Top 50 football recruits in metro New Orleans for 2018, Part 1 (26-50)

This will come as no surprise to local football fans but the greater New Orleans area is loaded with talented players. This year is no different than past seasons when area high schools have has college recruiters from around the country come around looking for commitments.

We start our list of over 50 elite recruits for the 2018 class with the top prospects below the area’s top 25. And yes, I decided I could not squeeze all of them into a top 50 alone so we have a couple of ties (and creative numbering) to list them all.

We’ll have the top 25 in the metro area later this week.

26-WR Gregory Clayton (5-11, 175) Lutcher…Brother of Jarvis Landry, vice grip hands on ball, YAC, fluid, good routes, works hard. Comes back to ball, uses body well, a physical blocker. Tulane, ULL, Idaho, Purdue, McNeese, NW State and South Alabama with sales pitches.

27-DB Nick Martin-Morman (5-10, 167) Hannan…currently committed to Colorado State. All District on both sides of ball in 2016. Textbook tackler, a striker, acceleration, predatory closing speed. 4.45 forty. 1,171 yards rushing with 15 TDs, 18 catches for 323 yards. Had 3 interceptions on defense.

28-RB Marquese Albert (5-8, 185) John Curtis…cuts at full speed, very determined runner, waterbug type with acceleration. Slithers through O-line. Top speed on 2nd step. Good balance, plays in slot. Top 5 are Army, Navy, Kent State, Idaho and Georgetown.

29-OT Larry Dixon (6-4, 335) Hahnville….Mississippi State the leader. Like an oversized truck, engulfs opponent, a mauler, good pass blocker… Texas Tech, Houston, ULL and Kansas interest. Pass blocker.

30-DT Devin Winters (6-4, 245) McDonogh 35…Quickness off blocker, tracks ball well. Cincinnati, Houston, Tulane, Kansas, SMU, Kent State, Tulsa, ULL, SMU, Oregon State and Ole Miss.

31-WR Sheldon “Sticks” Jones (5-9, 160) Warren Easton….committed to UTSA. ULM, Memphis and Texas State trying to flip him. Eats up cushion, quick twitch, very athletic, high points ball, super hands. 74 catches for 1,379 yards and 10 scores in 2016.

32-WR Yo’Heinz Tyler (6-4, 190) Warren Easton…Kansas, Arkansas State, Ball State, Troy, Texas State and South Alabama hoping to land him. Good burst, size, squeezes ball, Good crossing routes, adjusts to ball, in slot, gets behind coverage, good catching radius, mismatch in redzone, great positioning awaiting pass.

33-DB Quindell Johnson (6’0-165) Edna Karr…Memphis commit…Houston, Idaho, Tulane, Purdue and ULM interest. Good closing speed (4.55), 3 star prospect also with outstanding hardwood skills as point guard. Recognizes quickly from safety spot. Covers a lot of ground. Covers well as single safety. Recognizes play.

34-CB Brandon Davis (6’0-168) John Curtis…offers from Colorado State, Southern, Nicholls State, ULM, South Alabama and Southeastern…Dual sport star as baseball shortstop, all district after batting .343 with 41 runs scored, 22 RBI, 12 doubles and 3 HRs. That could open options in baseball in college, as well. On gridiron is aggressive, delivers hit, had a pair of interceptions against Rummel, very active. Had 38 tackles in 2016, with 12 PBU. Breaks down, open field tackler, ball skills, drives to ball. Good footwork, a playmaker. No wasted steps. I expect him to move up charts as season progresses.

35-RB Garland LaFrance (5-10, 170) St. Augustine. One time Tulane commit in June, now headed to Texas Tech. Doesn’t give tackler good shot at him. High energy, good balance, breaks through arm tackles. 4.5 speed. Jump cuts. Patient runner who has good balance out of cuts.

36-OT Christian Hoz (6-5, 308) Hannan…commit to Arkansas State. Walls off opponent, cuts off rushing lane. Good hands, plays with balance. Work ethic. UCF, Navy, SLU, Troy and Nicholls in picture.

37-WR Jamal Jolla (6-2, 190) St. Augustine…former Purple Knights head coach David Johnson on the case for Memphis. Good hands, high energy. Good concentration, good blocker, good effort each play.

38-CB Damien Tate (5-8, 170) Warren Easton, McNeese State commit. Houston Baptist, Idaho, Nicholls, North Texas and NW State still in there pitching. Explosive speed (4.42), 40 tackles with 4 picks in 2016. Added 4 catches for 172 yards (43 yards per catch) to go along with 2 TDs. Good footwork, assigned to opponents best WR. Transitions well. Special teams.

