2017 QB Seeks Out Heels
There's quite a bit of interest in the services of Lindell Stone among Power 5 programs. Seven have offered the 2017 quarterback so far, and more are sure to come.
Among those that have offered so far are Ole Miss, West Virginia and UCLA, but Stone has been proactive in the process himself targeting one school, in particular, he has significant interest in.
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That school is North Carolina, and the Tar Heels have been responsive to the film sent by the Woodberry Forest (VA) signal caller and their ongoing discourse, and why not? Stone, 6-1, 202 pounds, is a 3-star prospect rated the No. 23 QB in the class.
"It's been great so far," he told THI about is recruitment, specifically UNC. "I've been talking with Coach (Keith) Heckendorf and was able to see all the success this year. It was really fun to watch them this year."
Stone and Heckendorf have been in regular contact, often communicating after Stone sent his game films to the QB coach. One reason Stone targeted UNC is the Tar Heels' offense.
"I think my skills match the spread offense for UNC," he said. "We run a very similar system at my school and I've been around it since 7th grade. It's a system that's great for quarterbacks and spreads the ball around to playmakers."
Stone doesn't have any family connections to Carolina, he just likes the program, the way the Tar Heels play, and of course, the other benefits that appeal to so many prospects.
"A UNC offer would be really important to me because it's a great school that plays big time football," Stone said. "There aren't many programs with great academics and great football so it's a very intriguing school to me."
Many of Woodberry Forest's games are on Saturdays, so Stone couldn't visit a lot of schools on game days this fall. He did not visit UNC but did get to Virginia, which has offered him, and he was at the Arkansas-Ole Miss game a few weeks ago.
Stone's reputation on the circuit took a hit a year ago when an injury cost him much of his sophomore season. He says it slowed his development, yet as an example of his upside Stone won the MVP with the U.S. National team last January.
In fact, Yahoo! Sports, THI's and Rivals' parent company, wrote this about Stone's performance at that event:
Stone broke his collarbone in the middle of last season and had an up-and-down offseason, but it was clear on Friday night that he has totally returned to form. He masterfully directed the offense and did a great job of spreading the ball to seven different receivers. Stone ended up with 277 yards passing and five touchdowns; his most impressive throw was a completion that went at least 50 yards in the air that turned into a 66-yard touchdown.
Stone worked his tail off in the offseason and the payoff was clear.
"I'm much better than I was before I was injured," he said.
Stone says his greatest attributes as a quarterback are his accuracy and knowledge of the game.
"I feel like if I work really hard watching film I'll be able to know what both the offense and the defense are doing," he said. "This allows me to change to the correct play. Once that happens all I have to do is deliver the ball to the open receiver, which is why accuracy is so important."
Among the other quarterbacks he watches to learn from is Aaron Rodgers of the Green Bay Packers.
"He has an amazing release and is able to anticipate so many things from the pocket and outside of it," Stone said. "He's also able to utilize his personnel really well. He knows their strengths and weaknesses, which allows him to put them in the right position to make a play."
Stone is just a junior in high school, but it's pretty obvious the respect he has for the myriad of demands the position entails. That will help him wherever he goes, especially if it's a place like UNC, here the intricacies of the position are significant.