showed the ability to make any throw that was asked of him, relishing the opportunity to work with former NFL quarterback Elvis Grbac.

 Cluley plans to attend a number of camps this summer, traveling as far west as the University of Utah.

 "I've been to a lot of combine and events, it was an awesome event," said Cluley. "This was the most organized, had great athletes, the coaching staff was amazing and I think I did well. Coach Grbac was very good."

 Although 2012 prospect Dilion Salva (6-foot-4, 231 lbs) will be fighting for the starting spot this season at Bishop Ahr in Edison, at this event, physically he looked like the prototypical pro-style quarterback and displayed a strong arm.

 From the class of 2013, Alex Krivda (6-foot-4, 182 lbs) from Pennridge (PA) is very lean right now with a frame to add mass without any issue. He shocked good mechanics all day long, making some great throws in the 1-on-1's and 7-on-7's.

 Nick Elmer of Penns Grove started off slow but really made some great throws in the 7 on 7 and the true sleeper to emerge from the quarterback group was and lastly Anthony Robbins (6-foot, 175 lbs) from Willingboro spun the ball well all day, including a beautiful deep ball putting it where only his receivers could get it.