SCOUTING FREDRICK GILLENS
Fredrick Gillens is a 6-foot-1, 175-pound defensive back starring for head coach Cory Helms and Cardinal Newman School in Columbia, South Carolina.
Gillens plays physical in the man press and has good footwork and speed. The Cardinals' standout has a nose for the football. He recorded three interceptions and nine pass break-ups in 2023, one of those picks which was on the goal line from the man press. Palmetto Preps sees man-press coverage as one of Gillens' best strengths as a defensive back. "I like my ball skills. I'm just able to run with people, and my cover skills are also great. I can also come down and make some hits," he said of his skillset.
GILLENS CONTRIBUTIONS TO HEAD COACH CORY HELMS' CARDINAL NEWMAN PROGRAM IN 2023, WHO ARE SHOWING SIGNS OF IMPROVEMENT IN THE SCISA 3A, WHERE THEY COMPETE AGAINST HAMMOND, PORTER-GAUD
Rolling downhill with speed and physicality while maintaining good, 360-degree body control, Gillens sets up his explosive finish when he arrives to the ball-carrier, where he provides Cardinals' fans with the entertainment of a physical, slinging tackle. When finishing the job, he gets low and wraps up.
Check 2:35, where Gillens completes a physical takedown while barreling towards a receiver running a shallow route, or 2:47, where he does the same thing, but this time, delivering a strong play against Mike Tyler, a Power 4 TE prospect of Hammond School. Or how about the 3:08-3:12 mark, where he shaves off a strong TE from Porter Gaud, then completing his trademark physical, slinging tackle.
Gillens' speed and physicality also helps him stand out on the special teams, where he blocked two kicks, one which he returned for a touchdown. Check 3:30 and 3:35.
He was a fast, physical contributor for the Cardinal Newman that was fun to watch in 2023, and the Cardinals' stock is rising in the South Carolina Independent Schools Association (SCISA), where head coach Cory Helms' program seeks to continue to stay competitive with top programs like Hammond and Porter-Gaud in 2024 and beyond. Featuring multiple FCS and FBS prospects on the field last fall, the Cardinals worked their way to a 9-3 finish under the "Friday Night Lights of the Palmetto State," turning in a strong finish for the season.
Cardinal Newman showed marked improvement in SCISA's 3A last fall, but Gillens expects more from himself and the emerging Cardinals as the calendar flips to the new year in 2024 with operations in the weight room for winter underway and spring practice coming around the corner in just a few short weeks. "I feel like we were able to come out and just show everybody that we can compete, but we (aim) to win the state championship next season," he said.
GILLENS RECRUITMENT AND HOW HIS BIG OFFER WENT DOWN FROM UCF
Gillens tallied his first two Division 1 offers from the University of Alabama-Birmingham and Akron on Nov. 26 and Dec. 8. He earned his No. 4 and No. 5 offers from Group of Five powerhouse Liberty and UNC-Charlotte, an American Athletic Conference program just up the road from the Midlands, on Feb. 1 and Feb. 2.
But it was the offer in between those four Group of Five programs between that provided the heaviest level of significance for Gillens' recruitment.
That's because the scholarship opportunity was delivered from head coach Gus Malzhan's University of Central Florida Knights of the Big 12, who offered Gillens, the Palmetto Preps standout, to become part of Addison Williams' defensive backs' room of the future at the trending Big 12 program in the Magic City, while he was in sunny Orlando for the big visit on Jan. 26.
Gillens spoke with Palmetto Preps recruiting editor Lee Wardlaw to talk the big offer from the Knights.
"I really enjoyed the scenery on campus and in the area. I loved the coaches. I talked to some of the new coaches that came into the program," he said. Among personnel on the UCF staff that Gillens was able to chop it up with included Cornerbacks Coach Trovon Reed, Co-Defensive Coordinator and Defensive Backs Coach Addison Williams, Defensive Coordinator and Linebackers Coach Ted Roof, and most importantly of all, former Auburn head coach, legend, and offensive mastermind, Gus Malzhan, who will enter his fourth season leading the Knights in 2024.
Gillens is familiar with the strong winning tradition fostered at the program that recently transitioned from the Group of Five, among feats for the Knights which include 15 bowl appearances in just 23 overall FBS seasons dating back to just 2002 and seven 10 or more win seasons overall.
For UCF, a 13-0 season in 2018 featuring a storybook-finish 34-27 victory over No. 10 Auburn in the Peach Bowl, a 52-42 shootout Fiesta Bowl thriller over Baylor to cap off a legendary 12-1 season in 2013, and a 10-6 Liberty Bowl win over Mark Richt's Georgia Bulldogs in 2010 to finish 11-3 and No. 21 in the final AP Poll are among top accomplishments in a short and storied tenure of football in Orlando. "That means a lot to me. I really love the accomplishments that UCF has earned on the field," he said.
The Knights reached a bowl game in 2023, but they have plenty to prove on the gridiron next fall and beyond if they want to prove they truly merit the status of being a consistent competitor Big 12. Regardless, though, UCF is heading in the right direction, and Gillens could potentially make for a strong addition to the Gus Malzhan's program out of Columbia, South Carolina.
EXTRA NOTES: Gillens talked about how he would fit in as a teammate, player in the locker room, and member of a team culture within a Division 1 program: "I would describe myself as a leader. When I go out there and our team is down, I just give my teammates words of encouragement. I'll tell them, you know, 'let's keep our heads in this game, and we'll be alright."
