NJ Player of the Year has no offers from D1 schools

A 5-9, 195-pound senior out of Freehold (N.J.) Boro, Worthy led New Jersey in rushing yards – 2,806 rushing yards and 41 rushing TDs – while also throwing for 2,106 yards and 20 additional TDs, completing 69.4 percent of his passes in 2017.

I think he blossomed a little later then normal, because most of his 4 year Stats come from this season.

Over his four-year career, Worthy has rushed for 5,902 yards, 80 rushing TDs, has 3,034 passing yards and 30 passing TDs, 20 catches for 276 yards and four receiving TDs, 17 tackles and five interceptions, two of which were also returned for scores.

Apparently he has some academic struggles, and being 5'9" is hurting him. Sounds like a good candidate for PWO status. I find it amazing he has no offers at all. Coaches think hes an excellent all around person.

Ashante Worthy

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Comments

being 5'9 is hurting him

if he even is 5'9"

"Why gobble gobble chumps asks such good questions, I will never know." - TheFifthFuller

Darren Sproles is 5'6". If you're good, you're good. Height can't be the only reason .

Yeah but he's the exception to the rule.

Faulk, LT, Sanders, Emmitt...

Yeah how many others 5'6 guys who try out for football actually make it? you've added more to that list that played after each other / not at the same time. You continue to list exceptions.

A lot of people want to play football who are much larger than 5'6 that don't make it, let a lone smaller dudes. You make it seem like 5'6 guys in the league are the norm.

Also listed all running backs and not QBs

"Why gobble gobble chumps asks such good questions, I will never know." - TheFifthFuller

Also worth noting that, in the legal world, a few counterexamples are not sufficient to disprove a correlation. More often than not, height is an important factor.

Sorry, I thought the OP said he was 5'9", not 5'6", and I assumed the discussion was around RB, not QB. I was just trying to point out that Sproles isn't "the" exception since I could think of a handful of others off the top of my head who are similar in stature.

Obviously, 5-foot-anything is a liability playing QB. My bad for not reading closely enough.

Well, CPJ would probably be calling if his grades were up to GTs standards. JC is always an option at this point, or else a BCS team, like JMU.

"That man was violating a city ordinance, and I was just doing my duty to enforce it." - Mike Curtis

I mean all the option schools should look at him. Army, Navy, GiT

If he's struggling academically, that's a stretch at best

"Why gobble gobble chumps asks such good questions, I will never know." - TheFifthFuller

Yeah, Georgia Southern may be more his speed if that's the case.

The Orange and Maroon you see, that's fighting on to victory.

If he has academic issues, those aren't exactly the schools you expect to look at him.

If you play it, they will win.

"How the ass pocket will be used, I do not know. Alls I know is, the ass pocket will be used." -The BoD

If he's having academic struggles in high school, West Point, The Naval Academy and GT are probably not the place for him to play at the next level.

Based on the article, it does seem that Rutgers is taking another look at him. If he doesn't end up in FBS, there are plenty of good FCS schools who can offer a scholarship too.

EDIT: DRINK!

Also mentions PITT is reopening their recruitment to him.

He probably would be best suited to go to Troy, as they aren't as tough academically, and have a reputation for taking the kids that are good enough to compete in FBS, but can't make it academically.

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I am still trying to rap my head around those numbers. They are crazy.

61 total TDs in 1 year! Almost 194 yds. short of a 3k rushing season.

Absolutely mind boggling!

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I wanna say Darren Evans had 60TD's his senior year as well.

