It can be hard enough to keep track of very good receivers on the field. Occasionally, they also are on the move in transferring schools.
One especially noteworthy change in Savannah came before the 2023 high school football season, when highly-recruited wide receiver Thomas Blackshear switched from Benedictine to Calvary Day.
Instead of catching passes for the Cadets and Florida State-bound quarterback Luke Kromenhoek, Blackshear was a target in his junior season for the Cavaliers and Tennessee-bound QB Jake Merklinger.
Blackshear contributed to Benedictine’s 2022 GHSA Class 4A state championship team, and he impacted Calvary Day’s run to a 13-1 record and the Class 3A semifinals in 2023.
Despite dealing with injuries, Blackshear hauled in 27 catches for 551 yards (20.4 yards per catch) and five touchdowns in eight games.
The 6-foot-1, 197-pound is ranked in 247Sports’s composite rankings as a three-star recruit, the No. 359 player in the Class of 2025, the No. 55 wide receiver in the country and the No. 42 player in Georgia.
With a slew of scholarship offers from college programs including Florida State, Tennessee, Alabama, Auburn, Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, South Carolina, Vanderbilt and Virginia Tech, Blackshear verbally committed in May to Georgia.
The senior is one of many top wide receivers, tight ends and all-around athletes in the Coastal Empire returning for the 2024 season, including on his own team.
Edward “Doopah” Coleman (5-11, 185) also was limited by injury in his junior season at Calvary. He played in only five full games as a WR, running back and kick returner and still recorded 29 catches for 340 yards and two TDs, and rushed 18 times for 147 yards (8.2 ypc) and four TDs.
The 247Sports’ compositive rankings have Coleman as a three-star recruit ranked 764th in the country, 119th at wide receiver and 89th in the state. He has more than 20 college offers.
The senior pair should help the Cavaliers’ passing game with the absence of graduated seniors Michael Smith (33 receptions, 772 yards, 11 TDs) at tight end and Caden Arnold (56, 1,058, 12) at wide receiver.
Benedictine didn’t have Blackshear last season, but Kromenhoek did have fellow seniors La’Don Bryant (36 receptions, 590 yards, nine TDs in 12 games) and RaSean Matthews (21, 386, five, 12).
The 2023 season also was a breakout for then-sophomore Chris “Bubba” Frazier, a speedy two-way player dangerous in the open field. He caught 53 passes for 753 yards (14.2 ypc) and four TDs, and also rushed 29 times for 316 yards and three more scores in 14 games.
The 5-10, 165-pound junior got an offer in June from Georgia, joining a growing list that includes Memphis, USF, UCF, FAU and Georgia Southern.
The Cadets, with new starting QB Stephen Cannon, will have a new weapon in Josh Washington, a junior transfer from Savannah Country Day who has long been on college recruiters’ radars. A two-year starter for the Hornets, Washington had 38 receptions for 445 yards and six TDs in 11 games, and also had 22 carries for 99 yards and another score.
Savannah Country Day also will be without the graduated Keith James (51 receptions, 793 yards, nine TDs in 11 games).
The Cadets’ Frazier, Washington and senior Jack Ganem will be primary receivers, with head coach Danny Britt also expecting senior tight end John Lilly to play a “big role” in the passing game.
Michael Hogan, Eron Mallard, Micah Williams and Jojo Sutton also are potential contributors.
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New Hampstead has some big holes to fill with the graduations of standouts Jaylen Hampton (73 receptions, 1,158 yards, 14 TDs in 10 games) and Malachi Lonnon (57, 967, 11, 11).
Quarterback Rashawn Truell, after a spectacular first season as the starter, returns with the reliable Kamari Maxwell also back for his season year. An all-around talent as a receiver, defensive back, kick and punt returner, Maxwell caught 40 passes in 2023 for 734 yards (18.4 ypc) and nine TDs in 11 games. He also rushed 38 times for 294 yards and four TDs.
Tight end Nate Pearson, listed as 6-3 and 220 pounds, played just five games his sophomore season but caught nine passes for 125 yards and two scores. Receiver Ben Hockman is another player to watch this coming season.
On the subject of tight ends, Savannah Christian senior Logan Brooking already has made name on offense as well as on the defensive line.
Listed at 6-4 and 215 pounds, Brooking caught 38 passes for 544 yards and three scores in 14 games.
Brooking, who has committed to Clemson from a deep list of offers, is rated in the 247Sports’ composite as a three-star prospect, the 482nd player in the Class of 2025, the 27th tight end and 55th player in Georgia
He wasn’t the first option, or the second, as the Raiders’ featured a highly-productive rushing attack. The passing game had South Carolina-bound senior receiver David Bucey (56 receptions, 809 yards, six TDs) as the primary threat on the outside.
Kenry Wall (5-7, 160) was a threat, period, in his junior season as a defensive back, kick and punt returner, running back and receiver. He had 19 receptions for 500 yards (26.3 ypc) and five TDs, and 111 carries for 1,116 yards and 15 TDs as the Raiders advanced to the GHSA Class 3A state championship game.
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Bethesda Academy won its first SCISA Class 2A state football title in 2023 with major contributions from many players at the small school.
Among them were seniors Thomas Peters, who had 38 catches for 769 yards (20.2 ypc) and seven TDs, and Caleb Dillon (26, 487, 18.7, four).
The Blazers will look to junior Raleigh Wesley and sophomore Jadon Turner (each listed at 5-9, 155).
They also got an infusion of talent in running back Assir Best and receiver Christian Vaughn, both senior transfers from Memorial Day School. Vaughn had 27 receptions for 276 yards and three touchdowns in 12 games last season.
The Memorial Day program, which has moved to eight-man football, also graduated standout Julien Zamora, who had 34 receptions for 685 yards and five TDs in 10 games in 2023.
Richmond Hill’s Nick Bliss was the definition of a football athlete on offense, defense and special teams. He impacted the passing game with 46 receptions for 540 yards and four TDs as a senior in 2023.
The Wildcats have senior QB Kirk Scott returning, and he has a familiar target in senior Brandon Mcdonald (5-11, 182), who had 18 receptions for 217 yards and three TDs in 11 games.
Bradwell Institute graduated standouts in quarterback Christopher Garrett and wide receiver Bryant Thomas (45 receptions, 695 yards, eight TDs). Tyon Jones broke school receiving records his junior season, when he caught 45 passes for 1,000 yards (22.2 ypc) and seven TDs in 10 games – that’s an average of 100 yards per game.
The Tigers’ rival Liberty County likewise graduated a stellar QB in Carlos Singleton and receivers in Ron Golden (33 receptions, 347 yards, four TDs) and Jeremiah Payne (24, 561, seven).
Look for seniors Jaden Hurd and Ryan Golden to step up.
Jenkins has a host of players expected to make impacts whether catching or running the ball, including junior Domonique Johnson and seniors Trenton Rhodes and Coray Stafford.
Savannah High senior Stephen Fox Jr. (5-10, 170) also is proven contributor as a receiver and rusher.
Groves will look to seniors Makel Brown (25 receptions, 284 yards, two TDs in 10 games) and Avion Dillard (12, 239, three, nine).
Effingham County, which graduated standout senior QB Nate Hayes Jr., does have a trio of senior receivers to watch in Jacques “Q” King (6-1, 165), who had 18 receptions for 213 yards and one score in nine games; Ryan Wells (6-1, 185), who made 18 catches for 318 yards and two scores in nine games; and Lamar Roberts (6-2, 170), who had 13 receptions for 318 yards and three TDs in eight games.
Photo Credit: Richard Burkhart courtesy Savannah Morning News
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