By: Garrett Mitchell, Staff Writer | garrett@thewoodrufftimes.com
With spring football practice starting this week, a number of Wolverine football players competed in the Carolina Coaches Combine at Spartanburg High School last Sunday.
Woodruff was well represented by rising seniors and five talented underclassmen in the event. Tight end Kam Taylor won best overall at his position and measured in at 6-foot-5 inches and 239 pounds.
Meanwhile, middle linebacker Shaun ‘War Daddy’ Graybill took second place overall amongst linebackers and in the bench press lifted 185 pounds for 15 official reps, an elite performance.
Also among the rising senior attendees for the Wolverines were wide receiver Kori Moates, linebacker and defensive end Travon Lee, and safety and punter Jackson McCarley. Each player competed in several events, including lifting, 40-yard dash sprints, shuttle run, and vertical jumps.
The five underclassmen who attended for Woodruff represent the future of the program after the upcoming 2025 season. Rising juniors, running back Aiden Gibson and quarterback Connor Davis, were on hand. Also, there were rising sophomores, defensive back Malachi Thompson and massive offensive lineman Ian Jones.
Gibson established himself as one of the top running backs in the state as a sophomore, rushing for 1,555 yards and 24 touchdowns, and already has multiple Division 1 offers, including Virginia Tech, Alabama, Tennessee, Liberty, and Coastal Carolina.
Jones, who saw significant time on the offensive line as a freshman, measured at 6-feet-2 inches and 305 pounds and bench pressed 13 reps. Jones still has plenty of room to grow, too. Davis clocked in at 6-feet-1 inch and 208 pounds.
Rising junior defensive and offensive lineman Paul Davis rounded out the field of Wolverines and performed well. At 5-feet-10 inches and 222 pounds, Davis packs a lot of power into a compact and physical frame and should make an even bigger impact this season after seeing lots of field time as a sophomore during the 2024 season.
Up next for the Wolverines is spring practice, which starts this Thursday, and beginning in June, Woodruff will compete in a big slate of 7 on 7 passing tournaments as they fine-tune for the season coming up in just over three months.
Author: Tracy Sanders
