The Big 15: Mariner's Rashawn Hunter a playmaker on offense, defense and special teams
Bryan Cooney
For Mariner senior Rashawn Hunter, being a three-sport athlete has kept him busy.
In 2017, he played football in the fall, basketball in the winter and was a member of the Tritons track and field team in the spring, qualifying for state in the triple jump. That athletic versatility is why Hunter lands at No. 13 on The Big 15 — the countdown of the top high school football players in Southwest Florida as compiled by the Naples Daily News and The News-Press
Off the field, Hunter sports a 4.04-grade point average, which presents multiple options for him to ponder to play football at the next level, with Virginia, Iowa State, Marshall and Fordham already extending offers.
Hunter could also follow his older brother Rodney, who chose to play basketball in the Ivy League at Columbia after scoring over 2,000 points for the Tritons. Hunter has been in contact with all the Ivy League schools. Having the opportunity to see how his brother handled the recruiting process, Rashawn is prepared to do what is best for him.
"Academics are always a big part of the process, the higher your grades are, the more options you are going to have," Hunter said.
"I've tried to remain humble about the recruiting process, you can't let it get to your head because you can stop working at it and other people will pass you up."
Mariner hasn't finished with a winning record since 2007. Tritons head coach Travis Smith will try to end that streak in part by using Hunter more.
The rangy, 6-foot-2 Hunter has excelled in the defensive secondary and returning punts and kickoffs for the Tritons, as he collected three interceptions, including one for a touchdown, and also took back a punt for a touchdown last season. Coming up from the secondary, Hunter also led Mariner in tackles in 2017.
Smith will have Hunter more involved on offense, so much so that Hunter will see time at quarterback to get more touches.
"He's going to be in the mix at quarterback, he can throw it a mile," Smith said. "We're going to try and get him as many touches as possible on top of what he does in the secondary."
That's a lot of usage for a player who uses his speed to make up for what he lacks with his slight build.
Smith attributes Hunter's body type to the grind of going from season to season to season and not having the chance to put on weight, but that is something that will come as Hunter hones in on his college choice and gets into a strength and nutrition program. Hunter attended a football camp at Virginia in June and posted a 4.59 40-time and will continue going to camps throughout the summer.
"Rashawn has added some muscle this offseason, but when you see him with his length, it may not look like it," Smith said. "We didn't want to not let him do the other sports that you get the chance to do in high school. Those are the fun things that you get to do as athletic as he is. He's not going to have any trouble putting on weight in college, but he does things very well already as a safety. He comes up and stops the run, his tackling ability is there and he just covers so much ground in the secondary. I'm really excited to get to see him come into his own this season."
Being used for all three phases of the game, Hunter hopes his versatility can help Mariner breakthrough with a winning season in 2018.
"I think we're going to be pretty solid on offense and defense," Hunter said. "We've got playmakers on both sides of the ball and I'm really excited to get the chance to touch the ball more. It's going to be a fun year."
About The Big 15
The News-Press and Naples Daily News count down the top college football recruits in Southwest Florida every Tuesday and Friday leading up to the start of high school football season. The Big 15 players from Lee and Collier counties are selected based on players with hard scholarship offers and their national recruiting rankings.
The Big 15 full list