While this area has seen its list of Division I players increase over the past 20 years, very rarely does a high school athlete in northeast Indiana make college programs around the country take notice.
Jaylon Smith, of course, is the standard. The five-star linebacker from Bishop Luers that went to Notre Dame, then to the NFL.
Austin Mack was wooed by the likes of Alabama and North Carolina, in addition to the Midwest powers, before landing at Ohio State.
Both Smith and Mack had programs pursuing their services long before their junior and senior years, a testament to just how outstanding they were.
Now, East Noble sophomore Austin Phillips has joined that exclusive club.
Despite having played just a single season of high school football, Phillips’ services are wanted by college football programs from coast to coast. The 6-foot-2, 200-pound linebacker has offers from UNLV to Maryland and everywhere in between, including Tennessee, Ohio State, Purdue and Notre Dame.
While some may think it is too soon to compare Phillips with arguably the best talent to ever come out of the area, one of the country’s leading recruiting experts does not shy away from making that comparison.
“There is plenty of buzz around Phillips at this point in his high school career,” said Tom Loy, a national recruiting analyst for 247Sports. “There are a lot of similarities to when Jaylon Smith was in high school. Like Phillips, Smith was a guy who played running back on offense while rushing the passer and playing linebacker.
“Smith’s speed was next level, as were his instincts, power and first-step quickness. While Phillips might not be the freak show that Smith was at the same stage in their careers, make no mistake about it, Phillips has the upside and potential to be as highly-coveted and highly-ranked in the coming years.”
Phillips burst onto the scene as a freshman in Kendallville with authority last fall. After a quiet Week 1, he rushed for 71 yards and a touchdown against Snider while also amassing 11 tackles a week later. Things snowballed from there as he terrorized foes from both sides of the ball. On defense, he amassed 99 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, three sacks and three forced fumbles. Offensively, Phillips saw plenty of action at running back, finishing with 967 yards and 11 touchdowns on the ground. He also had a receiving touchdown against New Haven.
On the cusp of 100 tackles and 1,000 yards rushing, as a freshman.
It’s no wonder colleges are salivating over his potential.
“Austin has the rare combination of elite talent, elite work ethic and elite motivation,” said East Noble coach Alex Stewart. “He is a student of the game and is always seeking ways to improve.”
Unfortunately for the Northeast 8, improvement has been Phillips’ top priority in the off-season. From sharpening his skills locally to attending camps at Michigan State, Ohio State and Tennessee, the East Noble sophomore is prime for a true breakout campaign this fall.
“It wasn’t hard to identify Phillips as a Power 4 prospect when I first saw him live in the playoffs (last year).”
– Tom Loy of 247Sports
“This offseason, I really looked at where I wanted to get stronger, which was being in coverage and shedding blocks,” Phillips said. “After identifying that, I made sure to play 7v7 where I didn’t have to look at the run, I could just focus on my man-to-man and zone coverage skills.
“Another key thing I am focusing on is being a vocal leader on the defense. All offseason I made sure I was that leader.”
So what exactly stands out about Phillips’ skill set? In a word – everything. He is big and strong, but he can move anywhere and everywhere with exceptional quickness. He has good vision coming out of the backfield as a running back, and already appears to have the innate ability to diagnose plays at linebacker to where he is simply reacting, not thinking.
Loy was sold pretty quickly.
“It wasn’t hard to identify Phillips as a Power 4 prospect when I first saw him live in the playoffs (last year),” Loy said. “I had heard all about him throughout the season, but until I get an in-person evaluation on a kid, I am going to reserve some judgement. Phillips was terrific. The power he runs with. The physicality he plays with. The motor.”
What is seemingly most impressive about Phillips’ skill set is the fact that he can play both sides of the ball with seemingly no break. Sure, there are a lot of two-way guys around the area, but Phillips is able to do it with elite impact on the game at both running back and linebacker. For the Knights, there is simply no easy way to take him off the field when he has the capability of making a game-changing play on every snap.
“He will be the heart of our defense at inside linebacker and carry a heavy load on offense from his running back position,” Stewart said.
As Phillips’ star rises as a college prospect, so will the attention as star rankings come out for the Class of 2029 and offers continue to pile up.
But his goals are simple. To improve every day and make East Noble as good as possible.
“My goals are to win state, have 130-plus tackles on the season and over 1,200 yards rushing,” Phillips said.
That wouldn’t be bad for anyone, let alone a sophomore.
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