SI All-American Candidate Jakailin Johnson Highlights and Evaluation

Jakailin Johnson is a cornerback prospect from De Smet Jesuit High School in Creve Coeur, Mo. Johnson is an SI All-American candidate.

Prospect: Jakailin Johnson
Status: SI All-American Candidate
Vitals: 6-foot, 168 pounds
Position: Cornerback
School: Creve Coeur (Mo.) De Smet Jesuit
Committed to: Ohio State
Projected Position: Cornerback

Frame: Thin with solid length in arms and definition. Tight torso and waist, with athletic lower half. 

Athleticism: Shows quick feet and good balance, along with good lower-half coordination. Works to get solid off-hand jam on man during stem. Hips are loose and allow him to turn and run to carry downfield. Fair recovery quickness and aims flat to undercut interior breaking routes. 

Instincts: Very patient when working as a squat defender in soft-man. Uses solid motor and step-replace technique to mirror. Fights to stay between man and ball on third level. Good ball skills. Will attempt to arm-bar his man downfield while getting his head around to locate ball consistently. Does a good job of using proper inside arm/hand to initially play ball with good leap timing. 

Polish: Plays both to boundary and field, and will align in press-man technique over 1 versus trips. Plays mostly man concepts, mixed with some cover-4 concepts. Needs to acquire more strength and bulk to hold up as a tackler on collegiate level. Must improve at fighting to stay square longer in stem and route phases when playing press-man coverage, while ridding himself of occasional 2-hand press. 

Bottom Line: Johnson has solid length and flashes some higher-end instincts and technique in his game. He’s most comfortable as a squat defender in soft-man concepts, where he can use his foot quickness and savvy to make plays. While he must develop more strength, Johnson fits best as a good field or nickel/slot corner at the next level.