Oceanside CA— Oceanside High School stand-out defensive back, Azizi Hearn, a Senior, has been selected to play for the 2017 U.S. Under-18 National Team. Hearn is one of 48 players chosen from 21 states for Team USA Team and will compete against Canada in the first North American Championship at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex.
The U.S. team will compete against Canada’s Under-18 National Team on Jan. 28 in the first North American Championship in Orlando, Fla., at ESPN’s Wide World of Sports Complex. The two-game event between the U.S. and Canada will feature Under-18 national teams at 5 p.m. ET, followed by each respective country’s Under-19 national teams at 8:30 p.m. ET. U.S. players will arrive in Orlando on Jan. 23.
The North American Championship is a collaboration of the sport’s national governing bodies in each country, USA Football and Football Canada. Broadcast information for both games will be announced in the weeks ahead.
Canada is 6-0 against the United States in all-time Under-18 National Team play.
The head coach of U.S. Under-18 National Team is MATT HENNESY of Locust Grove (Okla.) High School. Hennesy became Locust Grove’s head coach in 2012 on the heels of a pair of seasons in which the Pirates finished 0-10 and 2-8, respectively. In the past five seasons under his direction, the program has earned three state playoff berths and three district titles to attain a 47-13 (.783) overall record. A high school coaching veteran of 24 seasons, the North American Championship will mark the fourth time that Hennesy has faced Canada in international play with a 2-1 record in the previous three meetings.
“I’ve coached in all-star games, this is completely different,” said Hennesy. “Coaching a U.S. National Team in international competition – when you’re on that sideline with ‘USA’ on your chest, standing for the national anthem – that feeling you get is not what you experience in a regular game. We’re going to get that through to our players.”
Approximately 70 countries across five continental federations possess a national federation dedicated to the sport.
U.S. National Team alumni include DT MALCOM BROWN (Texas/New England Patriots), WR DEVIN FUNCHESS (Michigan/Carolina Panthers), RB TODD GURLEY (Georgia/Los Angeles Rams), CB JOURDAN LEWIS (Michigan), LB GREER MARTINI (Notre Dame), RB SAMAJE PERINE (Oklahoma), QB BRYCE PETTY (Baylor/New York Jets) and QB JAMEIS WINSTON (Florida State/Tampa Bay Buccaneers).
2017 U.S. Under-18 National Team roster:
Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown High School
Shawn Aarhus DL 6-4 245 Benson, Minn. Benson
Ledgen Angeli ATH 5-9 160 Hartshorne, Okla. Hartshorne
Alec Austin TE 6-4 115 Colleyville, Texas Nolan Catholic
Joe Basiura OL 6-3 295 Lansdale, Pa. Malvern Prep
Rashod Bateman WR 6-2 173 Tifton, Ga. Tift County
Will Bates OL 6-1 280 Locust Grove, Okla. Locust Grove
Ryan Betz TE 6-3 250 Phoenixville, Pa. Malvern Prep
Andrew Bostic RB 5-9 175 Bowie, Md. Wise
Treylen Brown OL 6-3 280 Woodruff, S.C. Byrnes
Daniel Cantrell LB 6-1 220 Boise, ID Bishop Kelly
Jaren Dirtseller LB 6-0 215 Locust Grove, Okla. Locust Grove
Gavin Dunnam TE 6-3 245 Neosho, Mo. Seneca
Ezekiel Ennis DB 5-9 165 Millville, N.J. Saint Augustine Prep
DeAndre Faulk LB 6-1 220 Suffolk, Va. Lakeland
Noah Ferguson OL 6-3 285 Clayton, N.C. Clayton
Jelani Foster WR 6-2 185 Laurel, Md. St. Vincent Pallotti
Caleb Gibson LB 6-1 180 Locust Grove, Okla. Locust Grove
Zachary Green QB 6-4 210 Chesapeake, Va. Grassfield
John Bailey Gullatt LB 6-0 225 West Monroe, La. West Monroe
Anfernee Gurley DB 5-11 185 Everett, Wash. Archbishop Murphy
Shomari Hayes DL 6-3 270 Tempe, Ariz. Mountain Pointe
Azizi Hearn DB 6-2 185 Oceanside, Calif. Oceanside
Isaiah Humphries DB 6-0 188 Rowlett, Texas Sachse
Andrew Johnson DL 6-2 235 Tifton, Ga. Tift County
Lance Jones RB 5-8 170 Inola, Okla. Inola
Jacob Lange DB 6-0 170 Gurnee, Ill. Warren Township
Reginald Lee Jr. DL 5-11 265 Sunrise, Fla. Miami Norland Senior
Demetrice Lofton DL 6-4 220 Atlanta, Ga. Creekside
Joshua Maize DL 6-4 235 Deerfield, Ill. Deerfield
Jalen Mayden QB 6-3 210 Rowlett, Texas Sachse
Dylan McDonald LB 6-0 215 Parsippany, N.J. Parsippany Hills
Verone McKinley III DB 5-0 175 Carrollton, Texas Hebron
Alec Meza RB 5-10 190 Casa Grande, Ariz. Vista Grande
Damon Nelson II OL 6-2 300 Springdale, Ariz. Har Ber
Jordon O’Hara DL 6-5 225 Nevada City, Calif. Nevada Union
Javonte Oliphant DB 5-0 180 Trinity, Texas Trinity
David Pence OL 6-3 270 Peabody, Mass. Peabody Veterans Memorial
Noah Quier OL 6-3 305 Suffolk, Va. IMG Academy (Brandenton, Fla.)
Marvin Robinson DB 6-0 170 Prince George, Va. Sussex Central
Hayden Rome K/P 6-0 170 Houston, Texas The Kinkaid School
Mohamed Sanogo LB 6-3 224 Plano, Texas Plano West
David Shannon WR 6-0 170 Clermont, Fla. East Ridge
Dillon Spalding WR 6-2 205 Lorton, Va. South County
Kyle Swinford DL 6-5 245 Sacramento, Calif. Bradshaw Christian
Noah Taylor LB 6-5 190 Rockville, Md. The Avalon School
Isaiah Ward DL 6-0 280 Peoria, Ill. Peoria Notre Dame
Maurice Washington III WR 6-0 180 San Jose, Calif. Oak Grove
Brandon Wilkes OL 6-3 300 Hillard, Fla. Hillard Middle Senior
2017 U.S. Under-18 National Team coaching staff:
Name Position High School
Matt Hennesy Head Coach Locust Grove (Okla.)
Fred Biletnikoff, Jr. Offensive Coordinator/Quarterbacks Livermore (Calif.) Valley Charter
Bill Williams Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Line Holdenville (Okla.)
Greg Purdum Offensive Line Louisiana (Mo.)
Brandon Younger Cornerbacks Oak Grove (Calif.)
Lamont Robinson Safeties Millville (N.J.)
Matt Geginheimer Linebackers Prior Lake (Minn.)
David Blevins Wide Receivers Locust Grove (Okla.)
Casey Taylor Running Backs Del Oro (Calif.)
About USA Football
USA Football designs and delivers premier educational, developmental and competitive programs to advance and grow the sport. As the sport’s national governing body and member of the U.S. Olympic Committee, USA Football partners with leaders in medicine, child advocacy and athletics to support positive football experiences for youth, high school and other amateur players. Follow USA Football on Facebook or on Twitter.