SI All-American Candidate James Wilborn Jr. Highlights and Evaluation
Prospect: LB James Wilborn Jr.
Projected Position: Outside Linebacker
Status: SI All-American Candidate
Vitals: 6-foot-3, 235 pounds
School: Avon (Conn.) Old Farms
Schools of Interest: Rutgers, Penn State, Michigan, Temple, Buffalo and Boston College, among others.
Frame: Good blend of height and natural size. Broad shoulders, wide chest taper to relatively thick waist. Long arms. Tightly-wound, developing lower half. Plenty of room for additional mass, muscle.
Athleticism: Impressive overall coordination. Good burst, with above-average speed. Quick feet in short areas and open space. Fluid when changing directions; loose hips for size. Strong already, with burgeoning power.
Instincts: Physical. Routinely blows up double-teams with strength, agility and effort. Sets edge in run game and quickly sheds to ball. Effective, relentless in backside pursuit. Keen overall awareness; diagnoses fast and changes target with ease. Gets hands up for knockdowns when rush initially stalls.
Polish: Versatile. Consistently affects the run and pass near LOS, and is very comfortable dropping into coverage. Needs better pass-rush toolbox; mostly relies on long-arm if speed move initially stymied.
Bottom Line: Wilborn lacks a degree of explosiveness, but still boasts an impressive collection of athletic traits for an outside linebacker. Physical and versatile enough to play a Power-5 role right now. Projects as a dynamic 3-4 outside linebacker, likely starting multiple seasons and possibly emerging as NFL draft prospect.