Two games are in the books for 2019 defensive end Keith Randolph and his Belleville (Ill.) West Maroons, both wins. Randolph is off to a strong start in his second season playing football.
The first thing that jumps out at you on Randolph's film is his initial quickness. He's a basketball player, and that raw athleticism is what drew football scouts to him. He has the suddenness to put himself up-field and in the thick up plays from the snap.
His short quickness in pursuing the football suggests four-star physical ability. He gets to top speed in a hurry. I also like his ability to use his lateral quickness to navigate traffic, and he takes good angles. This is a knee-bender type of athlete who can chase the football.
Randolph is still raw, however, and his playing in his just his second season on the gridiron after focusing on basketball. He has good size for the strong-side defensive end, but we want to see him add the upper body strength to hold the point and neutralize blocks. He's a bit high when taking on blockers. We love how he keeps his eyes on the ball-carrier, though, and he uses his hands to pull and jerk blockers away.
He's aggressive for a converted basketball player and a wrap-up tackler. Over time, he'll become more of hard hitter and be better in close-quarters. Right now he uses his long arms to gobble up ball-carriers in space and wrestle them to the ground.
We see Randolph playing mostly in space in this video: As scouts in the Southwester Conference see more of him, expect more double teams.
It's clear on film why Illinois coaches love this kid. He needs coaching, but he has great potential as a pass rusher at either defensive end spot, and the frame to play inside at the 3-technique with a bit more bulk. The 3-star (5.7) ranking is about right, but this is a kid with the ability to move up in the rankings with continued improvement.
Next up for Belleville West is a road game at Fort Zumwalt West (O'Fallon, MO).
