PPL Spring Season Week 1 Recap: NE, MLK Win Big

The first week of Spring Football in the Philadelphia area is in the books! We are all grateful to cover a Spring season here at Prep Redzone PA, albeit a short one. Nonetheless, seniors city-wide are playing their hearts out in hopes to add more film to their Hudl’s for a chance to play at the next level. Some underclassmen have trained all year to finally put themselves on the map. Some just want to play ball. In this piece, we will recap a flurry of games in the Philadelphia Public League, where multiple players have added themselves to our watchlist with solid opening-week play. [caption id="attachment_121064" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-121064" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/03/IMG_4417-crop-1639x1076-1616024441-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Photo: Zamani, Zamani Feelings[/caption] West Catholic 0 @ Northeast 36 We open with West Philadelphia Catholic’s brutal loss to Northeast. The Vikings showed no mercy in dismantling West Catholic and did so in the trenches. NE dominated both offensive and defensive lines from snap to whistle. Offensively, Northeast looked to run down West Catholic’s throat on the backs of massive lineman [player_tooltip player_id="98517" first="Julian" last="Carrion"] and Donovan Saunders. Do-it-all senior [player_tooltip player_id="27437" first="Daquan" last="Robinson"] was all over the field, carrying and catching the ball out of the backfield as well as returning punts. The man was productive, to say the least, scoring on a 1-yard run and on a breezy punt return late in the second half. A new name on offense that stood out was Sophomore running back Terail Greene. He impressed, showing he could combine strength and power with solid burst ability and good vision. We added Terail to our watchlist to be ranked, among others like wide receiver T’iar Young who possesses the size you want from an X wideout. This game was handled because of Northeast’s uber-talented defense. The star-studded defensive line, which includes Ronnel Nukah, [player_tooltip player_id="66046" first="Kion" last="Wright"], and [player_tooltip player_id="27471" first="Amara" last="Yobouet"], was led by incredible athlete [player_tooltip player_id="27559" first="Ken" last="Talley"]. His performance showed exactly why he’s ranked as our 7th best junior in all of Pennsylvania. He was an absolute game wrecker, bringing home 5 sacks and a safety. The secondary is just as talented. It’s fun to piggy-back off a defensive line that can wreak havoc the way NE’s does. Stud DB’s like [player_tooltip player_id="69461" first="Geovanny" last="Fabian"] and [player_tooltip player_id="27315" first="Zaire" last="McLaurin"] showed up and played with an attitude. Whoever looks to beat NE will have to answer to defense. [caption id="attachment_121062" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/03/IMG_4416-crop-1570x1031-1616024389.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-121062" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/03/IMG_4416-crop-1570x1031-1616024389-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> Photo: Zamani, Zamani Feelings[/caption] Despite the score, there were a solid amount of bright spots out of West Catholic that led me to be pleasantly surprised. We raved about NE’s defense, so any player who can produce against it needs to be highlighted. K’Saan Green, sophomore runningback flashed serious acceleration and vision despite hardly having gaps opened up for him. He was up for the challenge, as were defensive backs Naidir Hilliard and Zymeen Howell. Both prospects showed effort, a willingness to tackle, and plenty of athletic ability, enough to land them on our Watchlist. [caption id="attachment_121084" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-121084" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/03/IMG_4424-300x275.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="275" /> Photo: Zamani Zamani Feelings[/caption] Frankford 21 @ Martin Luther King 32 The game of the opening week of the 2021 Spring Season was none other than Frankford at MLK. Loads of young talent on both squads led to intriguing matchups all around the field. MLK’s offense was explosive, led by junior quarterback Lamir Kitchens who we had the pleasure of watching at the Pylon 7v7 this past February. Kitchens was efficient in the passing game, showing decisiveness in where he wanted to go with the ball as well as being quick with his reads. Kitchens put up one of the best stat lines in the pub, completing 12 of 14 passes for 244 yards and 3 touchdowns, as well as adding another with his legs. He’s magical on the run, I have seen many PPL QBs who are strictly athletes behind center. Not Kitchens, he’s got serious arm talent and showed he can hit a multitude of routes in rhythm and accurately. [caption id="attachment_121080" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-121080" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/03/IMG_4420-crop-4148x2724-1616024918-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Photo: Zaire Dean Chubb Vision Photography[/caption] Kitchens was held upright by the massive Buffalo commit, [player_tooltip player_id="27238" first="Matthew" last="Pajuste"] who is as reliable and consistent a prospect as they come. Look out for rising prospect Rymir Gray along that same offensive line, he and junior wideout [player_tooltip player_id="27211" first="Isaiah" last="Rogers"], who was a matchup nightmare for Frankford, both cemented themselves on our watchlist. Frankford wasn’t without talent either. I was left impressed by Nadir Mitchell. The junior Pioneer running back showed off some really good lateral movement and that tough running style keen to the PPL. Want to see more out of him. [caption id="attachment_121077" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-121077" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/03/IMG_4421-crop-4148x2724-1616024864-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Photo: Zaire Dean, Chubb Vision Photography[/caption] [caption id="attachment_121074" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-121074" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/03/IMG_4423-crop-4148x2724-1616024803-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Photo: Zaire Dean, Chubb Vision Photography[/caption] We had difficulties gathering enough information to fully dive into other games/scrimmages around the PPL. However, we were able to find some great performances put on by numerous PPL prospects. Here are some below! Mujaheed Muhammad | CB | HS of the Future | C/O 2021 Dechaune Jackosn | DB | 6’1" | Overbrook HS | C/O 2021 Zaire Brown | ATH | West Philadelphia HS Titus David | ATH | 5’9", 165lbs | Bartram HS | C/O 2022 Markel Morgan | LB/DB | Bartram HS | C/O 2021 Bartram flashed some brilliance in Titus David and Markel Morgan. Titus showed he could break games open with his brilliant straight-line speed. David took a short screen 70+ yards to the house! Morgan brings talent on both sides of the ball but primarily on defense. Lock Haven University commit Dechaune Jackson showed ball skills at his defensive back position and good recovery speed. Shout out to Mujaheed Muhammad, another senior defensive back who secured a victory with a 45-yard pick-six, as well as adding 4 tackles to his stat line. If we missed your performance, hit us up on Twitter!