Prep Redzone Minnesota Showcase: Session II MVPs

Today I wrap up my coverage of the Prep Redzone Minnesota Showcase. I loved attending this event. Nearly 200 athletes in total that have the talent to play at some level of college football. In my final recap article I am going to identify my MVPs from the second session of the day. That session was made up of QBs, WRs, and DBs. The ball was flying all over the place, and WRs/DBs were going at it all day long with some crazy battles. If you are a high school kid looking for exposure like this then make sure you<a href="https://prepredzone.com/events/"> check out our upcoming events!</a> We will be in Crown Point, IN this Saturday and then Waukesha, WI at Carroll University on May 23! Use code: JohnsonPRZ10 if you want to sign up and save 10% at the same time! Now let’s get into the MVPs of Session II. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="112192" first="Jamarrius" last="Courtney"], 2023 QB- Benilde- St. Margaret</strong> Jamarrius has a cannon coming out of his right shoulder. As far as arm strength goes, Courtney was QB1. There were throws during Session 2 where it looked like he was just flicking his wrist and the ball was jumping out of his hand. When he stepped into it and really let it rip he was able to hit any window on the field. There was even a play where there wasn't a window. So, he fired it right through the arms of the defender and into the receiver's chest. He will need to improve his footwork going forward to take his game to the next level, but he is only a sophomore. There is plenty of time for him to develop in that area. There is so much to work with here when it comes to arm talent. He is going to be must watch on Fridays at his new school, Benilde- St. Margaret, and should be a hot target in recruiting this time next year. [embed]https://twitter.com/OliverJamesWes1/status/1389035542306861057[/embed] <strong>Bart McAninch, 2024 QB- Mankato West</strong> Bart initially caught my eye during the individual portion of the session. I liked his 6'1" 205 lbs frame and he seemed to have a good arm with pretty clean mechanics. Then I looked at my player sheet to see exactly who Bib #114 was. You can guess my surprise when I realized it was a freshman. From there I tried to watch as many reps as I could once they started throwing with WRs vs air and against the DBs. Bart has the makings of a potentially very impressive QB by his senior season. His footwork is quick and consistent. His throwing motion gets the ball out pretty quick, and he can drive the ball with velocity. It looks like Mankato West has a good one on their hands for the coming years. Definitely a name to have noted for down the road. [embed]https://twitter.com/OliverJamesWes1/status/1389298366819954690[/embed] <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="18441" first="Joseph" last="Russell"], 2022 QB- Robbinsdale Cooper</strong> I was really impressed by Joe's day as a whole. The 6' 160 lbs QB proved to be a good athlete for the QB position. So good that he actually stepped up during 1 on 1 battles and played some CB between QB reps. He had the speed to run with the WRs he guarded, so he definitely has the athleticism to be a serious dual threat at the next level. As a QB, I came away impressed with how smooth he was. Whether it was his footwork or his throwing motion, there was no struggle in movement. Everything was silky smooth. As the day went on he also seemed to get more comfortable as his performance in the 1 on 1s got better as the session went on. He should have a lot of team's interest at the next level. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="22947" first="Jacob" last="Eggert"], 2022 QB- Mankato East</strong> My overall most impressive QB from the Showcase was Eggert out of Mankato East. The junior checked off a lot of boxes for me with his solid frame at 6' 195 lbs, strong arm and accuracy to every level of the field, and sharp mechanics in his throwing motion and footwork. I had high expectations coming in for the QB1 of the Minnesota 2022 Class and he lived up to it. My favorite part of his day was during the individual drills where the QBs were lined up and making throws across the field to each other. Just watching his ball fly through the air compared to the other QBs around him showed how different he is with the football. The accuracy, the tight spiral, the velocity were all superior to the other throws going on around him. He proved his ranking during his session. [embed]https://twitter.com/OliverJamesWes1/status/1388970757947019266[/embed] <strong style="font-size: 1rem;">[player_tooltip player_id="116503" first="Connor" last="Gerrell"], 2022 QB- White Bear Lake</strong> My final QB MVP is the junior out of White Bear Lake. First, he started the