Hopper From Every Angle

Note: check out our Monday Camp Report that focused on Tyrone Hopper

What does Tyrone Hopper's commitment to North Carolina mean? THI breaks it down from every angle.

UNC's third commitment from Georgia, sixth overall, and first linebacker pledge in the '16 class means a lot on multiple levels and we're leaving no stone unturned.

Bigger picture - 2016 impact

Linebacker was a positional need for the Tar Heels today. NC State picked up a commitment from offered linebacker Garrett Hooker today, but UNC one-upped the Pack, so to speak, by taking Hopper, a higher-ranked, longer and more athletic player.

But aside from what it means head-to-head, with rivalries, or perception, there's a real impact on the '16 class. This commitment will allow UNC to be pickier at linebacker moving forward. Hopper seems like the kind of kid that should be pretty solid and he already liked UNC a lot going into his visit to Chapel Hill. If the coaches can count on him remaining on board, they can hold off on offering borderline "takes" and zero in more time, energy and attention recruiting top-tier linebacker targets, maybe even someone line Keion Joyner, who they have some work to do with.

The number crunch is not an issue yet. UNC has six commitments and while it might not be a monster class by the numbers, they still have plenty of room. It doesn't cause linebacker offers to go away, either. There's just one linebacker on the commitment list.

Beyond 2016

Beyond the Class of 2016, Hopper's commitment is significant on two levels. First, he's UNC's third commitment from Georgia and their fourth from SEC country, throwing in Tyler Pritchett from Alabama. There's been a clear and concerted move into SEC country with Gene Chizik and the makeup of the new assistant coaching core. Many of those coaches - really, all of them, from John Papuchis to Tray Scott and Charlton Warren, not to mention Gene Chizik - have extensive experience recruiting in that territory. It's paying off.

Who knows how much of a snowball effect this will ultimately have? The more Georgia players that jump on board, the more attractive UNC will be to those players. Logan Byrd is well-known by many players, his peers and younger players, in Georgia. So is Hopper. So is Javontay Smith, whose profile is rapidly rising.

We do know that Hopper's commitment will have a major impact on a Class of 2018 recruit - his brother, Tyneil Hopper. The rising sophomore camped at Kentucky recently and added an offer from the Wildcats. The younger Hopper was there in the background the last time we spoke with the new Tar Heel commitment, and he's a 6-foot-2, 205-pound promising and versatile prospect that could ultimately grow into a tight end or any number of other positions. That's a long way off but these things matter. Folks may not get excited about it, but it could turn out to be a two-for-one type of deal. Blood goes a long way.

Beyond that, it's interesting to note that Rivals100 linebacker Tre Lamar from the Class of 2016 is teammates with the Hopper brother Roswell.

Roswell is not one of the biggest football factories in Georgia, now one of the top four states for producing talent, but it's a school that nobody is surprised to find Power Five-caliber players at.

Length at linebacker

Being frank here, UNC under Larry Fedora has demonstrated a willingness to take undersized players that were written off by some other schools because they were an inch too short or a few pounds too light. One reason for that is the unique personnel sets they would show, and the hybrid positions that were so well-known in that 4-2-5 defense.

The transition to a more conventional 4-3 means longer linebackers are needed. Height is at a premium. That 'shorter is okay' Moneyball approach is a thing of the past. Tyrell Tomlin and to a lesser extent guys like Andre Smith may have had a tougher time getting noticed by Gene Chizik.

And, really, with fewer inside linebackers getting looks today - and the rise in popularity of the nickel back or extra players that can patrol the flats, cover and flat-out fly - outside linebackers with Hopper's speed, explosiveness and length are essential. You've got to have them. A lot of them.

Of course, Hopper's lean frame means he's got a lot of work to do in terms of building up his body with diet and exercise. But 6-foot-3, 206 pounds is commonplace and is absolutely no problem for an outside linebacker as a recruit in today's game.

Scouting Hopper

As you might imagine that length is the first thing that jumps out. It grabs your attention and is the reason he's a coveted player - perhaps more coveted by coaches than his ranking might suggest. He's far from maxing out his potential and is only now scratching the surface.

Hopper has played in the kind of nickel packages against spread offenses that have not only put him in a lot of space to showcase his skills, but have revealed a player that makes increasingly strong decisions, is playing with more confidence than ever, and is able to run with some very fast offensive skill players.

But on top of that he's also put his hand in the dirt and rushed the passer. He's got a long way to go, weight-wise, before he's ready to be that kind of hybrid. But it's very interesting to note that Hopper has covered, set the edge, served as a rush end, and gone out to even line up one-on-one against inside receivers. Rarely do you see high school linebackers that have really "done it all" in that respect. Learning terminology will be key, but Chizik isn't going to throw anything at Hopper that is totally foreign to him.

For a player that's still lean and coming into his frame Hopper is not afraid to take on the bigger wide bodies on the line. He extends his arms well to keep blockers at bay and his length helps him to avoid being tied up and neutralized. He will want to work on his upper body power as a means of shedding those blocks even more easily and with the kind of quickness that will help him flow to the ball.

His length helps him disrupt passing lanes and his better than average instincts make quarterbacks always have to account for his whereabouts, because he can swat down a pass that looks like a big gain. We're impressed that Hopper's coaches haven't just let him pin his ears back and get after the quarterback every play. There's an understandable temptation there with players that have Hopper's rare skill set - rare, especially, for the high school level. But they've broadened his horizons. Having Hopper do multiple things has developed him well, so he's not a project. One reason they're giving him multiple responsibilities is his instincts, explosiveness and acceleration make him a threat to take over a play and exert his will whether it's a run or pass, inside or outside. So by putting him in a spot to make plays, it's not only his athleticism but also his mind that allows Hopper to take over.

Really the only question marks at this point are his strength and size. The latter, his size, will be fixed in time. There's little doubt Hopper can reach an ACC game readiness at 230-235 in two years, by the end of his redshirt freshman year - assuming UNC has the benefit of redshirting him. The strength will be up to him.

The ideal scenario for UNC football under Larry Fedora is that by the end of this season fans look at the defense and note the improvements along with the imperfections. By the end of year two, the hope has to be that the defense has really gotten better in a substantive way. By year three, it's reasonable to believe a player like Tyrone Hopper will have fans noting the difference in the kind of linebacker UNC is recruiting - both in terms of his length, his explosiveness, and his ability to fly to the football.