Scouting 2024 Tampa Wharton Prospects: Gage, Parks, and Pickett, Jr.
The first full weekend of Florida high school football is underway. The Friday night contests across the state of Florida gave a glimpse at the talent the Sunshine State offers. Case and point, the Tampa Jesuit Tigers playing at the Tampa Wharton Wildcats.
Wharton has a roster with several other talented players beyond those listed below like quarterback Jackson Jenson and running back Nahiem Doctor, both class of 2024 prospects. Not to mention, national cornerback recruit Dijon Johnson from the class of 2023.
With those prospects in mind, this article focuses on three more 2024 prospects representing Wharton.
The three players are listed in alphabetical order.
Stacy Gage Running Back
For the first half of the contest, Jesuit keyed on Gage’s every move. He was met in the backfield during several runs from the first half. It did not deter the elite recruit.
He’s shifty during one-on-one situations and powers through tacklers for extra yardage. In short, Gage should be considered a traditional workhorse running back, yet one with modern skills as a receiver out of the backfield.
Gage continued to help his team by carrying out fakes during play-action passing plays, moved to receiver to catch a pass, and eventually broke a couple of runs through sheer perseverance and the offensive line providing more room to run.
As one can see in the video at the top of the article, Gage is a downhill runner that thrives on contact while also choosing his runner lanes well. As a receiver, Gage catches the football well before once again becoming a running back with the football in his hands.
As for recruiting, Gage has strong family ties to the state of Oklahoma, and that’s one of the programs he is familiar with. Florida, Ohio State, and numerous other programs are making a run at the national recruit.
Gage did let it be known to Inside The Knights that he is not focusing on recruiting right now. He has not even narrowed his list to five or even 10 schools. He could end up with more than 40 offers.
Arkese Parks Wide Receiver
Speed. Lots of speed. That’s the first item to note about Parks’ game. In fact, he scored the first touchdown of last night’s game on a bomb in which he ran by the entire Jesuit secondary.
A former defensive back that’s made the transition to receiver, Parks catches the football away from his body and quickly transitions to being a playmaker looking to make defenders miss.
He’s also a talented return man. During one particular punt return, Parks made two quick jukes that left Jesuit defenders grasping at air. Anytime he touches the football, he’s a threat to score.
Parks is just starting to pick up recruiting steam. UCF, Florida State, Ole Miss, Penn State, Louisville, Georgia, Michigan and Michigan State are some of the offers for Parks.
Booker Pickett, Jr. Defensive End
Although he’s currently undersized at 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds, Pickett is a jet off the edge. The frame is what catches one’s eye. Pickett can easily add 30 pounds, perhaps more.
He recorded 22 sacks last season and he used his speed and athleticism to create havoc against Jesuit to start 2022 off well. Coming into the contest, it was interesting to think about how he would attack Jesuit’s line because he had to know Jesuit would make him a primary player to double team, chip, and run the football away from him.
Using his long arms, Pickett did a nice job of keeping offensive linemen away from his chest, and he shot gaps when possible. He also scraped and moved down the line against running plays.
Pickett's pursuit and toughness against the run actually stood out even more than his pass rushing capabilities. He was pressuring the quarterback consistently, too.
While his specific sack total is not known by Inside The Knights, it’s most important to note that Pickett’s ability to penetrate with inside and outside moves help display why he has offers from numerous programs.
UCF, Miami, Florida State, Tennessee, Georgia, Colorado, Michigan, Pittsburgh, Penn State, Southern California, Ohio State, Notre Dame, North Carolina and Ole Miss are just a few of his offers.
Projected UCF Offensive Depth Chart
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