Remembering the 2022 seven-on-seven season, there were numerous top performers at several tournaments across the country. Whether it was in Texas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana or some place else, these young competitors started to create a name for themselves.
In some cases, maybe even a brand. Here are a few of the players that stood out during the 2022 seven-on-seven season during various DR Sportz tournaments.
One of the best high school linebackers in the nation, Troy Bowles, had a tremendous seven-on-seven season. He’s one of the few true middle linebackers that has the ability to cover in space and make plays against shifty receivers. Bowles is a national recruit with offers from across the country like Georgia, Florida, Ohio State, Alabama, Auburn, and many others. His father, Todd Bowles, is the Head Football Coach for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
If you need a true technician at the cornerback position, arguably the nation’s most refined talent coupled with natural length and athleticism would be Malik “Manny” Muhammad. Playing for one of the nation’s most elite seven-on-seven brands, Muhammad mixed his duties between cornerback, safety, and nickel. Regardless of the position he played, he was one of the best performers on the gridiron. Muhammad will likely end up at one of the traditional powers of college football.
Kam Davis is one of the nation’s most versatile players, and while the young man is only a class of 2024 prospect, he’s good enough to be recruited at any of running back, slot receiver or safety. He’s technically committed to Florida State, but that has not stopped schools from across the country from continuing to recruit him.
One of the fastest players in the nation, yet only a rising junior (2024), Jaylen Mbakwe is a playmaker no matter where he lines up. Most project the Alabama prep star to end up at cornerback, but he’s quite capable of playing running back, wide receiver or free safety as well. When he was mirroring a wide receiver, that was fun to watch. Mbakwe glides when he’s running.
Just switching over to wide receiver in August of 2021, Tyler Williams has become a national recruit. He’s over 40 offers now, and for good reason. Length was a major attribute that Williams utilized, and his burst and quick hands allowed him to beat competitors time and time again. Once he refines his game and learns even more of the nuances of receiver play, Williams is likely to be a college star. He’s in the class of 2023. He already visited Clemson, he’s at Georgia this weekend, and has more visits coming up like Ole Miss.
If there was ever a freshman quarterback that just blew everyone away, it’s Colin Hurley. At 6’1″, 213-pounds and already having his passes being clocked at 57 mph, this is as close to a can’t-miss prospect as one will find. He absolutely shredded defenses this year. It’s a long way from his recruitment coming to an end, but when programs like Ohio State, LSU, Georgia, Miami, UCF, Florida and many more offer a quarterback, it’s a good sign.
This is only a starter list. There are dozens of other top players that played in the DR Sportz tournaments, and from all age groups as well. There will be more updates coming in the near future.
Brian Smith
