When you travel as much as Elite Scouting Services does each spring, summer and fall one thing is obvious there is talent to be found at every school. Douglas High School is just another one in Florida that has college coaches coming through their doors this spring. What they will find are some pretty good football prospects. One of the top prospects drawing attention right now is tackle Bryan Paull. He will be leading the way for running backs Alex Crew and Orville Reynolds. When they have to give the ball away to the opposing team, punter Mike Spencer should help turn the field position in their favor. Along with Spencer the Douglas special teams will count on Cory Goldstein. On defense, Douglas will rely on players like linebacker Jake Zalka (2010), Taylor Jobbs (2011) and Justin Birkenholz (2010).

The strength of the Douglas football team will be their offensive backfield. Led by senior Alex Crew, Coach Lang will give him plenty of opportunities to shine. When Crew sits down it will be the Orville Reynolds show. What we like about Reynolds is his home-run speed. Douglas has not had a ton of play-makers on offense recently but that is about to change with Reynolds. 

The prospect drawing the most attention right now is offensive tackle Bryan Paull. He is a 6′5, 275 pound offensive tackle-guard prospect that has seen schools like Wisconsin drawing attention. University of Miami was also able to watch him person this past weekend and you would have to think they liked what they saw from Paul. He moves well for a big guy and has not even come close to his potential. Paul has all the tools that you look for in an offensive lineman.

A relative unknown until his performance last weekend, tight end Daniel Berzone is no longer under the radar. Berzone showed the ability to get open and once he did score. He can play tight end, h-back or possibly even fullback at the next level. His recruitment will heat up during the fall.

On defense the Douglas needs to improve this year. They will count on linebackers Jake Zalka (2010) and Justin Birkenholz. Zalka is an undersized linebacker that plays with heart and toughness. He is not real big but that does not slow him down. Birkenholz was 5′10, 185 pounds last year. This spring he measured in at 6′1, 200 pounds. He looks to lead the Douglas defense in tackles this upcoming season.

When we focused on the secondary, 2011 Safety Taylor Jobb caught our eye. He is a hustle kid who is willing to do whatever it takes to tackle the ball carrier.

When it comes to special teams look for Douglas to be pretty sound this year. Punter Mike Spencer has a D1 leg and should be among the best in Broward County. He did not get to participate in the scrimmage the other day but for those that have seen him punt live realize Spencer is pretty darn good. Not to be outdone is his special team’s teammate Cory Goldstein. We had the opportunity to watch him at the ESS/Big Foot Kicking Camp April 27th and Goldstein did not disappoint.

Final Thoughts: One thing is for certain Coach Al Lang will do his best to lead a Douglas team lacking in talent. His team will be competitive in pretty much every game they play if they keep the ball in the hands of their two talented running backs.  While overlooked by most, Douglas special teams should also keep games close. The question now becomes can Douglas win those close games?