"Yeah, it do." - Mike Vick

Yup, Darren Evans Bio:

High School: The 2006 EA SPORTS National Player of the Year ... A PARADE All-American as a running back ... An All-America and All-Midwest Region selection by PrepStar ... As a senior, rushed for 2,806 yards and a state record 61 touchdowns, the No. 4 total in U.S. prep football history ... Voted The Indianapolis Star Indiana Mr. Football his final year, earning 94 percent of the votes cast by coaches and media across the state ... As a junior, rushed for 2,148 yards and 39 touchdowns en route to earning all-state honors ... Earned Player of the Year honors as a sophomore after rushing for over 2,000 yards ... Rushed for 7,220 yards and 127 touchdowns for his career, leading his team to four Class 5A state championships ... Had 40 runs of 50 or more yards in his career ... Rated the No. 2 player in the state of Indiana and the No. 27 running back in the country by Scout ... Listed as the No. 26 running back in the country and the No. 2 player in the state of Indiana by Rivals.

Damn! This kid threw for over 2k on-top of having the exact same rushing record as Evans his senior year.

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to be fair, worthy had 41 touchdowns rushing

"Why gobble gobble chumps asks such good questions, I will never know." - TheFifthFuller

I'm still shocked that Darren didn't make a career in the league.

Hard to say what would have happened with that all-time loaded backfield along with Ryan Williams and David Wilson if he had stayed. But from a purely NFL-ready standpoint, Evans definitely left too early for the NFL. Going undrafted really hurts your career prospects.

Shyrone Stith, Darren Evans and Jerod Evans are the top examples I can think of for VT players making bad decisions to leave early.

I used to be with it, but then they changed what it was. Now what I'm with isn't it, and what's it seems weird and scary to me.

I feel like there is a HS player like this every year that has all the accolades and stats, but no offers.

NJ talent from the public schools are very often overlooked. Knowshon Moreno came out of Middletown South as a 4* and only had 6 scholly offers.

Outspoken team cake advocate. Hates terrapins. Resident Macho Man Gif Poster. Distant cousin to Dork Magic. Frequently misspells words.

I knew Knowshon, from growing up in the Jersey Shore. Coached with his Pop Warner coach, who also coached Donnie Brown, and Kenny Cathouse.

Anyways, while working for the the VT football team, I saw Knowshon out one night and showed him my sugar bowl ring, and he told me he was interested in getting one of those, and he was thinking about going to Tech.

Fast forward about a year later, when we were in thick of a recruiting battle with Georgia for him, I asked Coach Hite, if I could help because I knew him a little bit. He said it wasn't worth the time, because he couldn't pass algebra II and wouldn't be able to qualify academically to go to Tech.

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Don't know about Knowshon's academics, but I've seen current players' stuff. Knowshon would have made it.

Outspoken team cake advocate. Hates terrapins. Resident Macho Man Gif Poster. Distant cousin to Dork Magic. Frequently misspells words.

He said it wasn't worth the time, because he couldn't pass algebra II and wouldn't be able to qualify academically to go to Tech

That explains why his nickname at UGA was "Knowshow"...as in, Knowshon no-showed class again today.

Yeah - if you've got the size and talent to play in NJ, the private schools like Bergen Catholic, St. Peters, and Don Bosco Prep etc are the highest level of talent -- or else players will try to go places like IMG. Minkah Fitzpatrick grew up in my town but went to St. Peters. Artur Sitkowski (4* QB) played a few seasons for my town's high school before moving to IMG and committing to da U (and then flipping and signing for Rutgers today).

HAVING SAID THAT... VT has done alright getting talent from NJ public high schools. Ryan Malleck played at Point Boro, Bryce Watts played at Toms River North, and Jason Worilds played for Carteret

"Why gobble gobble chumps asks such good questions, I will never know." - TheFifthFuller

Seems like Rutgers would reel him in.

I mean, what are they waiting for?

5'09 in a HS bio means he is 5'07 when he gets to campus.. that and the fact that there might be some grades issues is why the P5 is not interested.

Sam Rogers was well-accoladed before walking on at VT and had very few D1 offers. This kid'll find a spot somewhere and hopefully do great things.

A decade on TKP and it's been time well spent.

He didn't have the measurables

Free Hugh

Or 2 children before he got to college. Which could be another factor to why he isn't getting any looks.

