The early signing period for football prospects in the Class of 2020 is upon us, and Penn State is expected to bring in a larger-than-usual class throughout the day. On the Penn State blog today, I’ll be breaking down each of the signees. Here is my scouting report on athletic offensive line prospect Jimmy Christ.
Height: 6-7
Weight: 295
School: Dominion HS (Va.)
Projected position: Offensive tackle
Rating: Four stars by Rivals.com and ESPN; Three stars by 247sports
Other offers: Arizona State, Boston College, Clemson, Duke, Florida, Georgia Tech, Indiana Kansas, Louisville, Maryland, Miami (Fla.), Michigan, Michigan State, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Pittsburgh, Purdue, Rutgers, Stanford, Syracuse, Temple, Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Wake Forest, West Virginia.
Projection: What jumps off the film about Christ are the things that make him one of the better tackle prospects in the country. His footwork in the run game is impressive, and while there isn’t much video of him pass protecting, it’s easy to project him as a good pass protector due to how well he moves. It’s rare to see a tackle consistently pull, or block and get out in front of a running back, but that’s the kind of thing that makes Christ so good. He also has a true tackle’s frame; he’s 6-foot-7 with long arms and looks like he can add 20 pounds and still appear rather slender. He needs to refine his game and become a reliable pass protector to reach his ceiling, but there’s plenty of time to get there and he absolutely looks the part. He should redshirt behind a deep offensive line in 2020, but he’s as good a tackle prospect as the Nittany Lions will have on the roster.
Donnie Collins has been a member of The Times-Tribune sports staff for nearly 20 years and has been the Penn State football beat writer for Times-Shamrock Newspapers since 2004. The Penn State Football Blog covers Nittany Lions, Big Ten and big-time college football news from Beaver Stadium to the practice field, the bowl game to National Letter of Intent Signing Day. Contact: dcollins@timesshamrock.com; 570-348-9100 x5368; @DonnieCollinsTT