Rivals250 DB Khari Gee Draws Comparison To Notre Dame Safety Kyle Hamilton
College Park (Ga.) Woodward Academy defensive backs coach and recruiting coordinator Ryan Davis spoke to BlueandGold.com recruiting insider Mike Singer about class of 2021 safety Khari Gee, a 6-3, 190-pounder who ranks as the No. 218 overall player nationally per Rivals.
RELATED: Rivals250 Safety Khari Gee Discusses Notre Dame Offer, Academics
On Gee’s biggest strengths: “He is extremely athletic. It wasn’t until a year ago that he realized football was the ticket. He played some basketball. He played some baseball. He played some golf. He’s been a jack-of-all-trades. He’s a really good baseball player as well. As a sophomore, he missed things because of baseball commitments. For some kids, it takes a little while to realize this could be it. It wasn’t until midway through his sophomore year that we realized this kid could be big time.
“He was a little slim as a sophomore, but he was rangy and physical. We played him as our weak-side safety, which allows him to get in the box, blitz off the edge, cover slots, play halves and stuff like that. People compare him to [Kyle Hamilton] who was at Marist and is now playing for Notre Dame because he’s so rangy and so long. He brings the physical aspect. He’ll come up and hit you. He’s not afraid to take on the pulling guard or fullback. That’s the type of kid that he is. He’s never shied away from contact.”
On how Gee could fit in at the next level: “A lot of people have told me, coaches in general, that he is probably one of the biggest safeties in the state. That’s why he picked up so fast. I think he’s around 193 pounds at 6-foot-3. Potentially, he could be a 215-220 safety or he could be a 225 nickel/outside backer. It all depends what they want to use him as. But he’s athletic enough to do it all.”
On Gee's fit as a rover in Notre Dame's defense: “That’s exactly what Coach [Terry] Joseph said. His question was about Khari’s body type, and I told him that he’s whatever you want him to be. If you want to stay slim and be a safety, he can do that. If you want to put the pounds on and be a rover or outside linebacker, he can do that. He has the frame, and he hasn't scratched the surface of how big he can be. The sky is the limit for that kid.”
On Gee’s recruitment: “Clemson is doing a good job. That offer kid of surprised him. He went up there and saw Clemson. Georgia is in there. I would say Oklahoma and Florida are getting there. Notre Dame is there. He’s going to see them. I'm going to make sure of that, but they were a little late to the party. With that top 10 list, there are other schools still recruiting him. Florida State and Georgia Tech are recruiting him hard. Michigan and USC are there. Michigan is still doing a good job. They are in there, too. He’s still open if schools like Texas or Ohio State come in. But he wanted to chop his list down to get rid of some schools.”
On Gee as a young man: “I’ve known him for a while; he got to Woodward in the fifth grade. He’s always been a quiet, young man. He does right in the classroom. He just does what he’s supposed to do. He’s a good team player, competes hard. He’s bought into the weight room. Most kids don’t like the weight room, but he’s busting his tail. He’ll do whatever you tell him to do —- play receiver or run down and make tackles on kickoffs. He has a great family background and academics is important to him.”
----
• Talk about it inside Rockne’s Roundtable
• Watch our videos and subscribe to our YouTube channel
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Learn more about our print and digital publication, Blue & Gold Illustrated.
• Follow us on Twitter: @BGINews, @BGI_LouSomogyi, @BGI_MikeSinger, @PatrickEngel_, @ToddBurlage and @AndrewMentock.
• Like us on Facebook.