Team Rampage National 17u Goes Young for the Summer
High School Grassroots in the summer isn’t very long, but all of the defining moments still take place across the country in July. From the Shoe Circuits, to the Independent circuits, every team is preparing all spring to hopefully finish the summer strong. The Team Rampage National 17u has had some great moments this past spring, winning 11 games and qualifying for the RecruitLook Circuit Finals in Chicago. Despite their success this past spring, only two players remain on the roster that was there from the start. The 17u team was loaded with unsigned seniors who have all moved on to the next level, & have found homes for the upcoming season. With so many players moving on, it left a lot of holes for the Rampage National 17u team.
The start to reshaping the roster was bringing in Junior Guard Jonah Jackson, who just transferred from Fairfield High School to Antelope High School. Jonah was able to play in the last tournament to end the spring back in Kansas City, joining Bryce Busam (Oakdale High School) & Eddie Ramey (South High School) in the 2027 class. Jonah was one of the top scorers in the Sac-Joaquin Section this past season. Another huge pick up in the 2027 class was the most recent pick up, Dominic Johnson of Frontier High School in Bakersfield. Dominic has been considered as one of the biggest sleepers in the South Valley. Even with the pickups of Dominic Johnson & Jonah Jackson, only four 2027 players make up the 17u Roster.
A high level 17u team only having four incoming seniors isn’t the most normal situation but this speaks volumes of how good the 2028 class is in the program. Six 2028 players have been added to the 17u roster rounding up the 10 man squad. Bryce Ademeyo, Silas Hightower, Nasir Callahan, & Joenathan Jones all have been called up from the 16u National team who have also been very good this spring. They have been competing locally at the 17u level & have been winning tournaments against quality programs. The 16u National team will come back together to compete in the Big Foot Las Vegas Classic tournament at the end of July. The next two additions of Donavyn Hernandez (Oakdale) & Samson Helsby (Ben Holt Academy, Stockton) come from the Central Valley. Both had plenty of varsity experience this past high school season as sophomores, & will also be ready to compete at a high level.
This by far is the youngest Team Rampage National 17u team since 2019 that featured Jeremiah Jones, Lucky Hampton, Keaton Massey, Derrick O’Neal, Christian Rodriguez, Jaden Alexander, & Jacob Ebert all as sophomores while having Landon Seaman, Myron Amey, Daniel Fagan, & Asaad Muhammad as the incoming seniors. That team also won the GASO Live period tournament in Dallas that summer. It’s too early to determine if this current team will be as good as the 2019 one, but there is certainly a huge upside with this group. The 2027s are ready to compete physically at the college level right now, & the 2028s are hungry enough to prove they belong at the 17u level. Going young may potentially put Team Rampage in position to be one of the best independent teams in the country next spring & summer. With proper development & room to add more pieces, it allows them to have the flexibility to really level up into 2027. If it’s too early to determine how good the team will be, it is definitely not too early to say this may be the most intriguing 17u groups we have seen in the program’s history.