South Jersey high school football recruit profile: Rancocas Valley senior Malachi Castle
Each week, the South Jersey Gridiron Gang will introduce high school football fans to a local senior that has been overlooked during the recruiting process.
This week on The Underrecruited: Rancocas Valley’s Malachi Castle.
Malachi Castle
High school: Rancocas Valley
Age: 17
Position: RB/DE
Height: 6-3
Weight: 225 pounds
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Résumé: Three-year starter between his time at Delran and Rancocas Valley. Castle was a Courier-Post All-South Jersey Second Team honoree in 2022 with 56 tackles, 18 for loss, 6 sacks and 2 forced fumbles. He also played fullback where he ran 55 times for 371 yards and 7 touchdowns. In 2023, he’s made 40 tackles, 13 for loss, and 3 sacks, and has 57 carries for 248 yards and 2 scores. Castle has 42 stops for loss and 11 sacks in his career.
Grade-point average: 2.95
40-yard dash: 4.90
Bench press: 275 pounds
Squat: 425 pounds
Dead lift: 535 pounds
Power clean: 225 pounds
Current offers: Stony Brook
Watch the film: Aug. 26, 2022 vs. Williamstown; Sept. 23, 2022 vs. Burlington Twp.; Sept. 15, 2023 vs. Timber Creek
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2022 evaluation: “He’s a very experienced football player for somebody his age,” Rancocas Valley head coach Garrett Lucas said. “I think that’s because the system that he came from, Delran, was the same exact one with me. He got experience with a high-profile player and a very talented player in (Rutgers lineman) Kenny Fletcher. To kind of get to play with somebody like that and try to mold their game and make their own adjustments really helped him as a young player to kind of mature from the football perspective very quickly.”
“I was able to ID a lot of things faster,” Castle added. “I was able to help my team out that way.”
What did Castle want to improve on heading into his senior season? “First, on defense, would be squeezing and spilling. … Using my hands more to pass rush, working more pass moves, and just being able to identify a pass or run faster so I can get into my pass rush or get into my squeeze-and-spill technique.”
What did Lucas want Castle to work on going into his senior year? “I’d just say be more consistent with his approach to practice every single day, meaning you can get better at something every single day. He has a very talented football IQ where he’ll come over and be like coach, he watched a lot of film, he can see bunch in the boundary and know that’s the only time they run reverse. It’s good for him to do that, but he needs to make sure the next three plays after the good play he just made are just like that good play.”
Lucas has known Castle since he was in sixth grade. Has Castle achieved what Lucas originally expected? “I’ve expected him to be right where he’s at. He made a big stride last season when he came in because I think coming from a different place, he had something to prove to people. It’s Group 5 football. I want to prove I belong here.”
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How does Castle feel he’s performed in 2023? “I think I’ve played pretty good. I think there’s also a lot of good players around me. We all make plays in our own ways but we all do our jobs so everyone gets a chance to shine.”
What does Lucas feel Castle has done better in 2023 compared to previous seasons? “He’s done a better job definitely using his hands. Last year, he had a big tendency, when he was on his rush, he’d go way past the quarterback, it’s called an ice pick move – basically any time you see a defensive end spin back inside.”
What did Castle learn from Fletcher from their time together at Delran? “Just be a dog. And bend. Bend helps a lot with pass rush.”
How has seeing Fletcher compete at Rutgers impacted Castle? “It just showed me what it takes.”
What does Castle feel his greatest strengths are? “My IQ and my hands.”
What does Lucas feel Castle’s best attributes are? “He’s definitely gotten a lot better with squeeze and spill. That was something, that was a huge area his sophomore year because he would watch Kenny do things that, as he said, his bend, you cannot teach that to anybody. Even at Rutgers, when I go see him at practice he’s doing that on kids 6-foot-8. That’s something you can’t teach. (Castle) needs to find what’s going to be his (go-to), what he’s going to be really good at. He’s been able to understand how to set up an offensive line, whether squeeze and spill or understanding how they try to block him and how he can counter that.”
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What have college coaches praised Castle for during the recruitment process? “I’m explosive. I play against the run well.”
What have been college coaches’ critiques to Castle? “I’m too small to play end. They would have me at a 3-technqiue. I’d have to put weight on and move down to tackle.”
What have college coaches told Lucas about Castle? “He’s a tweener. … Let’s use Rutgers for an example. He has a good frame to be a 3-technique, but he has to put on weight, in a good way, like 40 pounds of muscle, be like 280 or somewhere in there. On the flip, for a defensive end, he’s just too short, 6-foot-3. They have guys 6-foot-5. They’re trying to compete with Penn State, Ohio State, we get that. There will be a school that appreciates him.”
How does Castle feel about the prospect of adding weight? “I wish I could just get taller, but I can’t. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get to the next level. I’ll play wherever I need to play, do whatever I need to do. It’s harder than it sounds obviously (to put on weight), but I’m willing to do that.”
What does Lucas feel would be Castle’s best position at the collegiate level? “If they want to take the route of adding weight, in a good way, a good 3-4 scheme where he’s like right inside the tackle or on a tackle. That way, if he has to go outside, he’s able to do that, or going inside, he’d be able to be a little more physical with a guard. I think he can do that. His hands for a kid his age are very good in terms of IDing a block. If it’s a down block, if it’s a reach block, something like that. It’s not just he’s blowing up the field. He has that IQ part.”
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How would Lucas describe Castle as a leader? “I wish he was more vocal with our guys. That’s one of the biggest things from my perspective, but he’s vocal on a Friday night. The one thing I can definitely say about him, he’s always gathering people in the offseason, no matter what. He echoes the coach’s message of we need to be in the weight room.”
What would Lucas tell college coaches about Castle? “They’re going to get somebody that is definitely fully committed to the sport. The one thing at that next level, if its D-III or D-I, you have to genuinely love the sport, and this is somebody that does that. Sometimes it’s too much, meaning that’s all he cares about. That’s my big thing. He loves the sport. He’ll do whatever you need him to do and more.”
What would Castle tell coaches about why they should recruit him? “I’ll do whatever you say. I’ll do whatever I need to do to get on the field.”
What are Castle’s expectations for the rest of the season? “Win. There’s personal goals and team goals, but right now, middle of the season, I’m worried about my team more than offers and stuff like that. Getting offers is great, but I’m just focused on winning.”
Josh Friedman has produced award-winning South Jersey sports coverage for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and the Burlington County Times for more than a decade. If you have or know of an interesting story to tell, reach out on Twitter at @JFriedman57 or via email at jfriedman2@gannettnj.com. You can also contact him at 856-486-2431. Help support local journalism with a subscription.
This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Recruit breakdown: Closer look at Rancocas Valley DL Malachi Castle
