Players Set to Breakout this Spring: Wide Receivers

We have made it to game week of the 2021 Spring football season here in Wisconsin! We will be here providing coverage the whole way as players that have had to wait forever take the field! There are several players that have not been able to receive the recruiting attention their talent level deserves because of this delayed season. Now that it is here, I believe many players are going to make a name for themselves. Several of those players are at the wide receiver position. Today, I want to take a look at five receivers that I believe are going to breakout this spring and land the recruiting attention they deserve! Let’s take a look at the skill their past film already shows and then take a look through their twitter accounts to see what kind of recruiting attention they are currently receiving. [player_tooltip player_id="30838" first="Isaac" last="Schaaf"], 2021- Waunakee My first breakout candidate comes from the very talented team in Waunakee. Isaac checks in at 5'8" 140 lbs. When you see that size you can predict how that player tends to win on the field. Speed, vision, agility, and quickness. Isaac checks off all of those traits along with the more nuanced traits for the receiver position. There is no question that Isaac has the game changing speed that can stretch the field and take the top off of the defense. At the same time, when Schaaf is utilized in the quick passing game or even the run game he has the agility to make defenders miss in tight quarters and the burst to take any slice of daylight to the house. He also adds in the more nuanced traits, such as reliable hands and route running that creates separation for his QB. I believe that Isaac can fit in best in the slot at the next level. Isaac also has experience as a CB, which only increases his potential uses at the next level. Keep an eye on Isaac and this Waunakee team as a whole. I'm surprised there isn't a little more interest around Isaac. He currently holds offers from Loras College and Simpson College, which I think are the correct levels of competition. The surprise comes from the amount of offers. With a team that has as much talent as Waunakee, there are usually enough eyes on them so that a kid doesn't fall through the cracks. That might be the situation here. The great part is that Isaac has the next 7 weeks to remind everyone about his abilities and I believe he will break out more this spring. [player_tooltip player_id="30857" first="Javonee" last="Szymanski"], 2021- Green Bay Southwest I don't understand how Javonnee isn't a much more recruited player. The 6'4" 175 lbs big man is fun to watch on film. It isn't every day you find a kid of his size that also has the athletic traits and vision to be the best return man in his conference. That's what we have here. He has the long speed to create big plays. His release off the line flashes his suddenness. He has natural hands that easily pluck the ball out of the air at the end of his very large catch radius. After the catch, it almost doesn't make sense how elusive he is at that size. He has that great length, yet with the ball in his hands nobody can get close to touching him. The film even shows an effective safety prospect as well, but I believe that WR is where he will make his impact at the next level. For any team looking for WR help, I highly suggest taking a look at the Green Bay Southwest product. It's going to be a fun spring for him. Javonnee is going to be a steal for a program. When you go through his Twitter account he has one graphic from Sioux Falls and that is all you find. This spring is going to be a launching pad for his recruitment. It shouldn't take long before teams start to line up for him. [player_tooltip player_id="31107" first="Joel" last="Santa Maria"], 2021- Greenfield I would describe Joel as the prototypical possession receiver. He has plenty of size at 6'2" 180 lbs. He can line up in the slot or out wide. He has enough play speed to be successful at the next level. He is a willing, and effective downfield blocker in the run game. Overall, Joel is very physical in his play. He has no problem doing the dirty work while also having the athleticism to provide the offense with the flashy parts of the position as well. His route running is sharp and he doesn't tip off his routes to the defense leading to consistent separation. Joel doesn't do one thing great, but he does a lot of things well and teams are going to like what they see this spring. To date, Joel holds one offer from Graceland University. Besides that offer, I haven't found any evidence of other interest from schools. This is setting a team up with the chance to get a useful player late in the recruiting process. Greenfield has a lot of players that should be looked at for the next level, so make sure you don't miss Joel while scouting through them! [player_tooltip player_id="30824" first="Kyle" last="Funke"], 2021- Appleton North Our final senior in this article comes from the loaded Appleton North offense. The All- Region level player had a productive junior season that I expected to bring in recruiting attention. Looks like he is going to have to keep balling out this spring to get that attention he deserves. Funke offers a versatile game. He has the long speed to be a threat down the field and he is a nightmare in the short area/ bubble screen game. When he gets the ball in his hands quickly, he has the agility and short area quickness to turn a play that looks dead into a first down and 3 missed tackle attempts. That short area quickness shows up in the breaks of his routes as well. His loose hips allow him to change direction without losing much speed. College programs should definitely check out the current film and keep an eye on him this spring. Kyle doesn't have a ton of activity on his Twitter account, so maybe there is some interest that hasn't been shared. With that being said, there currently isn't any interest being show to Kyle based on his Twitter account. With the talented offense that Appleton North is going to have this spring, I expect that to change. I believe Funke is going to be a player to watch this spring and will show a lot of schools that they need to consider recruiting him. [player_tooltip player_id="118440" first="Alexander" last="Schmitz"], 2022- Big Foot This spring is setting up to be a big breakout campaign for Alex. Every player that finished 2019 with more receiving yards than he did, on his team, has graduated. This sets him up to be the top target for his QB. I predict that this is going to lead to a big 7 game stretch for the 6'2" 175 lbs prospect. In the short film he has, you can see they really liked using him in the slot and running him underneath deeper routes that cleared out that area of the field. The film also shows that he has a nose for soft spots in the defense. It's only a handful of plays to go off of, but every time it seems like the defense doesn't realize he is even there until it's too late. I will be watching very closely to see how he has developed since 2019. If what he did at the Prep Redzone Wisconsin Showcase in December is any hint, Alex has developed into a talented route runner that his QB is going to love throwing to. So far, MNSU- Mankato is the first school to make the early jump on showing Alex some love this winter/spring. Outside of them there isn't any other interest on Alex's Twitter account. This isn't surprising since the junior doesn't have a ton of varsity experience and 7 catches in 2019. However, make sure you have him highlighted as a must watch this spring! Tune back in tomorrow as I will finish up the offensive side of the ball by looking at the offensive line group!