2021 Minnesota Team Preview: Minnetonka Skippers

MINNETONKA-- We kicked off round 2 of "two a days" last week as we went into double coverage on Friday starting with an early visit to the Minnetonka Skippers practice in the morning. Coming off a 2-5 season with two losses inside a touchdown or less, the Skippers come into 2021 very optimistic that they can turn the corner from two wins in the last 2 seasons into from what I can see on tape, a great possibility of being over .500 this season. Without further ado, I give to the subscribers of Prep Redzone Minnesota the 2021 team preview on the Minnetonka Skippers. The Prospect List 2022 Prospects Will Martin | QB | 2022 | Jr Tape Bret Worley | RB | 2022 | Jr Tape Ashton Hoffman | DB | 2022 | Jr Tape Hoffman is committed to the University of Minnesota-Duluth. Cade Conzemius Cade Conzemius 5'10" | 165 lbs | WR Minnetonka | 2022 State MN | WR | 2022 | Jr Tape Conzemius is committed to the University of Minnesota. Andrew McCalla Andrew McCalla 5'10" | 225 lbs | DL Minnetonka | 2022 State MN | DL | 2022 | Jr Tape Tyler Lien | WR/DB | 2022 | Jr Tape Casey Miller | WR | 2022 | Camp Tape Julius Nurse | DL | 2022 | Tape Joey Gendreau | WR/DB | 2022 | Jr Tape Evan Swenson | DB | 2022 | Jr Tape Prentice Wheatley | RB/DB | 2022 | Game Tape Ben Aeshliman | RB/LB | 2022 Andy Dill | OL/DL | 2022 | Hudl Profile Practice Notes on 2022s We kick it off with the quarterback Will Martin. Martin has improved since I last watched him in 7on7 last season. He showed off a quick release and solid precision at Friday morning’s practice at Minnetonka. The Skippers are planning for a more significant passing attack in 2021 so look for the southpaw Will Martin to lead the charge. Moving over to the defensive side of the ball, we take a look at defensive tackle Julius Nurse. He showed some solid movement crushing the inside lanes with his active footwork. He will need a little more development when it comes to technique, but overall I was impressed with Julius’s game along with his motor and athleticism. We move over to the receiving core and take a look at WR Casey Miller who I thought was a tough-as-nails pass-catcher during the Skippers practice on Thursday. He showed a great will to be a fighter for football whenever there was a heavily contested ball within reach in 1on1s. A 6’3 210 pound prospect to watch this season for the Skippers with no offers yet. My favorite matchup of the day in 1on1s was between Minnesota-Duluth commit DB Ashton Hoffman and Minnesota commit WR Cade Conzemius Cade Conzemius 5'10" | 165 lbs | WR Minnetonka | 2022 State MN . This matchup was electric and man if there was a crowd watching they would have gone nuts for how much of a battle there was between these two. Hoffman did a solid job of forcing Conzemius to the outside sideline and then make a physical play on the football to get the interception. This play was such a battle even though I was standing right next to it, it was tough to really found out who won the ball which in the end, it was the Bulldogs commit that got the interception. One of the top hitters of the day came from LB/FB Bret Worley who took it up a notch in some of the 11on11 action we watched on Friday morning in Minnetonka. When I took a peek at his junior film, I saw those similar traits as Worley does an excellent job with driving the ball carrier to the ground with his strong 6’0 195-pound frame. Worley is another surprise from the Skippers with no offers yet. At defensive back, Evan Swenson caught my eyes as a top performer in the secondary. Although not the biggest kid you will ever see in the secondary he showed off some consistently strong footwork. I really like his speed when he’s clinging to the football and he’s a CB that makes the right play when getting a pass breakup vs. always going for the interception. One of the most surprising seniors without a Hudl tape available is running back Ben Aeshliman. He’s got a strong burst out the gates and there is a lot to like about his bouncy hips when moving from side to side. Hopefully, Aeshliman can get some film up this season as if I remember correctly, I enjoyed his play last season at the Inspired Athletx 7on7 league at Minnetonka. Another untapped prospect that had a solid day on the defensive line for the Skippers was Andy Dill. Dill was by far not one of the biggest linemen on Skippers defense but this kid played with a lot of grit and a big motor from what I witnessed at practice. 2023 Prospects Dylan Sinykin | OL | 2023 | Hudl Profile Elijah Gacheru | LB/WR | 2023 | So Tape Jack Liwienski Jack Liwienski 6'3" | 265 lbs | DL Minnetonka | 2023 State MN | OL/DL | 2023 | So Tape Aidan Boehle Aidan Boehle 6'6" | 210 lbs | DL Minnetonka | 2023 State MN | WR | 2023 | So Tape Bennett Worre | WR | 2023 | So Tape Ben Ingersoll | DE/LB | 2023 | So Tape Dakota Egert Dakota Egert 6'5" | 240 lbs | DL Minnetonka | 2023 State MN | OL/DL | 2023 | So Tape         Ryan Olson | DE | 2023 | Game Tape Cosmo Guion | RB | 2023 | So Tape Practice Notes on 2023s One of the most under-the-radar offensive line prospects from Friday morning was Dylan Sinykin. I came away quite impressed with the strong leverage I witnessed in the early morning drills along with his footwork to get to those inside and outside spots in front of the defender. I could not find any tape on Dylan, but I am excited to hopefully see some this season. Staying on the offensive line, I don’t think there was a prospect I enjoyed watching more in Minnetonka than C/DL Jack Liwienski Jack Liwienski 6'3" | 265 lbs | DL Minnetonka | 2023 State MN . He was a prospect that had a strong ability to drive his defenders into the second level of the field on multiple occasions. I did not see an offensive line prospect in a Skipper’s uniform get better leverage all day than Liwenski, which is why I have said in the past and now that he’s a D1 prospect in the making. One of the wide receivers from the 2023 class that I enjoyed watching was Bennett Worre. He not only showed an elusiveness in his game with the turns on his routes, but he showed sound adjustment skills when reacting to where the football was going based on where he was at. Another DB/WR to watch for the Skippers making his varsity debut will be Elijah Gacheru who has put together one of the better JV tapes I have seen in the Midwest recently. This young man was all over my note on Friday, showing a strong balance in his footwork showing solid hip drive when he would turn on his routes. I certainly think Gacheru will be a fun DB to watch in the coming seasons as I really like his skill set. 2021 Skippers Schedule Thurs, September 2nd: Home vs. Edina Fri, September 10th: Home vs. Blaine Fri, September 17th: Away @ Maple Grove Fri, September 24th: Away @ Champlin Park Fri, October 1st: Home vs. St.Michael-Albertville Fri, October 8th: Away @ Totino-Grace Fri, October 15th: Home vs. Centennial Thurs, October 21st: Away @ Roseville