(UW Commit Daeshon Hall 6-7 230 Sr. DE will be a force state wide) |
One of our favorite stories of the year comes out of Seattle’s Garfield High School where Football has been given a much needed resuscitation. The hire of a young ambitious head coach in Dave Myers has brought many of the schools top athletes back out to the grid iron, where before they didn’t always have much to do with the sport.
As most know Garfield is one of the great northwest basketball schools, and has produced countless high profile athletes. It also ranks among the top academic schools garnering 6 out of 8 National Merit Scholarships awarded to Seattle Public School students.
Garfield plays in one of the toughest conferences in the state so nothing about the turn around is going to be easy. They have a handful of D1 caliber athletes, and a host of other kids with raw skills that haven’t been honed. This is where Myers enthusiasm and work ethic is paying off, as numbers and excitement have picked up a great deal.
UW commit Daeshon (Daedae) Hall (6-7 230 Sr. DE) returns from Texas for his senior year, and looks to be one of the most dominant D Ends in the region. Coach Myers says, " the first question he asked me was what the KingCo Conference sack record was, so now I have to do some research as I wouldn’t put it past him getting there". You can imagine Hall will get constant double teams freeing up some of his Bulldog teammates.
This is a young team with a lot of talent, and this year will be an interesting test of growth and belief setting standards for future seasons. Lloyd Proctor (6-2 185 Sr. WR) is another athlete that attended our elite events in the winter and has all the potential in the world. Myers says, " Lloyd has improved more in one year then any athlete I have ever coached, he has transformed himself from a track guy that plays football to a true football technician". Proctor is a kid that could still get a lot of looks from D1 schools with a good season, he just looks the part.
Other seniors you will hear from with legit skills will be Jamala Myres (6-2 170 Sr. WR), Hayes Gorecki (6-1 180 Sr. QB), and Julian Cooper (6-0 160 Sr. DB). Myres was an all league WR last season and did very well at our elite events, while Gorecki is an outstanding three sport athlete that can be the leader they need. Cooper returns after starting last year, and will be asked to contribute a bunch of different ways this season.
Two difference makers that we could hear a lot about are Demario Hall (5-10 160 Sr. RB/DB) and Tre’Vaunte Williams ( 6’5" 250 SR. TE/DE) , a "Freaky" basketball kid that could be playing football this year.
Hall is another outstanding basketball player and one of the top athletes in the school. He will be playing running back this season and possibly some corner as his overall athleticism is outstanding. Williams was dominant growing up on the football field, but hasn’t played in awhile. He more then passes the eye test and could be a huge addition with all of the attention going to Hall if he’s not on the field.
There are three other juniors and four sophomores that are all super legit and will also get in the mix. It is exciting for a school to start to see how much talent they have coming back. Some of these kids have legit D1 ability and no one knows about them yet, which is something that will change.
Coach Dave Myers says " Liam Albright (Jr. RB/LB) is going to play RB and LB for us as he is a great leader and very physical, while Dominick Lewis – ( 5-11 150 Jr. WR) may be the fastest kid on the team" .
Torrance Baker – (6-2 195 Jr. WR/S) is someone that we saw early in the winter for a brief time at our elite events and the kid looked like an NFL wide receiver. Myers added, " Torrance has taken some time off from football but is an incredible athlete and could make an immediate impact.. If he invests his time in football he could legitimately be one of the best players in the state at either WR or Safety". I would most definitely agree with this statement.
The Sophomore group has some good sized kids and some lineman that could be special if they get their grades right. Amahn Edwards (6-2 200 So.MLB) is slotted to start at middle linebacker which is a tall order for any sophomore playing at the highest level but coach says, " he has great natural instincts and is a born leader, we are asking a lot of him but with continued progression we feel he could be a D1 kid".
Winfred Roberson (6-2 195 So. QB/S) will be the up and coming QB of the group and is considered an athletic freak. " Winfred has been playing RB for most of his career and we’re working on making the switch to QB… Myers continued, " He needs to learn the game from the QB position and refine his mechanics, but he’s a football-first kid who works hard and has the confidence commensurate with his ability.. So talented that we will find a way to get him on the field one way or another, I thought he was in his 20’s when I first met him last year"
Tyrell Cummings (6-1 250 So. OL/DL) and Evell Nelson (6-3 260 So. OL/DL) are the two young lineman that stick out and have very bright futures, " Cummings is freakishly strong and has dramatically improved his technique, and I have never seen a kid with a legit D1 body move like Nelson" Myers said
The overall excitement in the air surrounding Garfield Football is something the Seattle area hasn’t felt in quite awhile, and even though the transition won’t be made over night the Bulldogs are heading in the right direction. We wish Myers and company continued success, what has been done in a very short amount of time is incredible.
(Lloyd Proctor 6-2 185 Sr. WR could be one of the biggest sleepers in the state of Washington)
