Northeast Fl- For the last three years, Duval Sports has released Madden Ratings for athletes in Northeast Florida and let’s just say it’s been interesting. It’s been a pretty fun story for the young athletes, being able to associate their favorite video game with their own personal athletic achievement. It’s all in fun, and all in the game as EA Sports says. So let’s break down the Madden Ratings, and look at what determines the overall ratings.
Get Your Player Profile Today! Click HERE or Below!
There are three main catagories that determine the overall Madden Ratings listed. Stats, Athleticism, and Opponents. Stats will be listed next to each player. Athleticism is based off what Duval Sports coorespondents have seen in person, or reviewed on Hudl. Opponents is based on strength of schedule and college offered players faced. The overall rating based on those three categories, is what’s shown in the skills bar.
Only the Top 25 players from each position will be listed. Players overall ratings must be graded at 80% or above to be listed. There may be other players graded at 80%, however, only 25 players will be listed. All stats are used from Maxpreps, the official stat provider for the FHSAA. If stats aren’t available, we reach out to each school for stats or simply factor in athleticism and strength of schedule from our coverage or from Hudl. Finally, lets check out the end of the season Madden Rankings below.
The linebacker position is the most difficult to rate in high school football. For one, some player’s stats are inflated by their coaches, creating false tallies for tackles and sacks. To mitigate this, hours and hours of Hudl video was reviewed in conjunction with stats and first hand obervation to detemine the Top 25 Madden Rated Linebackers in Northeast Florida.
Grayson Howard led Northeast Florida in tackles, but his size at 6’3, 210lbs, and speed are what separate him from any other backer in the area. Jamari Whitehead was a big deal going into his senior year with Raines, and he stepped up big leading them in tackles and deep into the playoffs. Our team saw many Trinity Christian games this year, and linebacker Cam Anderson was everywhere on the field. He and Carmello Murphy (Mandarin) are two of the most underrated linebackers in Northeast Florida. They both don’t have the size as Howard and Whitehead, but they are pound for pound the two purest tackling machines in the game. Finally, probably the most versitile backer I saw this year was Rodney Hill of Flagler Palm Coast. Played both sides of the ball and is rated 4-star by 247 Sports. An addition ot the final list is Columbia’s Jaden Robinson (UF signee). The 4-star linebacker recorded 144 tackles, 7 sacks and 2 interceptions, leading the Tigers deep into the playoffs.
You couldn’t watch these teams without noticing the size and range of linebackers Trooper Price ( Ponte Vedra), Lashun Mays (Terry Parker), Trent Carter (Bolles), and Thomas Fore (Jackson). All over 6 feet tall and all covered lots of ground from side line to sideline stopping opponents.
Some of the hardest hitters in the area are on this ratings list. Coaches raved about Lawrence Neloms of Ed White, who changed the face of their defense in the middle. CJ Allen of Sandalwood was the relied upon enforcer for the Saints. The verisitle 2-way player Cortez Martinez had the hit heard around Duval to start the 2022 season to with his 4 interceptions.
@duvalsports Bro got hit into next week!
♬ original sound – Duval Sports
Athletic backers make defenses extremely dangerous and linebackers Ande King ( Ribault), and Lovell Vereen (Riverside) took interceptions back to the house for pick 6’s. Thomas Fore (Jackson), Jeffery Brown (Parker), Luke Thomas (University Christian), and Drake Lusk ( St. Augustine) all showed their ability to flip the field with interceptions.
Seth Chestnut ( Baker County), Jamai Joseph (Fletcher), and Eli Durden (Fletcher), were instrumental to their team’s regular season success, leading to playoff appearances. Dajon Brown (Oakleaf) and Abram Wright (Fleming Island) were two standouts in Clay County making first team all county. All were impressive linebackers this season in Northeast Florida.
