I went up to Gilbert last night to check out Higley and a few of the Arizona targets playing for Bryce Gilbert's former school. Jason Harris is in Colorado and he is injured anyway so he wasn't there but I did get a chance to see the two 2018 kids with offers on the team (Draycen Hall and Avery Demmons) as well as 2019 DE/TE Ty Robinson. I'll have more in the War Room and in separate articles but here's a little rundown for you of each guy who I also spoke with after the game.
Draycen Hall (2018/RB)
I saw a lot of Branden Leon in Hall last night but there are some elements of JJ Taylor as well. He certainly puts up some JJ Taylor-like stats and last night it was hard to truly evaluate him because of how easy the touchdowns were coming. He's definitely a speed guy and a hard downhill runner. He's smallish but definitely not as small as Taylor in terms of height. He has a similar build and is a lot stronger than I anticipated. Higley uses him in the ways Arizona would use him having him line up in the slot at times and also carry the ball out of the backfield. Hall is definitely someone I could see fitting into the scheme easily and he's the type of back it wouldn't hurt to have on the roster. He produces and that typically will translate to the next level. He had 277 all-purpose yards last night that included 201 on the ground to go with five touchdowns.
Hall said he is working with the coaching staff on setting up an official visit out to UA and right now that is where his focus is at with his recruitment although he said there are some more schools starting to get involved including ASU.
Avery Demmons (2018/DT)
It was my first chance to see the Higley defensive tackle and I now understand why Arizona offered him. Demmons is a massive kid and stands out on the field. It's a no-brainer offer from a size perspective. However, if the Wildcats eventually land him don't expect him to be someone that can get right on the field as a freshman just because he has great size. He wasn't particularly impressive last night. He got swallowed up quite a bit by smaller offensive linemen and really wasn't able do what you would think he would be able to with that size advantage. There were a couple flashes of a Power Five-level player but he would not be the answer to problems right away. He's going to be more of a project. He doesn't quite have the technique dialed in yet and he plays a little too high for my liking but I could see what Vince Amey and the coaching staff saw. You can't teach that size and if he can be developed he has a chance to be really good he's just not there right now.
He didn't sound like a kid who has had much contact with Arizona as of late. It sounds like UA has backed off some since offering him but he said he's not going to take a look at his recruitment until after the season is over.
Ty Robinson (2019/DE)
The junior defensive end was easily my favorite of the trio last night. He made a ton of strong plays including picking up a couple sacks and he looks the part in every way of a kid who has the chance to blow up. Robinson has great size and was almost just as big as Demmons when they lined up next to each other. Like a lot of prospects that young he still has some things he needs to fine tune with his technique but he is well on his way. He has a strong motor and plays with pretty good pad level. He's going to be someone who attracts a lot of attention moving forward and he already has a handful of Power Five offers from UA, ASU, Iowa State and Cal. He said Notre Dame is starting to get more involved now as well.
As of now he said Arizona is up there for him but there is a long way to go before he makes any kind of decision. He didn't do it much Friday night but Robinson also plays tight end and he looks the part of that position as well maybe even more than a defensive end. However, he said his preference is to play defense. He said Nebraska and TCU are two programs he has liked and would be a couple dream offers for him.
Draycen Hall (2018/RB)
I saw a lot of Branden Leon in Hall last night but there are some elements of JJ Taylor as well. He certainly puts up some JJ Taylor-like stats and last night it was hard to truly evaluate him because of how easy the touchdowns were coming. He's definitely a speed guy and a hard downhill runner. He's smallish but definitely not as small as Taylor in terms of height. He has a similar build and is a lot stronger than I anticipated. Higley uses him in the ways Arizona would use him having him line up in the slot at times and also carry the ball out of the backfield. Hall is definitely someone I could see fitting into the scheme easily and he's the type of back it wouldn't hurt to have on the roster. He produces and that typically will translate to the next level. He had 277 all-purpose yards last night that included 201 on the ground to go with five touchdowns.
Hall said he is working with the coaching staff on setting up an official visit out to UA and right now that is where his focus is at with his recruitment although he said there are some more schools starting to get involved including ASU.
Avery Demmons (2018/DT)
It was my first chance to see the Higley defensive tackle and I now understand why Arizona offered him. Demmons is a massive kid and stands out on the field. It's a no-brainer offer from a size perspective. However, if the Wildcats eventually land him don't expect him to be someone that can get right on the field as a freshman just because he has great size. He wasn't particularly impressive last night. He got swallowed up quite a bit by smaller offensive linemen and really wasn't able do what you would think he would be able to with that size advantage. There were a couple flashes of a Power Five-level player but he would not be the answer to problems right away. He's going to be more of a project. He doesn't quite have the technique dialed in yet and he plays a little too high for my liking but I could see what Vince Amey and the coaching staff saw. You can't teach that size and if he can be developed he has a chance to be really good he's just not there right now.
He didn't sound like a kid who has had much contact with Arizona as of late. It sounds like UA has backed off some since offering him but he said he's not going to take a look at his recruitment until after the season is over.
Ty Robinson (2019/DE)
The junior defensive end was easily my favorite of the trio last night. He made a ton of strong plays including picking up a couple sacks and he looks the part in every way of a kid who has the chance to blow up. Robinson has great size and was almost just as big as Demmons when they lined up next to each other. Like a lot of prospects that young he still has some things he needs to fine tune with his technique but he is well on his way. He has a strong motor and plays with pretty good pad level. He's going to be someone who attracts a lot of attention moving forward and he already has a handful of Power Five offers from UA, ASU, Iowa State and Cal. He said Notre Dame is starting to get more involved now as well.
As of now he said Arizona is up there for him but there is a long way to go before he makes any kind of decision. He didn't do it much Friday night but Robinson also plays tight end and he looks the part of that position as well maybe even more than a defensive end. However, he said his preference is to play defense. He said Nebraska and TCU are two programs he has liked and would be a couple dream offers for him.