day during Session 1 by throwing passes for the RBs during 1 on 1 battles. Then we got to his session and he really stepped out into the spotlight. The 6'3" 185 lbs QB has a good frame that can continue to add size to it at the next level. My favorite part of Connor's showing was his deep ball. I actually noted it after catching several of his throws without knowing who the QB was. Over and over, when I would check to see who was making the throw it kept turning out to be Connor. The way he could put some air under it and drop it in a bucket, or use a little more velocity to get it there quicker depending on the DBs leverage was impressive to watch. Add in the quick release and accuracy on all his shorter throws and you get one of my most impressive QBs from the day. Definitely a QB that has the tools to develop into a solid D2- D3 college QB recruit. <strong>Liban Ali, 2022 DB- John Marshall</strong> Liban was the smoothest DB in the position drills and the 1 on 1 battles. He didn't test amazing, but once we went to live action he was able to play with a large majority of the talented WRs in attendance. Liban is a perfect example of game speed/athleticism over timed speed/ athletic testing. As soon as the bullets were live Ali flipped a switch and was smooth through his change of directions and was able to be disruptive at the catch point. I really liked what I saw out of Liban during 1 on 1s. It's exactly what you want to see from a player who has to play out on an island. Solid day for Liban! Check him out college coaches, and get him out to your team camps to see him in action! <strong style="font-size: 1rem;">[player_tooltip player_id="140142" first="Austin" last="Welsch"], 2022 DB- Madison East</strong> Loved what I saw from this hidden gem out of Madison East. The 5'11" 165 lbs DB was a DAWG all day long in the 1 on 1 reps, and my favorite part of his whole day was that he couldn't get enough. WRs outnumbered the DB group by a healthy margin leading to the DBs getting a ton of work. Austin had to have gotten the most. There were times I saw him only take one battle off between his reps before jumping right back in. That high motor was awesome to see in these high competitive moments. As for his actual play, Austin was very aggressive. He willingly pressed and when he did play off he had the quick twitch and reactive athleticism to be able to see the cut, accelerate, and then run with the WR. At the catch point his aggressiveness continued as he made the WRs work for any reception. Austin is firmly on my radar over in Wisconsin now. Great job by him to come out and get some football in as most of Madison wasn't able to play this past fall or spring. [embed]https://twitter.com/MJ_NFLDraft/status/1389256003376631810[/embed] <strong>player_tooltip player_id="31327" first="Troy" last="Bounting"], 2022 WR- Hudson</strong> Wisconsin was well represented in the WR group by Troy. The 5'11" 175 lbs WR was one of the best in every phase of the event. He posted a strong 40 yard dash and then jumped a crazy 10'1" broad jump to fully show off his explosiveness. Then when we got to the 1 on 1 battles Troy was one of my favorite route runners. He is able to get in and out of his breaks at nearly top speed thanks to the previously mentioned explosiveness. That route running and acceleration were his keys to the separation he was able to generate. The great performance earned Troy one of the spots in our Best vs Best battles at the end of the session. Well deserved for the day he put in. I know he caught the eye of the coaches in attendance too. [embed]https://twitter.com/MJ_NFLDraft/status/1388978002260856837[/embed] <strong style="font-size: 1rem;">[player_tooltip player_id="18428" first="Jacob" last="Kelly"], 2022 WR- Bemidji</strong> My final MVP of Session II goes to the very physically gifted WR out of Bemidji. The 6'3" 215 lbs WR was the only other person in sesssion two besides Bounting to break 10' in the broad jump as he exploded to a 10'1" jump. That size being able to generate that much force in a small area quickly identified him as a kid to watch once we got to the 1 on 1 battles. Boy was I not disappointed. Kelly was the most difficult WR to cover on the day. He already had the upper hand with his great size, and then you add in not only the short area explosiveness to get off the line and out of his breaks quickly, but also the long speed be able to take the top off the defense. His track background is more evidence of how gifted of an athlete he is as he currently holds the record for being the fastest freshman in Minnesota history for the 110M hurdles, and #12 in the nation. Great day by Jacob, and there is no doubt he has a bright future ahead. [embed]https://twitter.com/MJ_NFLDraft/status/1389257756356620289[/embed] &nbsp;