In this installment of The Recruiting Notebook, we meet a talented defender who will add athleticism to the 2nd level of Miami’s defense: Orlando (FL) Edgewater LB Deshawn Troutman.

Bio

Following the departure of a trio of LBs who started for a combined 12 seasons worth of eligibility, Miami has set about the business of rebuilding the LB corps. To continue that effort, Miami targeted Orlando (FL) Edgewater LB Deshawn Troutman.

A stout and athletic player at 6’1” 205lbs, Troutman is a standout player for Edgewater. As a junior in 2019, Troutman earned All-Area accolades while posting a 89 tackle, 11 TFL, 1 sack, 1 FR season for 7A State Runner-Up Edgewater. And, in the course of that season, he became a player that colleges started to notice.

Much like many other players, Troutman’s recruitment started with a familiar offer. For him, it was Louisville, the team for which his brother Trenell played Safety. But after that, many other teams, including Miami, got involved.

Though Deshawn’s older brother Trenell played at Louisville, he’s from South Florida. He played at Carol City, Miramar, and finally St. Thomas Aquinas. And Deshawn lived down here as well, until the family moved to Orlando when Trenell went to college.

And, as a native South Floridian, Deshawn had a favorite school: The University of Miami. That lifelong affinity for the Canes worked to their advantage in the end.

Troutman got other offers after Miami extended theirs in January, but none of them had the cache of his lifelong favorite school. Kansas State offered Troutman a scholarship on May 27th, but by then it was too late; Troutman committed to Miami that same day.

Recruiting Ranking

On the 247sports composite, George is a 4-star prospect, the #33 LB nationally in this class, #92 in the State of Florida, and #619 recruit overall.

Troutman committed to Miami over Louisville and West Virginia from a list of 17 offers from around the country.

As A Player

Troutman is very good diagnosing plays and getting up field to stop the run. He takes short steps to stay balanced at first, then opens up quickly to get into position to make a play. Troutman is physical at the point of impact, bringing solid striking skills to the party.

While he isn’t the fastest player for his position, Troutman has great quickness and acceleration. That comes into play when he’s utilized as a blitzer, a role he does decently well. Troutman can be seen more as a run blitzer than pass rush blitzer, but the skills to do either are similar enough to believe he could be good at the latter though he mostly does the former.

At 6’1”, Troutman isn’t the tallest player on the field. Taller receivers and TEs could give him fits in the middle of the field. At 205lbs, Troutman has a solid build, but could stand to add 10-15lbs as he continues into the college level.

Troutman is a see ball, get ball defender who excels in getting up the field in the run game. He has enough speed and his instincts allow him to play fast enough to be an impact player from sideline to sideline.

An area for growth and development is in pass coverage. Troutman isn’t asked to do it much at the HS level so he can get better in this area. Zone coverage should be the easy transition for him, as all LBs are asked to do this. However, when it comes to covering TEs and RBs at the college level, that will be a different kind of thing that when he’s used to so far.

Strengths

• Quickness
• Instincts
• Run support
• Sidlien to sideline athleticism

Weaknesses

• Average height
• Average straight line speed
• Pass coverage
• Can add weight and get stronger

Miami Outlook

Note: changing this up from just a freshman-season outlook to a career outlook for each player.

Troutman is the kind of player Miami should look to add at Linebacker. He has good quickness, great instincts, and is more athletic than some LBs Miami has played in the past.

The decisions on who to play at LB have honestly been confounding to me this season, so I’m not sure when or how much Troutman will play early on. He has the talent and profile of a player who could be in the 2-deep early, or he could be like others on the roster and play a background role for a while, years even.

With Miami transitioning to 2 LBs and a hybrid STRIKER at the 2nd level of the defense, Troutman is a player who could very well fit as one of the LBs in that alignment. He would have to pick up the defense quickly, however, to be able to do that. Shaq Quarterman and Corey Flagg Jr did, so it’s entirely possible for Troutman to do so as well.

The path forward in the short term is a bit muddled, as Miami is throwing numbers at the issue of finding quality LBs for the defense. But, Troutman is as talented as the players in front of him, so there’s a chance he could pass them and earn his way on the field early, as others before him have done. Regardless, Troutman likely profiles as a 4 or 5 year player for Miami, with the majority of his on-field impact coming in the back half of his time at Miami.

That’s it for this installment of The Recruiting Notebook.

Go Canes