In a well-played game, the East’s superior skill position players overcame a gritty West squad to win 28-20. The game matched two of the best offensive coaches in the state in innovative Chris Beatty of Landstown for the East and wide-open Rob Senseney of Gretna for the West. The multiple-formation offense of the East rolled up 446 total yards in a balanced attack, while the run-and-shoot offense of the West managed 290 yards, mostly through the air and on quarterback scrambles. The execution of the game was surprisingly crisp considering the sophistication of the offenses. Only one turnover occurred in the game on a nice interception by the West’s Bryan Webb from Salem HS.

Led by the Virginia Tech trio of Greg Boone, Elan Lewis, and Victor “Macho” Harris, the East squad raced out to a 21-0 lead in the first half and coasted to a relatively easy win. Co-Offensive MVPs for the East, Greg Boone of Oscar Smith HS and Kevin Cousins (Penn State) from Huguenot HS, connected for two touchdown passes – the first on quick hitch pattern in which Cousins spun quickly away from a defender and raced 15 yards into the end zone and the second on an 80-yard fly pattern that Cousins made a beautiful one-handed catch and shook off the defender. East Defensive MVP, Macho Harris of Highland Springs HS, also played extensively on offense and accounted for the third first-half touchdown, catching a flare pass from Landstown QB Marcus Black and evading several West defenders on a highlight-reel 27 yard run.

The West squad narrowed the score to 21-6 at the half on a 56-yard drive culminated by a 2-yard pass from West co-Offensive MVP Brad Robbins (Western Carolina) from Powell Valley HS to William Fleming HS wide receiver Mijuan Curtis (North Carolina A&T). The extra point was blocked by DE Zach Sanchez (Hampden-Sydney) of L.C. Bird HS. The East came right back on their first possession of the second half driving 73 yards with the score coming on a 17-yard pass from Marcus Black of Landstown HS to A.C. Fitchett of Manassas Park HS.

The West showed good spirit, rallying back on a 12-play 66-yard drive led by co-Offensive MVP QB R.J. Archer (William & Mary) of Albemarle HS ending on a 2-yard plunge by RB Matt Nickerson (William & Mary) of W.T. Woodson HS. The West made the two-point conversion on a pass from Archer to Luke Spurlock (Emory & Henry) of Powell Valley HS. The West scored at the very end of the game on a fourth-down 12-yard slant pattern from Brad Robbins to WR Boscoe Williams (James Madison) of Alleghany HS. The extra point was blocked by LB Trae Kenney (James Madison) of Hermitage HS. In the other award for the night, CB Nick Olivero of Woodbridge was named the West Defensive MVP for breaking up a couple of passes and making several tackles.

East – Kevin Cousins 15-yard pass from Greg Boone (Steve Phillips kick); 9-play, 72-yard drive; Key Plays: 14-yard run by Victor Harris, 22-yard run by Elan Lewis, 23-yard run by Sean Smalls

East – Victor Harris 27-yard pass from Marcus Black (Steve Phillips kick); 7-play, 65-yard drive; Key Plays: 11-yard run by Victor Harris, 7-yard third-down run by Greg Boone

East – Kevin Cousins 80-yard pass from Greg Boone (Steve Phillips kick); 1-play, 80-yard drive

West – Mijuan Curtis 2-yard pass from Brad Robbins (kick blocked); 7-play, 56-yard drive; Key Plays: Bryan Webb interception and 20-yard return; 16-yard pass from Robbins to Jacques LaBoone, 26-yard pass from Robbins to Boscoe Williams, 9-yard run by Cain Ringstaff to the 5

East – A.C. Fitchett 17-yard pass from Marcus Black (Phillips kick); 8-play, 73-yard drive; Key Plays: Backward pass from Marcus Black to Willie Bell who threw a 23-yard pass to Zach Terrell; 10-yard run by Zach Terrell; 9-yard run by Elan Lewis; 9-yard run by Victor Harris

West – Matt Nickerson 2-yard run (Luke Spurlock pass from R.J. Archer); 12-play, 66-yard drive; Key Plays: 16-yard scramble by R.J. Archer; 11-yard scramble by R.J. Archer; 21-yard pass from R.J. Archer to Seth Chapman; 16-yard pass from R.J. Archer to Boscoe Williams; 7-yard run by R.J. Archer to the 2

West – Boscoe Williams 12-yard pass from Brad Robbins (kick blocked); 8-play, 69-yard drive; Key Plays: 32-yard run by Brad Robbins, 16-yard scramble by Brad Robbins

