Best High School Player Seen

[legioncat]

Who are the best High Football players you have watched play in person:

Al Wilson he was playing Safety and was just killing ball carriers. You could just see he was going to be special, speed and furious hits.

Dante Hicky (Spelling?) from Cleveland: saw him play several times and in the KY/TN all-star game. He was electric, played WR and returner but never made it to college because of ???. Best player I've seen in person.

Kelly Holcomb, Chad Henderson and a WR named Grogan on the Lincoln County team in the early 90's-time frame. Kelly would throw a 30-yard dart and you could hear hit the guys in the pads up in the stands. I was surprised Kelly didn't go to a bigger school than MTSU but he had an incredible career. I thought Grogan was the best player on the field, he was a big WR who would catch anything near him and I'm sorry I can't remember his first name, no disrespect intended. I don't think he played college ball anywhere and that was a shame because he was very talented.

Kenny Witherspoon (Spelling) RB I think Stradford High and went to Vandy. He was just smooth and had a Walter Payton type running style, not that he was Walter but just he made moves with no effort, just fun to watch.

I hope I got the names and schools correct. Just my opinion so who is yours?

I did the radio play by play for many years for the Valdosta Wildcats and I saw many tremendous players, but the one that stands out is Greg Reid who went to FSU. He single handed beat us 3 years in a row. Then he made a quick impact at FSU.

 

[Tnphil]

Watched Al Wilson play several times against my Tomcats. I remember him playing linebacker and running back. You should have seen him play basketball. He was a hoss

Yep. He was a hoss in youth baseball too....when he could control his temper back then. He was a man among boys at 14.

And Will Medling who coached Milan back in the older days told a funny story....He said he took his Milan team over to Brownsville to play and Brownsville was No.1 and that was before classification...Coach Medling said 'when his kicker put the ball on the tee to kick the opening kickoff there was a train just starting to pass right outside of the stadium...When the caboose finally came by we were down 35-0!'

 

[smokeycoonhoundUT]

I was living in Cartersville, Ga when Trevor Lawrence was in high school and went to a few games. Impressive player to say the least. I recall a play where he scrambled to the left, rolled back to the right and on the run threw a near 50 yard rope to the back right corner of the endzone. When the wr caught caught the ball… the pop off his pads echoed in the stadium. You knew right then that all the hype was legit

 

[first time caller]

Edd Clark. "the Stonega Stallion"...Appalachian High School, Va.

 

[NighthawkVol]

Eddie Moore. Actually played safety his season year but was going to be a backer.

To me these players will never get mentioned but dominated high school: Thomas Payne and his lineman Scruggs. Forgot his first name. My lord they dominated folks back then. Payne was good enough to play somewhere but I don't think he ever did.

Moore was also a RB. And a damn good one.

 

[LittleVol]

Moore was also a RB. And a damn good one.

he had about 2500 yards rushig as a senior

 

[IndianaVol]

Champ was a force on offense playing QB in HS

Didn't realize he played QB as well.
Pretty sure I saw him playing DB (could have been early in his HS career) in the one game I saw...but then again that was almost 30 years ago too...HAHAHAHA

 

[Vol865]

We played against Kyler Kerbyson, Patton Robinette, and Devrin Young

Best I've seen in person just going to the game were probably:

Dustin Lindsey
Rae Sykes
Kyrus Lanxter
Tyler Maples
Aaron Douglas
Brian Sommers
Andre Sterling

 

[BIG SEXY]

Reggie White
Dale Jones
Rodney Ballard

 

[Dannbran]

Who are the best High Football players you have watched play in person:

Al Wilson he was playing Safety and was just killing ball carriers. You could just see he was going to be special, speed and furious hits.

Dante Hicky (Spelling?) from Cleveland: saw him play several times and in the KY/TN all-star game. He was electric, played WR and returner but never made it to college because of ???. Best player I've seen in person.

Kelly Holcomb, Chad Henderson and a WR named Grogan on the Lincoln County team in the early 90's-time frame. Kelly would throw a 30-yard dart and you could hear hit the guys in the pads up in the stands. I was surprised Kelly didn't go to a bigger school than MTSU but he had an incredible career. I thought Grogan was the best player on the field, he was a big WR who would catch anything near him and I'm sorry I can't remember his first name, no disrespect intended. I don't think he played college ball anywhere and that was a shame because he was very talented.

Kenny Witherspoon (Spelling) RB I think Stradford High and went to Vandy. He was just smooth and had a Walter Payton type running style, not that he was Walter but just he made moves with no effort, just fun to watch.

I hope I got the names and schools correct. Just my opinion so who is yours?

David Grogan, we beat them at LC my senior year in the first round of the playoffs. I believe they made it to the Clinic bowl, played at Vanderbilt then, beat a loaded Riverdale squad with Fernando Bryant, Gerald Griffin and Antron Peebles. Grogan was for sure all state and I think might have been Mr football in 5A.

 

[ArdentVol]

You hang around west Knoxville a lot? Fulton? Graduated with Tim, a year behind Phil (though his twin sisters were in my class), way before Rocky, and Chip left Bearden in Jr. high as required by Webb, but he still backed up a year there. I was one of his targets on the playground in elementary school and at the G.R. Lebo football training thingy after school behind Sequoyah elementary in 5th or 6th grade. Overweight but had good hands. Saw FB and BB games with Bill Young, went to school with his wife at Bearden, and watched Justus and Widby in BB in HS and of course UT. You put a serious strain on my way back machine.

underweight with bad hands at that time. Overweight now and hands still fail me

went to sequoyah elem and knew some guys who play for lebo during that time
dpnt think youll ever find a sequoyah kid on a football list, and west's high only contribution to Division I football was Chuck Ramsey, who sometimes shot baskets at my parents house . Except for trips home while I was away at college, ive basically y been awa.y since 1972, Did get to see Leroy Thompson and Reggie College play HS ball hile coming home for Vol games. Garner was the best athlete I played against in HS.

btw. love the lake guntersville area

 

[JohnWardForever]

Jimmy Wigfall 1969 South Pittsburg State Champions. Wigfall did it all; Offense & Defense. Coach LP Beene (UT 1929) called Jimmy "The biggest little Man in the United States".

