The first of four Prospect Reports from Friday’s WPIAL Championship games are here and I want to get started without too much further adieu. The 3A game between Beaver Falls and Aliquippa was the first game to kick off on Friday and will be the first to get the Prospect Report treatment.
Kwantel Raines of Aliquippa is becoming somewhat of a household name for Pitt fans now, as he’s been on the recruiting radar for the Panthers for quite some time. The 2018 Rivals250 ATH – I regard him as an athlete rather than a safety – still has a lot of attractive qualities but some drawbacks as well. I’ve seen him live and in person three times this year and I feel I’ve gotten a pretty good handle on him. Raines needs to improve on his pursuit angles to the ball-carrier and on getting lost in the wash when he’s tracking somebody down and his tackling form could stand to improve when he arrives. However, he excels at playing the football when it’s in the air and on tracking the ball. Athletically, he’s a great run-and-jump kid with lots of burst and speed. I still think he grows into a linebacker at the next level and moves away from safety as he adds weight. He’s skinny now and people will latch on to that, but it’s so easy to add weight in college strength and conditioning programs. Raines had 3.5 tackles, a TFL, a pass break-up, a 37-yard passing touchdown, and 26 yards rushing.
I wrote at length about 2019 CB Marlin Devonshire of Aliquippa in the Top Performers list, so I’ll just link to that here and copy and paste what I wrote:
“Marlin Devonshire Jr (also known as MJ) is not just the only player in his graduating class (2019, he’s just a sophomore) to make this list, but also the only player from a losing team to make the cut. While Devonshire would doubtlessly prefer to exchange a win for his place on this list, his performance for Aliquippa helped to spark a late run that kept the Quips in the game against Beaver Falls. Devonshire is a sophomore cornerback who only stands at about 5-foot-11, but has an excellent wingspan and strong defensive instincts that he used to his advantage.
He led the team in tackles with nine solo stops and also added an interception. On back-to-back pays in the third quarter, Devonshire rushed up into the flats to make an excellent open-field tackle on standout 2018 Beaver Falls athlete Malik Shepherd and then tipped the ball to himself and made an interception in coverage inside his own red zone. Look for Devonshire to be recruited by all of the power schools in the region as he continues to grow physically, technically, and mentally.”
None of Beaver Falls’ three Division I prospects were their best player on Friday, but they all played well for the most part. Seniors Jaccari Cleckley and Derrell Carter stood out for the Tigers as their top performers and senior defensive tackle/offensive guard Raequan Crowder, a player with some Division I offers, played decently enough. Donovan Jeter played pretty much as you expect to see from him. There are a few plays where he flashes some absurd skills and will toss an offensive lineman while covering more ground than he should be able to in order to swallow some kid up in the backfield. Then he’ll go dormant and you won’t hear his name for a quarter. On the whole, he played well, with six tackles and a tackle for a loss. He was engaged and active for the entire second half, despite dealing with some cramping, and it was a good sign for his effort.
Junior athlete Malik Shepherd was probably the most notable guy that impressed me that I hadn’t seen before. He was hurt when I saw Beaver Falls last and it was nice to see him active after hearing so many good things about him. Shepherd had a pass break up on defense, 68 rushing yards on 14 attempts, a passing touchdown, and a 45-yard punt return. He had another long punt return that would have brought Beaver Falls inside the 5-yard line, but it was called back on a block in the back. Shepherd showed nice lateral movement ability and agility. He takes advantage of being able to put defenders off balance to get by them. He had both quickness and speed in spades and it was a strong game from him overall. I’d like to see him more in a receiving role than as a running back, because I don’t think he’s meant to play there in college. Looking forward to seeing more of him in the offseason and on film, but he’s definitely a high three-star prospect who should draw some Power Five offers.
Kwantel Raines of Aliquippa is becoming somewhat of a household name for Pitt fans now, as he’s been on the recruiting radar for the Panthers for quite some time. The 2018 Rivals250 ATH – I regard him as an athlete rather than a safety – still has a lot of attractive qualities but some drawbacks as well. I’ve seen him live and in person three times this year and I feel I’ve gotten a pretty good handle on him. Raines needs to improve on his pursuit angles to the ball-carrier and on getting lost in the wash when he’s tracking somebody down and his tackling form could stand to improve when he arrives. However, he excels at playing the football when it’s in the air and on tracking the ball. Athletically, he’s a great run-and-jump kid with lots of burst and speed. I still think he grows into a linebacker at the next level and moves away from safety as he adds weight. He’s skinny now and people will latch on to that, but it’s so easy to add weight in college strength and conditioning programs. Raines had 3.5 tackles, a TFL, a pass break-up, a 37-yard passing touchdown, and 26 yards rushing.
I wrote at length about 2019 CB Marlin Devonshire of Aliquippa in the Top Performers list, so I’ll just link to that here and copy and paste what I wrote:
“Marlin Devonshire Jr (also known as MJ) is not just the only player in his graduating class (2019, he’s just a sophomore) to make this list, but also the only player from a losing team to make the cut. While Devonshire would doubtlessly prefer to exchange a win for his place on this list, his performance for Aliquippa helped to spark a late run that kept the Quips in the game against Beaver Falls. Devonshire is a sophomore cornerback who only stands at about 5-foot-11, but has an excellent wingspan and strong defensive instincts that he used to his advantage.
He led the team in tackles with nine solo stops and also added an interception. On back-to-back pays in the third quarter, Devonshire rushed up into the flats to make an excellent open-field tackle on standout 2018 Beaver Falls athlete Malik Shepherd and then tipped the ball to himself and made an interception in coverage inside his own red zone. Look for Devonshire to be recruited by all of the power schools in the region as he continues to grow physically, technically, and mentally.”
None of Beaver Falls’ three Division I prospects were their best player on Friday, but they all played well for the most part. Seniors Jaccari Cleckley and Derrell Carter stood out for the Tigers as their top performers and senior defensive tackle/offensive guard Raequan Crowder, a player with some Division I offers, played decently enough. Donovan Jeter played pretty much as you expect to see from him. There are a few plays where he flashes some absurd skills and will toss an offensive lineman while covering more ground than he should be able to in order to swallow some kid up in the backfield. Then he’ll go dormant and you won’t hear his name for a quarter. On the whole, he played well, with six tackles and a tackle for a loss. He was engaged and active for the entire second half, despite dealing with some cramping, and it was a good sign for his effort.
Junior athlete Malik Shepherd was probably the most notable guy that impressed me that I hadn’t seen before. He was hurt when I saw Beaver Falls last and it was nice to see him active after hearing so many good things about him. Shepherd had a pass break up on defense, 68 rushing yards on 14 attempts, a passing touchdown, and a 45-yard punt return. He had another long punt return that would have brought Beaver Falls inside the 5-yard line, but it was called back on a block in the back. Shepherd showed nice lateral movement ability and agility. He takes advantage of being able to put defenders off balance to get by them. He had both quickness and speed in spades and it was a strong game from him overall. I’d like to see him more in a receiving role than as a running back, because I don’t think he’s meant to play there in college. Looking forward to seeing more of him in the offseason and on film, but he’s definitely a high three-star prospect who should draw some Power Five offers.
