Former Scarlet Knight Mason Robinson returns with another film evaluation of a Rutgers commit. This week, Robinson takjes a look at Coatesville (Pa.) defensive back Avery Young.
Strengths: Uses his hands very well. Excellent ball skills. He's always looking to cause turnovers and he's always around the football. He doesn't stay blocked for long and not afraid to get his hands dirty.
Weaknesses: His speed is questionable. He can certainly run in high school, but in college he may be lacking that extra gear to play with some of the faster receivers. Not really his fault, but his team had so many playmakers that he can be forgotten about in games. He can improve on his tackling skills.
Needs to work on: He shows flashes of having good patience in man coverage, but other times he can seem lazy with his technique. Because the competition isn't the best, he looks like he can get bored and take plays off, especially since his team was filled with playmakers. He won't be able to do that in college. It seems like some plays on his film fell into his lap rather than him actually going to make them. Also, most young players need to work on is their IQ for the game. In youth sports and high school you can play the game off of ability. However, in college and beyond, the game is played from the neck up.
Technique: He has a good pedal. He looks comfortable playing against any receiver. He gets high sometimes which makes him slip out of his breaks and sometimes he can be caught on his heels in his pedal. I think more than his technique, but in his mentality, he's a go getter. That makes up for his problem areas. I would like to see him against some better receivers than the ones he faced off against this season. I like that he showed he can play press coverage and off coverage (Man and Zone). With a few tweaks, this kid can be really special.
Vision: As a DB, he has good vision. When he's locked, in he's on another level. Sometimes he can get caught with his eyes in the backfield. In high school, he can get away with that, but that is something to focus on at the next level.
Your rating (one, two three, four or five star): I rank him a 3 star. On a team full of playmakers, he was able to make plays and not get lost in the mix.
Final Thoughts: Overall, I like this kid. I think he can be a solid player. I wasn't really impressed with the schedule he played against and when the game was on the line, it seemed like other players were making the plays. Although the teams they beat had a decent record (75-59), when I checked out those teams, they had easy schedules as well. A lot of the games seemed like they were blowouts with minimal competition. The competition on the regular season schedule seemed very weak. Outside of the schedule, in which he can't control, he has tremendous upside. I think he has the ability to be special, his work ethic in the offseason and in the film room will dictate how far he goes. Can he be that shutdown corner? I think only time will tell, but he has some learning to do first.
Mason Robinson was a former four-star recruit out of Somerville High School and played at Rutgers from 2007-2012. Robinson owns his own training company called Shock the World and is also training prospects for the NFL at TEST Football Academy in Martinsvile, N.J. He played multiple positions at Rutgers and finished out his career as a cornerback.
