The Garcia Awards: OT7 Finals
FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Whereas the event wound up as the newest notch on the belt for an all-time 7-on-7 run from Lo Professional, the highway to Sunday night featured jaw-dropping performs, constant performances and new names to know from the nationwide occasion.
Rivals seems to be again and dishes out some {hardware} of its personal after taking in every day of the motion.
OT7 FINALS: Recruiting Rumor Mill | High performers from opening day | Garcia’s takeaways from Saturday
CLASS OF 2026 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Workforce | Place | State
CLASS OF 2027 RANKINGS: Rivals250 | Workforce | Place | State
THE BREAKOUT: Derrick Baker
The South Florida native is ready to kick off the autumn as QB1 at Milton (Ga.) Excessive College, however he’ll have some additional momentum going into his junior marketing campaign within the Peach State. Baker is well-built at about 6-foot-1 and 225 kilos, however his tempo, precision and development in piloting the Cam Newton offense went from good storyline to constant risk towards the nation’s elite membership groups.
Baker was a real level guard on grass, directing site visitors and executing to all three ranges en path to C1N’s semifinal run. Loads of presents are already in for the 2027 passer, who additionally confirmed off his wheels when blitzed, as early relationships at Florida State, Indiana, Virginia Tech and others have his consideration.
MR. COMPETITIVE: Briggs Cherry
The four-star Louisville dedication confirmed nice drive on the soccer and loads of belief in his arm expertise all weekend lengthy. Cherry wrapped up the playoff run as the one main passer within the nationwide event to have made profitable stops on the Elite 11 Finals, Rivals 5-Star and OT7 Finals.
Regardless of extra quantity of throws than simply about any quarterback within the nation throughout that stretch, Cherry was nonetheless pushing the ball deep with ease nicely into Sunday afternoon. The competitiveness and head-turning expertise has different applications checking in on the Cardinals dedication.
SNAG CITY: Devin Fitzgerald
This setting offers loads of footballs within the air, revealing these with polish amongst those that could battle the soccer some. The latter by no means comes up with the son of the NFL legend, who have to be uninterested in listening to these comparisons at this level.
Nonetheless, the way in which Fitzgerald finishes performs is one thing his previous man would certainly respect.
The four-star, who could also be trending to Notre Dame, plucks the ball away from his physique on routine. He can work the sideline with physique management, go up and get it, or observe it in stride with true consistency.
SPIDEY SENSE: Joey O’Brien
It doesn’t matter what place a defensive again could occupy, the instincts one exhibits when the soccer is within the air can turn out to be the distinction between a move breakup and an interception – and O’Brien had loads of every over the weekend.
The OT7 Defensive Participant of the 12 months saved a few of his finest juice for the ultimate event of the season whilst onlookers anticipated him to make that sort of impression. O’Brien’s size and set off permits him to play the seam downhill however he additionally exhibits lateral vary and true ball expertise towards different ideas.
There was some cornerback discuss and even offensive packages for the Notre Dame dedication, however his free vary recreation as a excessive security is definitely probably the most constant on this setting.
WALK IT, TALK IT: Brysen Wright
It would not take lengthy to listen to the 2028 prospect demand the soccer on a given play nevertheless it additionally would not take lengthy for Wright to make a type of ‘wow’ performs all the identical. On a Miami Uncooked roster loaded with blue-chip move catchers, it is the 14-year-old who splashed as a lot as any huge receiver on any roster over the weekend.
Wright is open even when he would not create separation, which is not typically, and when the ball is within the air he comes down with it nicely greater than not. He performs with emotion and an edge that is probably not for everybody, however there additionally aren’t many defensive backs who confirmed a capability to sluggish him down regardless of his youth.
THE TELEPORTER: A’mir Sears
The 7-on-7 setting is offense-driven and other people need to see factors on the board, however sure prospects make it that a lot tougher to perform. Sears is certainly one of them within the secondary and he exhibits it in working all around the discipline for Miami Uncooked.
Elite anticipation and an much more elite wingspan permit for Sears to take actual probabilities on the soccer from each depth and beneath in protection. The freshman had the interception of the event in baiting OT7 MVP Maika Eugenio over the center earlier than tipping the soccer to himself and corralling it on the way in which again down.
Sears would get his arms on loads of passes and even flash on offense as a receiver earlier than all was mentioned and achieved.
THE CANNON: Trae Taylor
The rising-junior Nebraska dedication has had some sturdy showings all through the offseason circuit and he saved his hottest run for a piece of championship Sunday. Taylor has work to do from a consistency standpoint like most younger passers, however when he was requested to fireside the soccer with velocity and/or to the third degree he could have been the perfect in present regardless of a loaded discipline.
Taylor can rip the soccer by means of the air with out a lot wasted movement and he got here out of the gates with that mentality on Sunday, notably with speedy Ohio State huge receiver dedication Jamier Brown. That might be among the many most dynamic duos on the circuit subsequent offseason given their youth.
BLURRRRRR: Bryan Hamilton
Pitt could have discovered one other steal within the Sunshine State with the Tampa (Fla.) Gaither star wideout. Hamilton made performs all around the discipline in serving to his crew make a deep run within the event, however his assertion performs shared one factor in frequent – he bought behind the protection.
Hamilton, who touched sub 4.5-seconds within the 40-yard sprint in February earlier than clocking a ten.66-second 100 meter sprint in March, confirmed it wasn’t simply offseason work and as an alternative it continues to translate.
The improved ball expertise on prime of the pure velocity compelled loads of ‘who’s that?!’ moments from onlookers near our place this weekend.
CAPTAIN CLUTCH: Maika Eugenio
The tip of the 7-on-7 run for one of the vital embellished gamers within the setting ended what number of would have predicted a couple of days in the past – with a event crown. Lo Professional’s undefeated run was a little bit of a breeze in pool play nevertheless it got here with loads of competition on Championship Sunday.
Eugenio led the crew to quarter and semi-final wins on walk-off passes. The Hawaii dedication was particularly clutch towards Uncooked Miami, the place he was as soon as down a pair of scores earlier than forcing extra time and ultimately firing a sudden-death dime to ship the native program residence.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Zyren Menor
There’s a notion that the OT7 champs trot out a roster that does not have a lot FBS expertise on it for these occasions however that actually just isn’t the case. There may be additionally formally a brand new Energy 4 prospect on that roster in rising-sophomore huge receiver Zyren Menor.
This system’s main move catcher was not possible to overlook because the occasion wore on, beating defenders down the sector with velocity as a lot as he discovered the outlet within the zone to snag a rating.
The sturdy route-running and even higher arms Menor showcased led to a proposal from the Miami Hurricanes earlier than Lo Professional traveled again to the West Coast.
