Alec Palella

Alec is a great two-way player in the 2021 recruiting class. He plays Tight End, Defensive End, and Middle Linebacker. He has nice size at 6’4 225 and is athletic and has good straightaway speed. As a defensive end, he lines up in a 2-point stance and keeps offensive linemen off balance going outside and shooting the inside gaps. He made it hard for teams to run his way, either at him or on sweeps to the outside. He shut things down on his side of the field. He has long arms and could stack and release to the football. He was fast pursuing the football from the backside. As an inside linebacker, he was able to read and had the freedom to roam laterally from gap to gap and as a walkup Blitzer in the A & B gaps. He is strong against the run coming downhill and showed some range sideline to sideline. On offense, he was one of his team’s main weapons in the passing game. He gets off the line fast and will find openings over the middle or on crossing routes underneath. He does an excellent job extending his long arms and has a big catch radius. He has soft catching the football and is a load to bring down after the catch. He is a strong finisher and will make defensive backs pay the price for coming up. As a run blocker, he is always looking to free up runners with a big block downfield and works hard to the whistle on every play. He has a couple of Group 5 offers now but has a chance to move up with a great senior season.