Rushing:
East – Elan Lewis, 5 carries for 67 yards
West – Brad Robbins, 6 carries for 62 yards
East – Victor Harris, 4 carries for 46 yards
West – R.J. Archer, 4 carries for 35 yards
East – Sean Smalls, 3 carries for 34 yards
East – Trayce McPherson, 8 carries for 28 yards
West – Cain Ringstaff, 5 carries for 23 yards

Passing:
East – Greg Boone, 5-6-0 for 107 yards and 2 touchdowns
West – Brad Robbins, 6-11-0 for 76 yards and 2 touchdowns
West – R.J. Archer, 5-5-0 for 66 yards
East – Marcus Black, 6-8-1 for 56 yards and 2 touchdowns
West – Matt Shawver, 3-7-0 for 32 yards

Receiving:
East – Kevin Cousins, 3 receptions for 98 yards and 2 touchdowns
West – Boscoe Williams, 5 receptions for 70 yards and 1 touchdown
West – Seth Chapman, 4 receptions for 54 yards
East – Zach Terrell, 3 receptions for 33 yards
East – Victor Harris, 2 receptions for 27 yards and 1 touchdown
East – Elan Lewis, 3 receptions for 26 yards
West – Curtis Mijuan, 2 receptions for 15 yards and 1 touchdown

On offense Harris essentially played Percy Harvin’s position in Chris Beatty’s Landstown offense, lining up as a wide receiver, running back, or even the quarterback in the shotgun. He is incredibly quick and elusive with an explosive burst and the ability to accelerate away from defenders. Harris is basically a play-maker with the ball in his hands. He is a versatile ball-carrier, gaining 14 yards on an option keeper, 11 yards on an inside counter play, 9 yards on a sweep, and 12 yards on a reverse. Harris also has good hands and is exceptionally dangerous in the open field. On his 27-yard touchdown reception he caught a flare pass coming out of the backfield and made five or six players miss making a couple of incredible cuts. On offense Harris compares favorably with Reggie Bush of Southern Cal in his versatility as a running back and wide receiver as well as his deceptive speed.

Harris also returned punts but he was never able to break free. The West did an excellent job of coverage and did not allow Harris to get into the open field. The only discernible weakness that Harris might have is that he is constantly looking to make a big play and he will have to learn that sometimes you just have to take the yardage that is available. However, his potential is clearly evident as a return specialist and he could see early action on special teams at Tech.

Projection: Harris is projected to begin his career at the field corner, but his play at free safety in this game would clearly make him a candidate at that position as well. If he can learn the defensive system quickly, then he might project as the potential starter at safety before the year is out. Unquestionably, he will see the field early for Tech and, at a minimum, would be the nickel back at the beginning of the season. His offensive potential cannot go without notice as well. He could play wide receiver or running back in spot duty as well and I would be fairly certain that he will see quite a bit of action with the ball in his hands during his career at Tech. Not many players have Harris’ talent, but the one player that comes to mind is Charles Woodson, formerly of Michigan. I would expect that Harris’ career will closely mirror Woodson’s at Michigan.

Greg Boone (6-4 265), Oscar Smith – a huge and exceptionally talented athlete, he looked impressive on the field both running and passing the ball. Boone only played quarterback (except for one play at fullback) though he obviously could play a number of positions based on his size and athletic ability. He has a very strong arm and surprising mobility for a player his size. Most of his passes were shorter throws in the flat, but he effortlessly threw the ball 50-60 yards on the fly-pattern completed to Kevin Cousins. Boone still has a lot of work to do on his throwing mechanics, but the potential is unmistakable.

While his throwing motion appears okay, Boone still needs to improve on his footwork. He needs to set up more quickly and to not rely just on his arm strength. He also must step up in the pocket when pressured and not just to look to run. Boone has a tendency to look to run if the first or second option is not open (Tech had some player named Vick who had that same tendency), but that behavior is typical of high school quarterbacks. He also appears to set up too deep in the pocket, as evidenced by two times he was sacked when he had set up 10 yards deep, making him vulnerable to an outside rush. While Boone still has some work to do on his mechanics, his decision-making and leadership skills were clearly evident. He shows a lot of poise and presence on the field.

Boone’s running ability also deserves mentioning as he made several nice scrambles for first downs. Obviously he is a load to bring down, but he can elude tacklers and he has decent speed, particularly for a player of his size. On short yardage situations, the East often called for Boone to make the yardage on the ground, even lining him up at fullback one time. He can also run the option and shows good ball-handling ability. His size and athletic ability create some interesting options for an offensive coordinator.

