A.J. Surace is putting in a lot of work this offseason, this as the class of 2024 quarterback continues to hone and develop his mechanics with one of the nation’s top quarterback coaches.
A three-star quarterback at Notre Dame High School (Lawrenceville, N.J.), Surace committed to Rutgers in February. He held an offer list that included Boston College, Duke, Indiana, Michigan State, Northwestern, Pittsburgh and Tennessee among others.
He is the consensus top quarterback in New Jersey.
The Rutgers commit is working with Tony Racioppi, a former college quarterback who is now a mentor and trainer to some of the top young quarterbacks in the region.
Racioppi posted a video of Surace during a recent workout:
Rutgers Univ commit QB AJ Surace of Notre Dame HS working Gun 5 Quick holding MIKE and backside FS on drop then sliding back foot to right into a jump reset to throw 18yd Dagger Dig to NFL FA WR S’aeed Blacknall. @aj_surace12 @CoachBobSurace @KirkCiarrocca @GregSchiano pic.twitter.com/LSLjlm02x7
— Tony Racioppi (@Tonyrazz03) June 20, 2023
Surace does nicely on the three-step drop. He sits in the pocket with his feet solidly set before moving into his progression. He then throws a ball into space, allowing his wide receiver to catch the ball in stride.
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Of course, this is all done without any type of pressure, but the tools show a quarterback who is well-coached and developed. This shouldn’t be surprising given that Surace’s father is Princeton head coach Bob Surace and he is being developed by Racioppi, who has trained Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett since high school.
Pickett was a first round pick of the Steelers in last year’s NFL draft.
“(Surace) is working on fundamentals, footwork and Rutgers pass game concepts alongside Steelers quarterback Kenny Pickett,” Racioppi said of the training session.
Racioppi continues to work with Pickett during the offseason as part of TEST Football Academy’s offseason workouts. TEST has a facility in central New Jersey that is frequented by several former and current NFL players for offseason conditioning.
Racioppi has worked with 12 current NFL quarterbacks and 15 FBS starters from New Jersey. He is also one of the lead instructors at the Manning Passing Academy, one of the most prestigious quarterback instructional camps in the country.
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