Minnesota's Seantrel Henderson, Florida's Lamarcus Joyner among top recruits having big senior seasons.
Seantrel Henderson, Cretin-Derham Hall
Photo by Greg Smith
The nation’s No. 1-ranked football player,
Seantrel Henderson, hopes to lead Cretin-Derham Hall (St. Paul, Minn.) to the Class 5A state championship on Friday against undefeated Eden Prairie.
The 6-foot-7, 325-pound senior offensive tackle hasn't allowed a sack all season and has helped the Raiders compile an 11-1 record.
“We haven’t been much of a rushing team (in the past), but we’re averaging 203 yards a game and most of it’s behind him," coach Mike Scanlon said. "Everybody knows when we run, we’re going to run behind him.”
Scanlon added that despite all the pre-season hype, Henderson has performed “better than even we expected. He has done nothing to diminish his reputation.”
Thus far, Henderson has visited Ohio State and Notre Dame. He also plans to visit Florida, Oklahoma and Southern California, but he will have to work those trips around his upcoming basketball season.
* Lamarcus Joyner not only is seeking a state but also a national championship at star-studded St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.). The defending national-champion Raiders - No. 1 in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 - are 11-0 this year and riding a 35-game winning streak.
The 5-9, 170-pound senior has dominated this year as a cornerback, safety, wide receiver and running back – not to mention as a kick returner. He has made 14 catches for 236 yards and four touchdowns, run 35 times for 325 yards and two touchdowns and returned seven kickoffs for 350 yards and three touchdowns.
On defense he has made eight solo and 10 assisted tackles while also causing two fumbles and recovering one.
“He’s had a real good year,” veteran coach George Smith said. “He’s a guy you can do (many) things with. We like to get him the ball as much as we can. He’s extremely fast and has a great vertical leap. He’s extremely strong in the weight room and he’ll hit you.”
Joyner has visited Ohio State, Notre Dame and Florida State. Smith said that he also plans to visit Florida and possibly Southern California.
* Marcus Lattimore, a 6-1, 220-pound running back, has paced Byrnes (Duncan, S.C.) to a 12-1 record and the No. 2 ranking in MaxPreps Xcellent 25. The Rebels’ only loss was to No. 1 St. Thomas Aquinas.
"There’s no way we could be where we are at without him," Rebel head coach Chris Miller said. "This school has had a lot of great players and he would be right there at the top. If there is (another) No. 1, he would be there with him.
“He is a powerful, slashing-type runner, has got great speed and great hands. In most of our games (lopsided victories) he’s done by halftime or the third quarter.”
This year Lattimore, who holds many school records, has rushed 207 times for 1,567 yards and 25 touchdowns. In addition, he has caught 44 passes for 621 yards and five touchdowns.
Lattimore has visited South Carolina, North Carolina, Penn State and Auburn and also plans to visit Oregon. Miller said he will announce his decision on national signing day.
* Latwan Anderson, a transfer from Lakewood St. Edward, has been a major addition at Cleveland Glenville as it seeks Ohio’s Division I state championship. The Tarblooders (12-1) will play Massillon Washington Saturday in the state semifinals.
Anderson, a 5-10, 190-pound senior, may be Glenville’s most versatile player as a wide receiver, defensive back and kick returner. He has carried 23 times for 197 yards, made 11 catches for 157 yards, returned eight punts for 146 yards and five kickoffs for 160 yards for a total of five touchdowns.
He also has made 11 interceptions – returning three for touchdowns – 24 solo and 29 assisted tackles, caused three fumbles and recovered six. In addition, he has scored three times on punt returns and twice on kickoff returns.
Defensive coordinator Robert Andrews says that Anderson is a big hitter.
"He comes with such an impact," Andrews said. "He gets good leverage on the ball and it pops out.”
Anderson has visited Michigan State and also has West Virginia, Ohio State, Michigan and North Carolina in future plans.
* Jackson Jeffcoat’s season is over at Plano West (Texas). The Wolves finished with a disappointing 5-6 record and he already is moving into the basketball season.
The 6-4, 230-pound defensive end finished his senior year with 67 solo and 20 assisted tackles. He had 11 tackles for losses and 8.5 sacks. He also caused three fumbles and recovered one, made two interceptions and returned one for a touchdown and blocked two extra-point kicks.
“He had a great year,” coach Mike Hughes said. “He has tremendous quickness and is very explosive. He’s really good with his hands on pass rushing.”
Jeffcoat already has visited Arizona State and Texas. Hughes said he also plans to visit Oklahoma and Florida and probably will visit Southern California.
* The season also has ended for another highly-recruited Texan, wide receiver Darius White of Fort Worth Dunbar. The Wildcats finished with a 7-4 record.
The 6-5, 205-pound senior missed two games, one due to an ankle injury and another due to illness. He made 24 catches for 486 yards and eight touchdowns. He also scored two other touchdowns.
Coach Todd Lawson conceded that White's production was limited due to due to the attention he received from opposing defensive units.
“He proved more than ever this year that he is a team player. They (opponents) just kind of rolled their defense to his side (and he often was a decoy)," Lawson said.
Lawson added that White, who high jumps 6-foot-7 and has a 40-inch vertical jump, “has really good strength, good hands, body control and can play with pain.”
White’s visits have been to Texas and Utah. He also plans to visit Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and one Southeastern Conference school which has yet to be determined.