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Only because you can't measure heart and passion.

I'll stick this right in the middle of this sub-thread.

Even when you get skunked; fishing never lets you down. 🎣

A coach said 'its like NASCAR....they got these templates and they lay 'em down on the cars. If it doesn't size up, it don't race.'

Not fair, or always accurate, but that's what they do.

I mean, it's taking a huge risk on a project. Yes, this guy balls out on competition his size. But what do you do when everyone is bigger and stronger and your freak athleticism that always let you win in the past just makes you "good enough?"

It would be like staying are you going to bet on the stock car or the VW Buggy. Sure, the VW may have been suped up and has a ton of motor, but can it compete with a frame designed for this type of work.

Outspoken team cake advocate. Hates terrapins. Resident Macho Man Gif Poster. Distant cousin to Dork Magic. Frequently misspells words.

What exactly is the risk? If he doesn't cut it he ends up like the dozens of other recruits in each school's recruiting classes that don't contribute.

The risk is that you go to your head coach and say 'take a chance on this kid' and he doesn't pan out, and head coach says 'you don't know what you're doing' and you don't climb the ranks.
And the risk is that, in your position room, you only have so many kids and they've all got 4, maybe 5 years...you take a kid that's coming out ready to produce, versus maybe 2 years away....
The risk is that you waste a precious scholarship on a kid that doesn't pan out and then the next few years you're screwed because you have no depth and God forbid there's an injury in the 2 deep....

The margins are soooo thin in the game now...

I believe He was asking what's the risk of extending a PWO to a kid like this. Not a scholarship

EDIT: looking back, that was in no way implied. I guess I just inferred it because that's my stance on the subject

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Prob could play RB, Prob wants to play QB.

That makes coaches and recruiters steer clear.

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Exactly what I was thinking when I saw his stat line.

No, I *don't* want to go to the SEC. Why do you ask?

We don't love dem Hoos.

2 words - Andre Kendrick

Didn't Elijah Davis have the 2nd most yards inbred country this year? I don't think he has a FBS offer

What have you been typing that made autocorrect think inbred was the word you were after?

Get off my search history!

Well we did play WVU again this year. I know my texts resuscitated some some rarely used words.

Plan for the worst and hope for the best, not the other way around.

He has one FBS offer from ODU and one from Liberty who will be FBS soon.

Plenty of Va POY haven't gotten offers. Even though not with numbers quite like that. Football is an odd sport in that someone who dominates at one level often cant get on the field at the next. We've had luck with guys like that Darren Evans, Peeples(sp), Rogers but we have also had some busts from the big number guys. And we have passed on a bunch who never played a college down anywhere.

I'm actually surprised Marshall hasn't offered him. If there is a 4-star player with any academic troubles keeping them away from other D1 schools, Marshall gets them in the door, redshirts them so they can get their grades up, and then they play. I'm sure some of y'all remember the name Jaquan Yulee. It came down to VT and Bama, but he ended up qualifying for neither. Now he is at Marshall. I'm sure this guy could compete in the Conference USA.

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Formerly known as JWillHokieAlum.

I wouldn't object to a PWO. You don't post those numbers if you aren't talented. (I'm also in the PWO for LaLa camp).

PWOs suck up resources, just like any other player.

If they're not going to be top notch, may not be worth the risk. That's just the way it is. Just making the playing field isn't really enough.

Still need the academics for PWO, right? I'd look at FCS or JC, get the grades up, then transfer to a D1 school if that's what he wants, and the opportunity is there.

"That man was violating a city ordinance, and I was just doing my duty to enforce it." - Mike Curtis

That does seem to be the way to go, doesn't it? Shows his recognition of the seriousness of his academic shortcomings, and provides a path to mitigate them, which also shows a strength of resolve and dedication. As for his stature, it's not whether he can ball, obviously he can ball, but where? It's like selling something. It is only worth what somebody will pay for it, and that's just the way the world pretty much works. I wish him luck.

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