WR Dazz Newsome, North Carolina
HEIGHT: 5-11
WEIGHT: 190
HOMETOWN (HIGH SCHOOL): Hampton, VA (Hampton)
247 RATING: .8429
STARS: 3
YEAR: Senior
POSITION RANK: 23
CAREER
Receiving: 134 catches, 1,751 yards (13.1 ypc), 12 touchdowns
2019
Receiving: 72 catches, 1,018 yards (14.1 ypc), 10 touchdowns
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Dazz Newsome Breakdown
If not for a coach’s suggestion, Dazz Newsome might still have trouble seeing the football. Wide receivers coach Lonnie Galloway was concerned when Newsome looked like he couldn’t see the football coming at him. They went to the eye doctor and found out he was nearsighted. Turns out all he needed to be a great player were some contacts. Now, he can see everything, and the Tar Heels offense is better thanks to that suggestion.
When he couldn’t see, Newsome relied on his body to make catches, with the ball frequently thudding off of his chest and falling to the ground. You can tell he’s still working on going away from catching passes with his body, but that’s still what he’s most comfortable doing. He’s a body catcher on pretty much any pass headed his way, and that limits his catch radius. But he’s more than capable of making catches outside of his frame, and that will help him give Sam Howell more room to work with. It will also help prevent some of the drops he struggled with last year that took touchdowns off of the scoreboard.
Newsome’s a quick athlete who also adds violent cuts to change directions. He needs to work on keeping his speed through his cuts, but he still creates separation even if he does lose speed. Getting to full speed doesn’t take long as he carries his pads well and doesn’t labor when running. His top speed isn’t elite, but he makes up for it with his quickness, and that also helps him when he has the ball in space. He looks like a running back after he makes a catch, using his vision to find an opening and see where defenders are coming from to tackle him. Throw in a cut or two and he’s off to the races.
Newsome’s vision helped his game immensely, and he was already an explosive player. North Carolina’s offense features a number of playmakers, and their slot receiver might be the most underrated of them all.
