Inside the Lab: 2021 Florida State recruit Jaydon Hood

It’s that time of the year again, ladies and gents.

The time when Seminole Nation is excited about recruiting offers, visits, and good ‘ole honey fried chicken. Well, technically this is a year-round occurrence, but FSU sends a massive amount of offers out around this time of the year to talented prospects. Many have already garnered national attention, some are more locally known and others are yet to truly be discovered.

Luckily, TN is here to unearth those prospects who need a little bit of love. You’re welcome.

What we aim to consistently bring is top-notch analysis, based on unbiased, objective observations. Couple this with real-time updates, and you end up with Christmas in the off-season. Every interview is substantiated, with real quotes. Every prospect is evaluated, with descriptive markers. Best of all? Each prospect is measured through positional factors that churns out a numerical value. The purpose? To put an end to the “all 3 stars are created equal” argument.

Again, you’re welcome.

Specifically, the Inside the Lab series brings just that: a focus on a rating system that analyzes a player’s positional skill-set, in an effort to generate a national rating. This includes a ‘behind-the-scenes’ algorithm, with weighted values, contingent upon how “critical” a value is to a particular position. For example, coverage skills for a CB are more critical, in comparison to a MLB, and are denoted appropriately.

Let’s take a look at how this work, by introducing our first prospect: Jaydon Hood.

Jaydon Hood,

6’1, 212 lbs, c/o 2021

St. Thomas Aquinas High, Ft. Lauderdale, FL

Major offers: FSU, Alabama, LSU, Miami, Penn State, Michigan

Watch for yourself: https://www.hudl.com/video/3/9686556/5de7c2a632e6a8105c4d692d

Hood is an exceptional talent, as it doesn’t take long to figure that out after turning on the tape. Hood totaled 115 tackles last year, to go with 7 sacks, 25 TFL, and a pick.

However, he’s not all brawn, sporting an impressive 3.8 GPA. A standout in the classroom, Hood equally stands out on the football field of a powerhouse program. He epitomizes the type of player that you do NOT want to line up against play after play. Additionally, Hood might arguably be better suited under an Emerging Prospects post, as he is not well-known on a national scale yet. However, when watching his film, you immediately conclude that there must be something wrong with the rest of the world.

Although it may seem difficult to get a great read of exactly how good Hood is because his rating has not been posted by many of the recruiting services yet, we have you covered. So, how good is Hood?

Let’s take a look:

That hit is enough reason alone to take a coffee break (but, keep reading because I spent ample time putting this article together!). The acceleration, closing speed, form tackle, violence... It truly is a thing of beauty.

And it gets better.

Quickly recognize a tunnel screen. Check. Accelerate and close on the receiver before the pass is even complete. Check. Make sure he has alligator arms for the rest of the game. Checkmate.

The above clip is beautiful for several reasons. First, I love LBs that meet the ballcarrier behind or at the LOS. This shows awareness, recognition, and reaction. Secondly, upon their “meeting,” Hood drives the ballcarrier backwards, showing his strength, explosiveness, and physicality when attacking.

In this clip, focus on how he plays the triangle. Hood initially identifies the guard, then sees the RB flare out the backfield into the wheel. Once Hood sees the RB continue vertical, he accelerates through the hole to the QB for a sack. Just a very disciplined and intelligent play.

With all of the clips I have shown you, they still only tell half the story. As it stands, Hood has not yet been rated by most of the national ranking services. As a result, it is difficult to see where he actually compares to nationally well-known recruits. Luckily, we are able to manipulate the data, yielding a soft projection of his ranking, based on his skill-set. With that let’s go Inside the Lab.

As you can see, although Hood is not yet rated, my projection is that he will end up as one of the best players in the entire country. In fact, his projected ranking would insert him as one of the Top 20 players in the country, as well as #2 overall from the LB group. Additionally, I believe that he would be an awesome addition to pair with Branden Jennings.

Expect more big boy offers to keep rolling in for him.

*Disclaimer: The above ranking projections are exclusive to officially.back and do not reflect the general opinion of TomahawkNation or SBNation.