SPORTS

Local athletes invited to elite combine

Brandon Shields
bjshields@jacksonsun.com

McKENZIE – The recruiting service 247Sports paid a visit to Bethel University Saturday to give football players in West Tennessee a chance to become more visible to college coaches and scouts.

They hosted the inaugural 247Sports West Tennessee Challenge combine and about 50 athletes from West Tennessee – including a handful from Middle Tennessee – performed drills, took a little coaching and got clocked in the 40-yard dash.

“We just want to give kids a chance to do what they’ve always wanted to do to play college football,” said David Johnson, who’s based in Oxford, Miss., and coordinated the event. “There are great athletes all over the place that deserve the chance to play college ball, and we’re glad to be able to facilitate that.

“College recruiting is an art, not a science. So any way we can help a kid get his name out there to the coaches, we’re glad to do it.”

The athletes and coaches – along with parents who watched as well – had to deal with wet weather moving through West Tennessee throughout the day. After starting the day at Wildcat Stadium, the operation moved inside to the old basketball gym Roane Fieldhouse for about an hour to do drills in there like agility drills.

The group took advantage of a break in the weather to get back to the stadium to end the day running 40-yard dashes and doing one-on-one drills.

The players were also competing for invitations to the 247Sports Elite Combine in Oxford later in the summer. Eleven athletes were awarded invitations Saturday.

Those athletes were Strovonski Wilkes from Lake County, Jeremiah Nance and Kordell Smith from Crockett County, Mark Jackson from Obion County, Dalton Turnbow from Westview, Marvaughn McClerkin from Huntingdon, Amani Burks from Blackman and McKenzie’s Demetrius Browning, Michael Floyd, Lorenzo Haynes and Jack Surber.

South Side’s Cade Willingham and Dequan Peyote competed as well.

“The one-on-one drills were different for me,” said Willingham, who plays quarterback at South Side. “All we were told before each rep was how many steps we could drop back – three or five.

“Then the receivers ran whatever routes they wanted to run. There were a few times they looked like they were running one thing and I threw it, and then as soon as I let the ball go they did something else.”

Peyote felt good about his day.

“I think I did pretty good,” Peyote said. “It was fun, and I wish we could go a few more hours.”

Bethel head coach Chris Elliott said the day had potential benefit for his program as well.

“There were a handful of guys that we like and depending on how things play out over the next year or two could help us out down the road,” Elliott said.

Blackman’s Brooks won the top skill player award for the day, and the top big man award went to Westview’s Turnbow.

Brandon Shields, 425-9751