SI All-American Candidate CJ Dippre Highlights and Evaluation
Prospect: ATH CJ Dippre
Projected Position: Tight End
Status: SI All-American candidate
Vitals: 6-foot-5, 245 pounds
School: Jermyn (Pa.) Lakeland
Committed to: Maryland
Frame: Tall and well put together. Good width across shoulders, chest. Powerful, tightly-wound lower half, with natural size. Room for more mass, but emphasis will be quick-twitch muscle.
Athleticism: Extremely coordinated. Runs with rare sense of balance for big man. Strong. Adequate short-area quickness. Shows average play speed at best, though prep coach boasts of 4.67 40-yard dash this past winter. Very good hand-eye coordination.
Instincts: Refuses to go down on first contact as ball-carrier. Devastating stiff arm. Not a home-run threat and lacks wiggle, but can pick up straight-line chunks. Hands catcher. Comfortable bringing down jump balls in crowd; uses size to box out defender on end-zone fades.
Polish: Played more quarterback than tight end for Lakeland as junior. Needs to develop, hone route-running ability. Blank slate as in-line blocker, but has tools, disposition to thrive.
Bottom Line: Dippre is an intriguing developmental tight end, especially if his speed improves with additional training. Could see field early for Maryland as short-yardage quarterback while developing positional traits. Boasts starter potential, though could ultimately serve as quality, versatile depth piece.