Trio of Middletown football players seeing recruitment pick up in offseason
MIDDLETOWN, Del. (BVM) — As one of the best teams in the state of Delaware, it comes as no surprise that the Middletown High School football team has been keeping busy in the offseason. While many high school football players are staying busy through lifting weights and doing drills, others are staying busy on the recruitment trail and that’s just the case for a trio of Middletown players as their stars continue to rise during their down time.
“I think that certainly on the field having talented players helps, I’d be lying to you if I told you it wasn’t,” Middletown head coach Zach Blum said. “I think the really good thing we’ve got going right now with these three young people is they work incredibly hard and they set an example everywhere they go whether that’s in the hallway, in the classroom, on the football field or in the community.”
Seniors Braden Davis, Kody Harris and Olatomiwa Durojaiye have each received at least one Division I offer this offseason with Davis and Durojaiye each receiving numerous Power 5 offers.
Davis is seen across the country as the Cavaliers’ top prize. However, 2020 threw a wrench in Davis’ career plans as the previously announced cancellation of the fall sports season in Delaware saw the then–junior quarterback transfer to Lake Minneola High School in Florida to play a full football season. Of course Delaware would end up playing football this fall, making for a unique situation for both Davis and his team, but the program has welcomed the senior back with open arms.
“Braden was really up front with his teammates and it was a conversation he included me on throughout the process of making the decision to go down to Florida,” Blum said. “It was really the best decision for him at the time and certainly one we understood. … [His return] has been pretty seamless.”
Though the season didn’t go as planned for Davis in Florida, as he missed most of the season with an ankle injury, he was still able to show scouts why he is such a tantalizing talent. As the son of former Tennessee and NFL offensive lineman Antone Davis, Braden has always had the athletic ability to make it at the Division I level and is currently rated as a consensus four-star recruit. Teams have seen that through his two years as a starter with the quarterback receiving 28 Division I offers including some top programs like Alabama, Clemson, Georgia and LSU to name a few.
“Braden has done it the right way,” Blum said. “He just handles everything with a great deal of maturity. … We couldn’t be anymore pleased with what he’s done so far. … To have Braden come back for his senior year will be great for us.”
💰🏃🏽♂️ pic.twitter.com/0N9zYretdL
— Braden Davis (@BradenDavis_5) April 1, 2021
Though Braden may be seen as the Cavaliers’ best recruit, he’s not alone in terms of DI potential.
Senior defensive end Olatomiwa Durojaiye has seen interest in him increase throughout 2021 after he received his first Division I offer from the University of Akron in January. To date, Durojaiye has received 16 offers including numerous Power 5 offers. The defensive end also announced on April 7 that he would make his first official Division I visit when he goes to Georgia Tech from June 18-20.
“For Tomiwa it’s been neat to watch,” Blum said. “He came out as a freshman, never played a down of football in his life. … He’s a first generation American, his family comes from Nigeria. To see him embrace football and see his maturity increase so dramatically over the last three and a half years has been so fun to watch and so rewarding for our coaches.”
A first team all-state player, Durojaiye led a strong Middletown defensive unit and finished his junior campaign with 45 tackles, including 19.5 for loss, and 8.5 sacks. Measured at 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds, Durojaiye already fits the mold that many DI college coaches look for in a defensive lineman.
“I think at the end of the day there’s probably only 100, 150 kids in America who are 6-foot-5, 6-foot-6 who I think when it’s all said and done will weigh 280, 290 pounds and can run and bend,” Blum said. “Those guys are few and far between, but as far as all the things you can’t see with a tape measure and scale, Tomiwa is a guy that works his tail off every single day for every part of it.”
Alongside Durojaiye on the defensive line was junior defensive tackle/center Kody Harris. Harris is the least recruited of the trio, but that doesn’t make his impact on the Cavaliers any less significant. Last season, Harris earned not one, but two spots on the all-state team as both the center and defensive tackle on the second team squad. At 6-foot-2 and 280 pounds, Harris anchored the middle of both line units helping the Cavaliers have some of the best line play in the state last season.
“I think Kody without a question is the leader of that offensive line unit and in a lot of ways the offense,” Blum said. “If there was something to be said, last year it was said by Kody as a junior.”
While he doesn’t have the number of Division I offers as his teammates, Harris’ recruitment is starting to pick up some steam. On March 15, Harris received an offer from FCS Howard University, his second Division I offer after picking up an offer from Army West Point in February. As the recruiting carousel continues to spin, Blum expects Harris to pick up a few more Division I offers by signing day.
“He’s a very young junior, he just turned 16 years old,” Blum said. “I’ve told coaches the last two or three years he’s the puppy you’d buy if you were looking at puppies. He’s got great big hands and great big feet and he’s starting to grow into those. … I think Kody’s recruitment will track along Tomiwa and Braden. I think Kody is a Power 5 center. I think he would check off all the boxes for a Power 5 center.”
With three of the team’s top players garnering the attention of Division I schools, it would come as no surprise to see the Cavaliers once again competing for a state title. After falling to Sussex Central in the Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association Division I championship game this past season, a state title would carry a lot of weight for the trio of seniors and they will look to use their top-tier talents to secure a trophy for Middletown.
