Ashton Lampkin is another one of those guys that is simply a very good football player (like Jacobs and Ramacher) and a very underated prospect. Other than McNeil, I am not sure that there was a better safety prospect in Texas this year. Although he has enough cover skills to possibly play corner, he probably will slide back to safety where his combination of skills could be put to use really well; in fact, you may see him emerge as a nickel back early in his career. It's very easy to see him as a guy that would excel against slot receivers in third down situations.
This young man has really good intangibles. Among them is his instinct in zone coverages, particularly when covering underneath routes that are so prevalent in spread attacks. When you watch him on film you see that his route recognition is good enough to break on routes often before receivers. He has enough lateral quickness and closing speed to get to the spot to make a play, and when he doesn't get there first, he brings a very physical, sure tackling presence to the field. {Are you beginning to note the trend of smart defenders who are 'good open field tacklers' in this class?}
He was among the first prospects offered and committed in this class for a reason. He basically shut down recruiting early, but was still getting a lot of high major offers and interest. The OSU staff sees him as a guy that could be a ball hawking safety on the backend of the defense that is also able to come up into the box and play the run very aggressively. The more you watch him on film, the more impressed you become with him. He is a consistent playmaker on defense. It's really hard to understand how a kid from Dunbar could fly a bit under the radar, but he did.
The nice thing about the secondary positions this coming year is that OSU has quality starters and some proven depth. Newcomers will not HAVE to play. That said, Lampkin has the type of skills that could make him a valuable contributor on special teams in addition to a backup to Imade at Nickel. In a couple of years, he should be ready to move into a significant role in the secondary, and I expect him to play well.
This young man has really good intangibles. Among them is his instinct in zone coverages, particularly when covering underneath routes that are so prevalent in spread attacks. When you watch him on film you see that his route recognition is good enough to break on routes often before receivers. He has enough lateral quickness and closing speed to get to the spot to make a play, and when he doesn't get there first, he brings a very physical, sure tackling presence to the field. {Are you beginning to note the trend of smart defenders who are 'good open field tacklers' in this class?}
He was among the first prospects offered and committed in this class for a reason. He basically shut down recruiting early, but was still getting a lot of high major offers and interest. The OSU staff sees him as a guy that could be a ball hawking safety on the backend of the defense that is also able to come up into the box and play the run very aggressively. The more you watch him on film, the more impressed you become with him. He is a consistent playmaker on defense. It's really hard to understand how a kid from Dunbar could fly a bit under the radar, but he did.
The nice thing about the secondary positions this coming year is that OSU has quality starters and some proven depth. Newcomers will not HAVE to play. That said, Lampkin has the type of skills that could make him a valuable contributor on special teams in addition to a backup to Imade at Nickel. In a couple of years, he should be ready to move into a significant role in the secondary, and I expect him to play well.
