Five Seniors to Watch: 5A

There are several extremely talented Seniors across every position in football who play in class 5A.  Here are five of those players to watch in 2021.  These players are sure to be key contributors to their team this season. <strong>DL, [player_tooltip player_id="35542" first="Jalen" last="Marshall"], 6’5, 260, St. Thomas Aquinas</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="35542" first="Jalen" last="Marshall"] is the 2nd ranked DL and the 6th ranked player overall in the class of 2022.   Last year he made 48 tackles with 3 TFL, 3 sacks, 2 passes defensed and a fumble recovery.  He plays as a DT lined up in a 3T.  He shows good burst off the ball while using his long arms to beat the OG to the punch by delivering a powerful strike to the frame of his man as he stacks the OG at the point of attack.  He displays the play strength and physical toughness to bullrush the larger OG but is also athletic enough to beat the OG inside with a swim move.  He shows good instincts as he takes the correct angle in pursuit of the ball carrier, keeps his eyes on the RB constantly and uses his play strength in his upper body, lower body and core to bring him down with force. <strong>DB, [player_tooltip player_id="89198" first="Jaeden" last="Hamilton"], 5’9, 160, Wichita Heights</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="89198" first="Jaeden" last="Hamilton"] is the 3rd ranked DB and the 25th ranked player overall in the class of 2022.  He plays as a CB.  In 2020, he made 19 tackles with 2 interceptions and 8 passes defensed.  In press coverage, he matches the feet of his man while being patient with his hands and uses his very good play speed and athletic ability to stay in phase with the taller WR down the field on go and seam routes.  He displays very good ball skills as he tracks the ball in the air over his shoulder like a WR and displays very good hands as he comes away with the interception.  He is very good against the run as he plays at a good pad level and displays very good play strength as he drives his shoulder through and delivers a punishing hit on the larger RB bringing him down with ease. <strong>WR, [player_tooltip player_id="35548" first="Kendrick" last="Jones"], 6’4, 185, Mill Valley</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="35548" first="Kendrick" last="Jones"] is the 8th ranked WR and the 35th ranked player overall in the class of 2022.  In 2020, he caught 32 passes for 548 yds and 5 TD.  He plays primarily in the slot.  He takes short, quick choppy steps and he eats up the cushion of the DB, uses hip fluidity to separate against off man coverage as he breaks off his stem on a 45 degree angle on slant routes and possesses very good hands as he makes the catch on passes that are through outside his strike zone with ease.  Occasionally, he will line up in tight and is a very effective run blocker as he quickly gets his hat across the much larger SAM while executing a scoop block, winning with his hands inside and displays very good physical toughness and play strength as he finishes the block to the ground. <strong>ATH, [player_tooltip player_id="35577" first="Tyler" last="Schultze"], 5’10, 170, De Soto</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="35577" first="Tyler" last="Schultze"] is the 6th ranked ATH and the 38th ranked player in the class of 2022 overall.  He plays as a QB, H-Back and slot WR.  As a QB, he displays very good spot on accuracy on short throws as he places the ball on the correct shoulder of the WR running slant routes and on screens maximizing yards after the catch.  As a receiver, he uses his very good play speed to get behind the FS on seam routes and is great in contested catch situations as he makes the catch on 50-50 balls.  After the catch, he accelerates for a big gain.  He is an outstanding run blocker who plays at a good pad level, squares up and shoots his hands onto the frame of the larger SAM on scoop blocks creating a huge lane for the RB to run through. <strong>LB, [player_tooltip player_id="113292" first="Cody" last="Hawks"], 6’1, 220, Eisenhower</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="113292" first="Cody" last="Hawks"] is the 10th ranked LB and the 79th ranked player in the class of 2022 overall.  In 2020, he made 90 tackles with 2 sacks, an interception and a pass defensed.  He plays as an off the ball OLB as well as a MLB.  He is very good in coverage as he covers the RB coming out of the backfield.  He quickly keys and diagnoses the play at the snap, uses his very good closing speed to get to the ball as it is being thrown and uses his very good leverage and form tackling ability to bring down the RB with force.  He is a good pass rusher who gets under the pads of the OT and uses his elite play strength and explosiveness to send the OT to the ground at the point of attack, uses his very good motor to pressure the QB and is able to force the QB to throw the ball sooner than he anticipated.  Against the run, he reads the block of the OL and TE, uses his hands and leverage effectively to stack the OL and shed the block while using his play strength in his upper and lower body to bring down the quick RB with ease.