Talented Tyler, Marsh lead area prospects

Names like Kendrell Bell, Corey Chavous, Deon Grant, Carlos Rogers, Ben Troupe and Troy Williamson beef up the area's reputation for football players at the highest level of the game.

North Augusta product Reggie Merriweather shined last season at Clemson. And C.J. Byrd, Marcus Washington (Georgia) and Robert Dunn (Auburn) are on their way to collegiate powerhouses.

This spring has proved there's plenty more where they came from. After the evaluation period, the early read on the 2006 crop of high school standouts looks pretty good.

Ronnie Tyler of Wagener-Salley leads the way at a school not known for upper-echelon players. At least not yet. The War Eagles had their first Division I-A player sign in February with cornerback Channing Schofield's commitment to Wake Forest.

"This year has been much more intense," Wagener-Salley coach Steve DeRiggs said. "Everybody has been on Ronnie early."

Tyler, until recently a running back prospect only, leads the area in offers from major college programs. He has offers from Clemson, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina and Wake Forest. Auburn, Tennessee and Florida are also on the Tyler watch.

The 5-foot-10, 170-pound running back rushed for 1,103 yards on 103 carries and 17 rushing touchdowns, even though he missed two games and saw only one snap in two others.

"I think everybody got a look at Ronnie when they saw Channing Schofield last year," DeRiggs said. "Ronnie is every bit the athlete Channing is. Every bit."

Tyler's 41-inch vertical leap allows him to place both elbows above the rim on a dunk attempt. He impressed at the Nike camp in Athens last week by joining in wide receiver drills.

The reason? Just to get a little more action than the ho-hum circle route running backs go through at the camp.

"One coach told me Ronnie had the best set of hands at that camp," DeRiggs said. "The coaches at Georgia and Florida were impressed when they saw him creeping up in line in the receiver sessions to get more reps."

Tyler was timed at 4.39 seconds in the 40-yard dash. He said there is no leader among his options.

"I just want to be on the offensive side of the ball," Tyler said. "I feel I can make an impact there."

- Josey standout Lawrence Marsh joins Tyler in the heavily-recruited category. The 6-foot-5, 260-pounder has offers from Clemson, Maryland, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Wake Forest, South Carolina State and Tennessee State.

"The one visit I know I'm going to take is to Notre Dame," Marsh said. "I can hop into a car and go to Clemson or North Carolina in a few hours. I can't do to Notre Dame. It's a long trip, and besides I want to see what the tradition I hear about is like up there."

Marsh has gotten his share of interest from the likes of Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Purdue and South Carolina as well. He said those schools have yet to see a copy of his highlight tape.

Marsh showed his agility on the basketball court this year. He can play offensive tackle but he prefers the defensive end spot.

"The coaches like my size and my speed," Marsh said. "I like to run down plays from the backside. The schools like my grades, too. I've got a nice mix of size, speed and grades going for me."

That showed in his 990 on the SAT and 3.0 grade point average.

"I took the SAT as many times as I could sophomore year," Marsh said. "Did the same this year. I got that 990 in January and I was good to go. I've already passed my high school graduation test. I didn't want anything holding me back."

- Lakeside safety Chris Drayton has offers from Kentucky and Louisville. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound safety impressed with a time of 4.51 seconds in the 40-yard dash at the Nike camp last week.

- South Aiken defensive lineman Ben Anderson has already committed to Georgia Tech.

Reach Jeff Sentell at (706) 823-3425 or jeff.sentell@augustachronicle.com.