Team Preview: Lutheran-St. Charles (2023/2024 Prospects)

The Lutheran-St. Charles football program figures to be one of the most talented in the St. Louis area as well as the state of Missouri this fall. Led by Stanford-bound senior running back [player_tooltip player_id="37528" first="Arlen" last="Harris Jr"]. and a pair of big Division I two-way linemen in [player_tooltip player_id="37546" first="Ashtin" last="Rustemeyer"] and [player_tooltip player_id="37549" first="Jaydon" last="Wannstedt"], the veteran-laden Cougars should also go into the 2021 season with significant depth thanks to a talented group of youngsters. Coach Arlen Harris, the former NFL running back, has been building the Lutheran program into one of the state’s better small-school squads. In the first part of our team preview, we looked at <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2021/07/team-preview-lutheran-st-charles-2022-prospects/">Lutheran’s talented Class of 2022 prospects</a>. In this edition, we focus on the players to watch in the Class of 2023 and 2024... <strong>CLASS OF 2023</strong> <strong>Michael Parr Jr., </strong><strong>6-0, 175, WR</strong> Harris said Parr earned All-District honors as a freshman when he caught 30 passes for 683 yards and six touchdowns, but has missed time because of injuries since. "He’s very smooth," the coach said. "He’s elusive in his routes. He has the best hands on our team. It’s not even close." <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/13204262/5dddda9d2aa6b005ecf145fd" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="172017" first="Dawson" last="Tallent"], 6-2, 270, OL-DL</strong> Tallent sat out the 2020 season after transferring to Lutheran, but is expected to start at right tackle. "He’s nasty," Harris said. "... He’s been pancaking kids at camps." <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/14609333/60ca282d688e450f605ac7ab" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="103413" first="Nic" last="Dudley"], 5-8, 170, DB-ATH</strong> Another transfer who has yet to play varsity for the Cougars, Dudley is expected to start at cornerback but then move around at wide receiver on offense. "He had something like six touchdown in a JV game," Harris said. "... We’re excited about him." <strong>CLASS OF 2024</strong> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="130169" first="Ayden" last="Harris"], 5-9, 190, OLB-RB</strong> The next up in the Harris lineage, Ayden is expected to start at outside linebacker and running back (next to his older brother) this fall. He record up 42 tackles, two interceptions and one sack as a freshman. "His upside is insane," Coach Harris said. "He kind of has the ’it’ on both sides. He was All-District on offense (as a freshman) and probably could have gotten in on offense as well. ... He’s probably the same equally on offense and defense, but he’s probably our most ferocious hitter on defense." <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/10657629/5f903c409a92d30594917d8c" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="171963" first="Kaleb" last="Mays"], 5-8, 160, CB-WR</strong> Mays racked up a team-best five interceptions during his freshman season, to go along with 20 tackles, in eight games. "His upside is crazy too," Harris said. "... He’s one of the best corners in this area that we’ve seen. He has great hips. He’s just an athlete." <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/14836430/5fb5ed0e6899630bc0df8edb" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="126242" first="Isaiah" last="Rubio"], 6-1, 220, DE</strong> The younger brother of 2021 Lutheran grad [player_tooltip player_id="37155" first="Gabriel" last="Rubio"], who is now a freshman defensive tackle at Notre Dame, and son of Angel Rubio, who made it to the NFL and played for the Arizona Cardinals in 1999, Isaiah is next in line and looks like a promising prospect in his own right. He had 27 tackles as a freshman, playing in a rotation on the defensive line, but is expected to start at defensive end this season. <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/7567112/5fb5abdd90ef3c0a20b742f5" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="126253" first="Talan" last="Chandler"], 6-3, 275, OL-DL</strong> Chandler started games at left tackle as a freshman a year ago and has worked hard in the offseason to get better. "He did some good things as a freshman, but now he’s a man," Harris said. "He’s bigger, smarter. He’s got experience. He’s definitely going to help us up front at left tackle. ... He’s going to be special. After this year he’ll have a whole bunch of offers for sure." <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/13170771/5f721de51600b30c3009d939" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="171964" first="Jayshawn" last="Richmond"], 6-2, 200, DE-TE</strong> Richmond had 10 tackles, one sack and one fumble recovery as a freshman getting limited snaps while playing on a deep and talented defensive line. "He’ll be a dude for us," Harris said. "He’s got good size. He’s learning." <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/14659604/60ced6f532e7430c248812f0" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="126210" first="Charlie" last="Blondin"], 5-11, 150, QB-DB</strong> Blondin will be the back-up to starter [player_tooltip player_id="37540" first="Aaron" last="Coffey"], but Harris said he will get some snaps this fall and could also see time at safety. <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/14672366/60d0c1a217629a0f00125f2d" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <em><strong>You can follow Nate Latsch on Twitter at <a href="http://www.twitter.com/natelatsch">@natelatsch</a>.</strong></em>