Simmons is one of the most productive linebacker recruits in the country.
Jahvoni Simmons is one of the top linebackers in the nation, and is receiving some major interest from high-level college football programs for the class of 2015.
Simmons attends Virginia Beach (Va.) Ocean Lakes High School, and is projected to play inside linebacker at the next level, though Scout lists him as a middle linebacker. He's nearly a consensus four-star, receiving the rating from Rivals, Scout and ESPN, while 247Sports considers him a three-star. Scout, Rivals and ESPN all rank him No. 4 at his position. The 247Sports Composite, which aggregates the ratings of all four major recruiting services, considers him a four-star, rating him as the second-best inside linebacker in the nation and the seventh-best player in the state of Virginia.
Simmons claims offers from Clemson, Alabama, Miami, Michigan State, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Tennessee and Virginia, among others.
Note: Recruits commit and decommit throughout the process. No effort is made to note commitments or decommitments in these scouting reports. All we note is claimed offers at the time of evaluation.
There is a lot to like about Jahvoni Simmons.
He has good size for the linebacker position at 6'1, 235. I do not know how much bigger he will get in college, but he already is well muscled.
Simmons makes a lot of tackles. He lines up at inside linebacker for his high school team, and really has a nose for the football. He accomplishes this mostly via using his quickness. Simmons seems quicker than fast, however, and I question his top-end speed and wonder if he is a true sideline-to-sideline linebacker at the college level.
Simmons is good at slipping blocks or taking them on with power. And when he gets to the ball carrier, he delivers a blow.
In coverage, Simmons shows good instincts when dropping back in zone coverage. He's able to cut between the quarterback and receiver, and picks up those running through his zone. I don't know if Simmons is as good as a man-to-man defender, however, as that would ask him to run with players for longer stretches.
Simmons is a fantastic high school player who is capable of being productive at the BCS level.