Projection: Greg Boone and Ike Whitaker will have an interesting competition since both are similar in ability and potential right now, even though physically Boone is much larger. Both quarterbacks have some work to do on their throwing mechanics and footwork, so the one that makes improvements the fastest will likely take the lead. While Boone had much more success in this all-star game than Whitaker had in the Good Samaritan Bowl, Boone had a much stronger supporting cast, so I wouldn’t draw any conclusions from these results. Both quarterbacks will need a redshirt year to develop and the competition in a couple of years with Sean Glennon and Cory Holt will be fun to follow. I would have to give the initial edge to Glennon since he is farther along in his overall skills and knowledge of the system, but any of the four QBs could win the job after Marcus Vick graduates. No matter who wins the starting job in the future, Tech is in great shape at quarterback.

If Boone isn’t in the two-deep after his redshirt-freshman year, I would expect him to move to another position, with tight end or defensive end being the most likely spots. He has the size and athletic ability to play a number of positions, including any along the line. However, don’t count Boone out of the quarterback chase – he has plenty of ability as a signal caller and could easily win the job in a couple of years. The player he is naturally compared with, because of his size, is Daunte Culpepper of the Minnesota Vikings and he could develop into a similar player.

Elan Lewis (5-9 220), Phoebus – the top running back in the state showed that this ranking was well deserved. Lewis is a powerhouse with tremendous leg strength and deceptive quickness; however his best attribute may be his vision. He shows exceptional running instincts in seeing the holes and making the right cuts as well as setting up blocks. While not possessing incredible speed, Lewis is still an excellent open-field runner making players miss and he is almost impossible to arm tackle.

Lewis had a productive game gaining 67 yards on the ground on just 5 carries. He also showed good hands with 3 receptions for another 26 yards. Lewis made his presence felt early in the game when he faked a reverse and turned the play up field for a 22-yard gain on the first drive for the East. He twisted his ankle on a short gain on a pass reception, but returned a little later. He made a strong run on an inside trap gaining 11 yards while breaking a couple of tackles. In the second half, Lewis picked up 9 yards on another fake reverse and later he showed his ability in the open field on a nice play in which Zach Terrell rolled right and threw back to his left to a wide open Lewis, who made some nice moves in gaining 22 yards. Overall, Lewis showed good all-around skills with the ability to run inside or outside as well as catch the ball.

Projection: Lewis should be a productive running back for Tech and should see a lot of action during his career. He is a prototypical I-Back with the ability to run inside or outside. His vision is exceptional and he should be very effective on isolation plays. Lewis will likely redshirt his freshman year given the current depth at running back, but he should be a strong contender to be in the two-deep in his second year. The former Tech player that Lewis is most similar to would be Cyrus Lawrence. Their builds are similar, though Lewis is probably a little bigger, and both were strong, powerful runners with deceptive quickness. From the NFL, Lewis reminds me of Natrone Means formerly of North Carolina who enjoyed a fine professional career.

Brandon Dillard (6-1 170) – played cornerback for the West and showed good coverage skills. Dillard is a recruited walk-on who will get his first chance to shine on special teams. He played gunner on special teams and made a couple of impressive plays including a nice play getting off of a block and dropping Victor Harris for negative yardage on a punt return. He looked good in pass coverage and showed good ball skills. Dillard still needs to work on his technique at corner staying lower in his back pedal, but he has the type of recovery speed you can’t coach. He will likely get his first look at cornerback for Tech, but he could also see action at wide receiver to utilize his speed. He might even get a chance to see action as a true freshman on the punt and kickoff coverage teams.

Chad Carlson (6-3 215), Poquoson – played outside linebacker for the East and will walk-on at Tech. Carlson has a big frame and looks like he could put on considerable weight so he might end up at defensive end. He is a solid player supporting the run but lacks some of the quickness and speed needed for pass coverage. He will likely start out at Mike linebacker, but he could easily grow into a Stud end with hard work in the weight room. Carlson looked to have a great attitude and he was excited to be playing football for Tech.

Travis Nelson (6-1 225), Galax – played defensive end for the West and did a solid job in run support. He will walk-on at Tech and probably play fullback, though he could also play linebacker or defensive end. He is a tough player who stays low and maintains good leverage. He has good quickness and stays after the play. Based on his physical skills, Nelson would likely be an effective blocker. He has good size for a fullback and could probably put on 15-20 pounds more. He is the hustling type of player who has had success as a walk-on in the past.