Football Recruiting Report Monday, July 13, 2015 By Sammy Batten

Knowles-Tener tackles American football

By Sammy Batten
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Tropical climate, white sandy beaches and clear light blue surf aren't conditions that most of us would want to leave. But departing that environment in his native Bahamas was the only way for Rondre Knowles-Tener to pursue his dreams.

So Knowles-Tener left his family back on the Atlantic Ocean island chain prior to his sophomore year in high school and headed to the United States and Lynchburg, VA, to play football at Liberty Christian Academy. Two years later, the 6-foot-1, 290-pound defensive tackle has become a stellar player for the Bulldogs who caught the attention of college programs like James Madison and Wake Forest.

But it was East Carolina defensive line coach Marc Yellock who proved most interested in Knowles-Tener. That interest resulted in a verbal commitment from Knowles-Tener to the Pirates back on June 19.

Knowles-Tener was the second defensive lineman to join ECU's recruiting Class of 2016 during a two-day period in June. A day after his pledge, defensive tackle Jalen Price from Riverside High in Williamston also made a verbal commitment to the Pirates.

American football is gaining popularity in the Bahamas, which has produced a handful of NFL players through the years, including current Cincinnati Bengals tight end Alex Smith. The Bahamas American Football Federation was actually formed to promote the sport and help develop players.

But to really test and improve their skills, the best players from the Bahamas eventually need to come to the United States.

A previous family connection with Liberty Christian led Knowles-Tener to Lynchburg when he decided that was the next step in his development.

Up to the time he departed for the United States, Knowles-Tener's football experience was limited to playing with the Warhawks recreation team in the Bahamas.

“He has a cousin, Demitri Knowles, who is playing (wide receiver) at Virginia Tech now,'' Liberty Christian coach Frank Rocco said. “Demitri played here five or six years ago and had a good career. The two are very similar. Dimitri hadn't played a lot of football, but really wanted to learn. He ended up getting a scholarship to Virginia Tech.

“The whole family felt like that worked out well for Dimitri, so they got Rondre up here. His sophomore year he was very new to football. He really hadn't played much organized football before coming to the States. But he picked it up quickly and got himself into football shape.''

Knowles-Tener received on-the-job training as a sophomore when he logged 29 tackles and one tackle for loss for a 9-2 Liberty Christian squad that won the Virginia Independent Schools Athletic Association Division I state title.

The Bulldogs slipped to 5-3 last season, but Knowles-Tener continued to develop into a big-time talent.

“One of the most exciting things about Rondre and his upside is that he's learning every day,'' Rocco said. “Every day he's learning something new about the game that some kid who's been doing it 10 years would already know. Those kids have plateaud and leveled out. Rondre gets better and better every day.''

But it's Knowles-Tener's raw athletic ability that really excites Rocco.

“Here's a 290-pound kid who runs a 4.85 or 4.9 40-yard dash,'' Rocco said. “We have video clips of him just chasing down legitimate running backs on the perimeter as they try to get to the sideline. He does that frequently from a nose tackle position.

“I can tell you this. He's got some rare ability. I've been coaching 30 years in high school and college, and he's in the top five-percent of the guys I've coached and coached against. I'm talking innate physical tools. He's extremely explosive and has great weight room strength. You take all those attributes and smooth off the some of the rough edges, and he's got a chance to be a really great one.''

ECU's Yellock was impressed by those attributes after watching highlight video from Knowles-Tener's junior season. He came to Lynchburg to watch Knowles-Tener during Liberty's spring workouts and then extended an invitation to attend the Pirates' summer football camp for further evaluation.

Knowles-Tener impressed enough at the camp to receive a scholarship offer two days later. He then headed back home to the Bahamas to share the news about his scholarship offer with family before making his pledge to the Pirates official.

“Rondre went down there for a one-day camp and spent a lot of time with Coach Yellock,'' Rocco said. “He really likes Coach Yellock and he likes that part of the country. East Carolina saw the upside in him. We were just very happy they pulled the trigger on him (with scholarship offer). I think he really is a player under the radar.

“He went back home to the Bahamas after the camp and I had a funny feeling that to cap his visit he'd be able to share with his family that significant news.''

Knowles-Tener may not be the last member of the family to get recruited by East Carolina. Accompanying him to the one-day ECU camp in June was his cousin, Michael Strachan, a 6-5, 200-pound senior wide receiver who has 4.5-second speed in the 40-yard dash.

“Obviously, you don't find 6-5 receivers very often,'' Rocco said. “The only thing holding him back is working a little bit on the precision of his route running. Another year of coaching and buying into the basics, and he'll get an opportunity.''

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PAGE UPDATED 07/13/15 01:58 PM.