Dandy Dozen: Central’s Darin Turner is No. 3
If you read Darin Turner’s Twitter bio, the first thing you see is a fire emoji followed by his nickname, Baby Megatron. It’s a reference to six-time NFL Pro Bowl receiver Calvin Johnson, whom Turner grew up admiring and lists among the players who influenced his style the most.
“It comes from the fans. People in the crowd. They say, ‘Oh, he’s a freak of nature. Oh, he reminds me of Calvin Johnson,’ “Turner said of his nickname. “‘How he catches, how he runs, just his game, reminds me of Megatron.’ So I took that and ran with it. Baby Megatron.”
The 6-foot-3, 205-pound receiver is ranked No. 7 in Tennessee for the Class of 2020 in the 247Sports Composite. He is the No. 31 wide receiver in the country and No. 161 overall.
He is also No. 3 on The Commercial Appeal’s inaugural 2019 Dandy Dozen, a collection of the top 12 college football prospects for the Class of 2020 from the Mid-south as picked by the newspaper. “First and foremost, it’s the sheer physical package,” Central coach Major Wright said. “The size, the speed, the hands, then you go a little deeper and there’s natural football instincts that a lot of people don’t have.”
“He’s a big receiver. Physical. He can go up and make plays. He has great leaping ability, so he can high-point the ball.”
Turner, whose stats were unavailable, was committed to LSU for nearly a year before decommitting in March. In June, he released a list of his top six schools – Alabama, Clemson, Miami, Georgia, Arkansas and Oregon.
Khari Thompson Memphis Commercial Appeal USA TODAY NETWORK – TENNESSEE