With competition of college football recruiting at an all-time high, there is no such thing as too much exposure.
And with recruiting hotbeds existing in heavily populated metropolitan areas, athletes in more rural areas such as Plant City often are overlooked.
Gerold Dickens and Hasani Jackson have been doing everything they can to prevent that from happening.
“Coach Dickens and I grew up in this area and have seen how things can be with kids getting swept up under the rug and under the radar,” said Jackson, a former player at the University of Tennessee. “We’re just trying to get these kids out of here and get them exposed as much as possible.”
The two former Plant City High standouts developed what would become Next Level Sports Recruiting in 2007, when they ran the recruiting department at PCHS as assistant coaches for the program, helping players get noticed by college recruiters.
In the last two years, Next Level has grown to a successful three-phase exposure operation, with a camp division (Team Next Level), a 7-on-7 team comprising Plant City-area athletes (Elite Squad) and 7-on-7 U, a statewide high school 7-on-7 tournament series. Dickens and Jackson are state directors for 7-on-7 U, which will hold a tournament for Central Florida high schools in Plant City and send the winner to compete for a national championship in July, in Washington, D.C.
“We aim to get the kids maximum exposure,” said Dickens, a former head coach at Strawberry Crest and a former standout linebacker at the University of Florida. “We use the connections that we have to get the kids involved with the camps,” Dickens said.
Each phase gives a platform for different athletes and position players. Skill players, such as quarterbacks, defensive backs and wide receivers, are shown off in 7-on-7 games and tournaments, while the bigger athletes, such as offensive and defensive linemen, showcase their skills in combines and camps, along with some of the skill position players.
In January, five members of Team Next Level were invited to participate in an NFL-style combine at the Under Armour All-American Football Combine, at Tropicana Field, in St. Petersburg. Those players included Plant City’s Montel McBride and Jyquis Thomas, Durant’s Dontriel Perry and Cody Martin, and Alex Carswell, from Strawberry Crest.
BEST OF THE BEST
The list of talented prospects under Next Level is long, but no two athletes have stood out more than Plant City High’s McBride and Sedrick King.
McBride, a 6-4, 305-pound offensive and defensive lineman, has been reeling in offers this offseason. The junior currently has six offers, including Florida State, Kentucky and South Florida.
“Montel has been our big headliner,” Dickens said. “When it comes to the camps, we make our contacts, and once we make our contacts, it’s up to the prospect to get involved.”
McBride hasn’t just been involved. He’s shined, especially on the offensive side of the ball.
The 2014 prospect took the Top Offensive Lineman Award at the Valdosta MVP Camp, in February, in Valdosta, Ga., and made MVP at the Orlando Nike Camp, qualifying him for the prestigious Nike Training Camp in Oregon.
“Hopefully, I have a chance to go to the open in Oregon and see how things go,” McBride said.
The camp will feature some of the best prospects in the nation, competition McBride already has faced in regional camps.
“I’ve taken away a lot from the camps,” McBride said. “I don’t go in thinking that I’m better than everyone, but I believe that I can compete with them.”
Going into the summer before his senior year, McBride wants to keep his college and position options open. Schools have been looking at him as both an offensive and defensive lineman.
“There is no getting used to getting a college scholarship offer,” he said. “When I hear them actually say the words, ‘We’re offering you,’ that’s when my emotions take over.”
King, McBride’s PCHS teammate, also has been steadily racking up offers. So far, the 2014 defensive lineman has received offers from Rutgers, Central Florida, Memphis, South Florida, Louisville and West Virginia.
“I’m just appreciative of everything Next Level has done for me,” King said. “You never expect the offers to come in or get used to it. It’s just really exciting.”
HAND IN HAND
Next Level Sports operates as an aide to area high schools, with the athletes’ best interests at heart.
“We work with the high school programs and not against them,” Dickens said. “We’re not in competition or anything like that. We do this for the kids and will work with the high school programs and support whatever they’re doing.”
That starts with keeping the players on track with their high school programs, including participation in spring and summer conditioning.
“Here, we enforce whatever they’ve been saying to them,” Dickens said. “We tell them that their programs come first, and ours actually comes second. We make sure they do everything right and are on good terms with their programs, and then, they are allowed to come out here and use some of the connections and networking that we have to help get their name out there.”“>http://ivedaenterprise.com/otkrit-raschetniy-schet-onlayn-1.php