39-WR Tyrone Legette (5-10, 170; 4.5 forty) John Curtis. Kent State, Lamar, Marshall, SLU and UAB. Reliable hands, uses body, excellent routes, catches away from body, precise routes. Dad played seven seasons in NFL, former 3rd round pick by Saints.

40-QB Jordan Loving (6-3, 205) Riverside…getting looks from LSU, Missouri, Tennessee and Texas A&M. 4.7 forty, 400 lbs. squat. District 9-2A MVP, State title MVP after completing 80 % in title game. Quick release, pocket presence, fires out pattern, very athletic, reads defense quickly, good feet, velocity, can spin ball, moves away from pressure. Plays basketball and baseball for Rebels. As pitcher had 7-5 record and 1.94 ERA. Mowed down 99 hitters in 83 innings.

(tie) Garrett Crawford (6-2, 220) Salmen…Citadel, Houston Baptist, La. Tech, Western Kentucky. Visited Princeton and Navy. Makes negative yard plays, relentless, disengages quickly from opponent.

41-CB Jommond Foster (5-11, 170) Landry-Walker. UAB commit. Arkansas State, Iowa State, Ball State, Kent State, La. Tech, ULM, NW State hoping to flip him. Closing speed, knack for big play, acceleration. Sure open field tackler.

(tie) Byron Jenkins (6-2, 215) Ehret…drawing interest from Idaho, SMU, UConn and Jackson State. Gets off edge, pass rusher, work ethic, drops in coverage.

42-TE/LB Javon Antonio (6-4, 215) East St. John…La. Tech, Arkansas State, Ball State, Iowa State, Kent State, Texas State and ULM. Sets tone, physical, high energy, technique sound. 4.55 speed. Runs well. Basketball rebounder, good body positioning. Had 32-500 yards and 13 TDs in 2016. Good tackler and solid blocker.

43-CB Lloyd Nash (5-11, 165) St. Charles Catholic…plays QB, but will shift to CB at Nicholls State in ’18. Lots of “Wow”plays with ball in his hands. 4.4 speed. Had 1,785 all purpose yards last season . 322 rushing yards in one game against Newman. Football IQ. Could play WR. Like trying to catch mosquito in cow pasture. All Metro in football and baseball. On diamond batted . 439, 37 stolen bases (37 attempts) District Co-MVP. 23 RBI and 8 2-baggers. Great character.

44-OT Zach Breaux (6-4, 330) Brother Martin…ULM commit. Engulfs opponent, widens stance, disposes of defender. Moves well on trap, maintains balance, adequate pass blocker. Can play OG/center.

45-DT Dante Carter (5-11, 308) St. Augustine…Called “Baby Sapp”. Commit to Nicholls State. All District in ’16. Controls middle, pass rusher, low center of gravity, powerful, uses hands. Others with interest Idaho, Arkansas State, McNeese, SLU, Texas State.

46-OG Calvin LaGrone (6-2, 281) Landry-Walker…Has “Wow”blocks at times, plays with attitude, Good punch, kick step at OT, Light on his feet, plays snap to whistle. Troy, Idaho, Northern Colorado are his suitors.

47-FS/WR Arlen Williams (6’1 1/2-185) Thomas Jefferson…Late bloomer, transfer from Helen Cox. knee injury in 2016 jamboree hindered progress. 3.6 GPA, 27 ACT, basketball shot blocker, ULL, ULM, Memphis, Vandy, Texas Tech, NW State, SLU all coming closer for a look-see. All want to see how he performs in ’17.

48-RB Corey Williamson (6-1, 185) St. Paul’s…throw back type player. Tulane, ULL, La. Tech, NW State monitoring with interest. Heavy duty runner. Good instincts, burst off line. (2016) 1,137 yards and 17 TDs. Will tack on 20 lbs. Quicker than he appears. Good vision, receiver out of backfield.

49-Athlete Julien Gums (5-10, 212) De La Salle…Sun Belt type player. 1,141 yards and 20 TDs passing (2016), 575 yards rushing with 10 scores. 300 lbs. bench press, 505 squat, 3.3 GPA, District 9 3A MVP. Gets skinny in line, freezes opponent, runs with power, tough hombre’ Very fluid in open field.

50-OG Jeremiah James (6-1, 285) De La Salle…dropped some weight. Quicker. 600 lbs. squat. Drives opponent, balance and leverage. Gets under pads. Physical blocker, with good work ethic. Also wrestles. Nicholls, Southern, ULM, SLU and McNeese watching.