Core6 Top Performers

WATERFORD, Mich. - Core6 is a training program based out of Illinois that is now starting to branch out into Michigan. Their mission is to provide athletes with the necessary resources to achieve their athletic goals through elite physical training and personalized mental guidance. Their goal is to successfully develop each athlete on and off the field. They held their first 7-on-7 tryout in Michigan last night and while the cold and a little confusion about the venue kept the numbers down a bit, 11 athletes were in attendance competing for a spot on the 20-man roster.

Tryout Highlights

Top Performers

The most impressive athlete in attendance was Farmington (Mich.) junior wide receiver Desmond Fitzpatrick. The three-star Louisville commit was simply a smoother, faster, bigger prospect than anyone else trying out. During route drills he didn't drop a pass and showed his natural pass-catching ability by snaring every ball with his hands only. Not one pass got into his body during drills or 1-on-1's. Fitzpatrick is ranked as the No. 9 player in the state of Michigan and at 6-1, 188-pounds, a strong senior season could see him climb up those rankings. His commitment to Louisville is strong, but new interest from bigger programs, including Michigan, could get his attention.

With Alex Malzone enrolled at Michigan the quarterback position is up for grabs at Bloomfield Hills (Mich.) Brother Rice. One possible replacement is Johnny Tracy. The sophomore signal-caller has a bit of an unorthodox delivery but was deadly accurate throughout the tryout. He was visibly upset with himself if his ball was just inches off of perfect. At 6-2 and 185-pounds he already has better size than Malzone did as a sophomore but it remains to be seen if he'll have the confidence, command, and in-game accuracy that Malzone did. Tracy is also expected to have some competition for the starting job from classmate Steven Krajewski.

The only linebacker in attendance for the tryout was Detroit East English Village junior Devin Waldon. The 5-11, 220-pounder wasn't able to use his biggest asset, his strength, in a 7-on-7 setting, but he held his own more than he didn't against smaller, quicker receivers in space. Waldon has a tremendous upper-body build and runs pretty well for his size. He has some issues with quick changes in direction in the open field but participating in 7-on-7 camps will help to improve that. He holds one Division II offer from Tiffin but is also hearing from DI schools like Purdue, Toledo, and a little bit from Michigan and Michigan State.

Another Farmington Falcon, junior defensive back Justin Collins, showed great quickness and very fluid hips during his tryout. He had an extremely fast back pedal and showed good burst when breaking on the ball. Collins is small at just about 5-7 and 160-pounds, but he was in great shape and played with great technique. He got beat a couple of times by bigger receivers which is a concern for him at his size. Overall though he was the best cover guy at the camp.

Finally, the last player that seemed to stand out among the others was Walled Lake (Mich.) Western junior defensive back Darnell Lanier. At 5-10 and 205-pounds Lanier definitely looks more like a safety with his thick upper-body but he showed some ability to cover one-on-one in space against speedier receivers. It was easy to see that when closing on receivers he wanted to lower the boom but without pads that simply wasn't part of the drill. He has long arms and decent speed but did a great job of staying close to receivers with his physicality. He looks like a potential MAC player but currently has no offers.