Saturday, January 12, 2013

Recruit Profile: Lester Liston

Linebacker Lester Liston of Grand Blanc, Michigan (which happens to be the hometown of Twitter legend Karl Welzein) became Rutgers' 16th 2013 commit back in September. Liston committed Cincinnati in 2012, but he did not qualify and he had to attend Hargrave Military Academy in Chatham, Virginia as a post grad this year. While in high school, he forged a strong bond with current Rutgers' linebacker coach Dave Cohen while Cohen was coaching at Western Michigan, and although he didn't pick the Broncos a year ago, he "wanted to play for him, but was not sold on Western." He committed as soon as Cohen made him an offer on the Knights' behalf. He had 98 tackles as a senior at Grand Blanc High.

Measurables: 6'2 215 lbs 4.94 40 yard dash

Stars:

Rivals
ESPN
Scout
247
3 star LB
3 stars, #50 OLB, #9 in MI
3 stars, #56 OLB
3 star ILB, #23 in VA

Offer Sheet: Liston also had offers from Akron, Bowling Green, Cincinnati, and Western Michigan. It's unclear how much his qualifying status effected his list of offers.

Scouting Report: Liston is a very physical player who has a thick, stocky build. He is a violent hitter, delivering some crushing blows while leading with his shoulder, but he needs to work on his tackling technique, as he hits high and does not always wrap up. He is very good at disengaging from blockers, using both his strength and his excellent hand work, allowing him to make a lot of plays. His hand work also makes him a good pass rusher, with the swim move being his go to technique. Liston has plenty of speed and athleticism, and thus is a very good player in space, capable of containing the edge. He also has great closing speed, allowing him to play sideline to sideline and catch ball carriers from behind. He has pretty good instincts diagnosing run plays, and he is instinctive and fluid when dropping into coverage.

Video:

My Take: Liston is a very strong player with good size, and he probably will not need to redshirt, as he is enrolling early. He could contribute right away on special teams, and with Rutgers losing a bunch of guys at linebacker, he could also make the two deep. With his ability to disengage from blockers, play in space and cover, he should be able to play either middle linebacker or strong side linebacker. He is a solid all around player, and he could become a starting caliber player if he improves his tackling technique. Liston also marks Rutgers' first inroad in the midwest, an area that will be more accessible to Rutgers as they make the move to the Big 10 in 2014.

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