 

[Mccage]

Albert Davis, Alcoa 1965-67 RB

I was about to type same thing....Hoss!!

 

[UTfan94]

In no particular order
Scotty Witt
Travis Cozart
Dustin Moore
Jermain Copland
Todd Helton
Birdi Dockery

 

[NighthawkVol]

underweight with bad hands at that time. Overweight now and hands still fail me

went to sequoyah elem and knew some guys who play for lebo during that time
dpnt think youll ever find a sequoyah kid on a football list, and west's high only contribution to Division I football was Chuck Ramsey, who sometimes shot baskets at my parents house . Except for trips home while I was away at college, ive basically y been awa.y since 1972, Did get to see Leroy Thompson and Reggie College play HS ball hile coming home for Vol games. Garner was the best athlete I played against in HS.

btw. love the lake guntersville area

I hear Guntersville Lake is haunted. Because it's full of the bodies of reporters who tried to blow the whistle on Alabama's cheating football program.

 

[Sivad]

Yep. He was a hoss in youth baseball too....when he could control his temper back then. He was a man among boys at 14.

And Will Medling who coached Milan back in the older days told a funny story....He said he took his Milan team over to Brownsville to play and Brownsville was No.1 and that was before classification...Coach Medling said 'when his kicker put the ball on the tee to kick the opening kickoff there was a train just starting to pass right outside of the stadium...When the caboose finally came by we were down 35-0!'

LOL. The field is still beside those same tracks

 

[SuzyVol]

You hang around west Knoxville a lot? Fulton? Graduated with Tim, a year behind Phil (though his twin sisters were in my class), way before Rocky, and Chip left Bearden in Jr. high as required by Webb, but he still backed up a year there. I was one of his targets on the playground in elementary school and at the G.R. Lebo football training thingy after school behind Sequoyah elementary in 5th or 6th grade. Overweight but had good hands. Saw FB and BB games with Bill Young, went to school with his wife at Bearden, and watched Justus and Widby in BB in HS and of course UT. You put a serious strain on my way back machine.

Can't believe you and #ArdentVol don't have Jack Stroud on your list.

 

[barknoxbrawler]

Trevon Rybka from Dickson County. Plays for Kentucky now.

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

underweight with bad hands at that time. Overweight now and hands still fail me

went to sequoyah elem and knew some guys who play for lebo during that time
dpnt think youll ever find a sequoyah kid on a football list, and west's high only contribution to Division I football was Chuck Ramsey, who sometimes shot baskets at my parents house . Except for trips home while I was away at college, ive basically y been awa.y since 1972, Did get to see Leroy Thompson and Reggie College play HS ball hile coming home for Vol games. Garner was the best athlete I played against in HS.

btw. love the lake guntersville area

Moved from G'ville in 2005. Great place to live and raise kids, except for dealing with in state tuition.. therefore my girls are Aubies.

I met Chuck a few times I believe.... I thought he lived at one time next door or close to a friend just behind the Hollywood Cream Bar not far from Pond Gap School. I left for Belmont in 69' returned in 2006 with most of my adult life centered on work out of Huntsville AL.

Met very briefly with Phil a couple of years back when they dedicated or re-dedicated the Bearden BB complex for him. He was the most versatile athlete I knew as QB, shortstop, point guard for us. Of course OUR Bearden was 5 milies up Kingston Pike. My class closed down the old school.

 

[Orange Floyd]

Hubert Simpson. If only he would have had his head on straight.

Hubert Simpson. If only he would have had his head on straight.

Played little league against Hubert, still have his cleat prints on my chest. His play against Notre Dame was only a sample of what could've been.

 

[Boone&Crockett]

Andy Kelly and Shazzon Bradley, I was a freshman so I saw some great games. Best player I actually shared the field with in a meaningful game was Shawn Summers

Same, I watched Andy play alot in high school, Shazzon Bradley on a couple occasions and a kid from Jefferson County who made it to the pros from that Era, can't remember his name tho

 

[tombowalker]

I remember being blown away by Joey Matthews at Sevier Co.

 

[amaralfan1]

When I was working at the CBS Affiliate in Knoxville back in the late 2000s, I took an informal poll of our sports team on this very question. The consensus among out three sports reporters/anchors was that the best HS player they had seen was Travis Cozart. They described him as being unbelievably good at Lenoir City and thought he was a sure-fire NFL prospect.

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

Can't believe you and #ArdentVol don't have Jack Stroud on your list.

Jack was behind me, and my career was ended in 8th grade by injury only shortly before by lack of athletic ability would have. But I did block for him that last year. I loved Jack. Never best buds or anything but was connected and I was devastated when another Knoxville guy just casually shared his death while attending Belmont. I watched him from the stands move lots of piles in HS with those ever powerful legs. Will always wonder what he might have accomplished if not for that minor shoulder surgery with a pentothal reaction.

 

[AndyMizunogolfer]

I saw Jahmyr Gibbs run for 300+ yard in a Dalton High School win over R.L. Osborne in 2019. Jahmyr Gibbs ran for 2,554 yards and 40 touchdowns during his Senior season with Dalton. I think He was the fastest,slickest running back that i've ever seen play high school football.View attachment 521568

Jah was legit from peewee all the way through. Pruitt screwed this one up royally.