Three San Diego State football recruits played for the South in last week’s 17th annual Alex Spanos All-Star Football Classic, so with the Aztecs’ fall camp opening on Aug. 10, this seems like a good time for a scouting report from Mike Hastings, the Point Loma High coach.
Hastings served as the South coach for two weeks of practices and the game that the South won 14-0 on Friday at Mesa College.
RYAN LINDLEY, 6-4, 210-pound quarterback from El Capitan High: “Oh, man. I was impressed with Ryan Lindley. That guy has innate leadership ability; the kids gravitated toward him. He takes charge in a good way and gets things done that need to be. He has command of the offense and when he throws the ball he has great accuracy and velocity.
“I think he was better than the billing he had this year; he was under-recruited. People sold him short, saying he was a pocket passer. But he’s a guy who showed in our practices he can get out and run. Our defense was shutting out our offense for four days when we scrimmaged, and when the offense finally scored, it was when everything was covered and he took the ball and ran it in from 10 yards out. He wasn’t afraid to put his head in there. I think he has a very bright future at State. He’s at a level he can go in and compete as a freshman.”
Note: Lindley was 13-of-18 for 161 yards with no interceptions in the Spanos game. He set up two short-yardage touchdown runs with pass completions.
TOMMIE DRAHEIM, 6-5, 260-pound center from El Capitan High: “He’s a big, strong kid and I really liked him. I know he played center in high school, but I can seem him getting bigger and stronger, gaining 30 or 40 pounds, and moving outside to a tackle spot. But right now he’s needs to redshirt and to get his body stronger and develop. He’s got potential, but physically he’s got to get tougher.”
JUAN BALANOS, 6-8, 305-pound tackle from Mount Miguel High: “He’s a mammoth man. He still needs to work on his feet, but he’s a good athlete. I saw him do some things that were impressive. He’s strong and people couldn’t beat him when they tried to take him one on one, but they were able to speed rush him. You saw he had a little trouble on the edge. But he’s got a lot of upside if he can work on his speed and his feet. I heard he might greyshirt (enroll in the spring), but that’s OK. It takes a little longer for offensive linemen to develop. He’s a big, strong kid.”
Two SDSU walk-on candidates Hastings also mentioned were wide receivers Terry Love (6-1, 185) of Bonita Vista and Drew Callejon (6-1, 165), who played for Hastings at Point Loma.
“Terry was a big, physical kid, but he got dinged up in our scrimmage. I was impressed with him in practice before he got hurt. He carries himself well, and I think he’s got a shot at State.
“I think our kid has some ability and ultimately can make it if he sticks with it. He didn’t want to play junior college, so he decided to walk-on. He might make himself into a player or at least a special teams player for State.”