Name: Kevin Shorter
Kevin Shorter scouting report: Explosive 2014 athlete
The Newton star is headed for offense in college.
School and hometown: Newton High School in Newton, Texas
Position: Athlete
Height and weight: 6'0, 186 pounds
Ratings: A consensus four-star prospect in the 247Sports Composite rankings, Porter is the no. 24 athlete nationally and the no. 31 player in the state of Texas, though 247Sports has him a bit higher in both rankings -- no. 12 nationally among athletes and no. 22 in the state.
Offers: Shorter holds offers from Arkansas, Baylor, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Houston, Kansas, LSU, Maryland, Miami, Mississippi State, Nebraska, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, UCLA, and Utah, among others.
Highlights: Hudl
Scouting Report:
One of the top Texas athletes in the 2A classification, Shorter won the silver medal in the long jump last season and looks poised to earn gold during his senior season with the gold medalist graduating. The speed and explosiveness needed for that event transfer to the field, where Shorter excels as a running back for Newton. Listed as an athlete, schools are recruiting Shorter as an all-purpose back capable of carrying the football from the backfield or threatening defenses with his speed as a wide receiver.
The classification of Shorter as an all-purpose back makes sense -- he's a bit high cut for a running back and has a relatively thin lower body, hardly the ideal build for a volume back at the college level. However, Shorter makes up for his build with remarkable lower-body strength, consistently good pad level, and explosiveness that allows him to break tackles at the high school level, though there are some competition caveats inherent for any small-school player.
Shorter is an outside threat for Newton, which likes to give him opportunities to use his speed to take the corner, which he does easily at his level of competition due to his speed and ability to take the edge without losing his top-end speed. As a result, he may have to be careful about wanting to bounce everything outside in college, but he does show the vision to find available creases inside the tackles, as well, and the decisiveness to hit them quickly with a north-south style.
Capable of slide and jump cutting through traffic, as well as stutter-stepping, Shorter has strong lateral movement abilities and good top-end speed that allows him to blow up favorable angles for opponents. As an added bonus, Shorter is clearly conscious of ball security, almost always keeping the ball high and tight to his body, even when unthreatened in the open field, a strong habit that will benefit him as he moves to the next level.
Overall. Shorter projects as somewhat of a niche player, but his skillset is impressive enough that he should be able to carve out an all-purpose role and contribute at a high level because he's more than just a fast athlete with an ideal build for cornerback -- he's a prospect with a number of excellent running back skills.
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