Gridiron Classic Scouting Report

Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy! The 2021 football season is upon us and scrimmages opened up this week. Prep Redzone Oklahoma was on the scene in Tulsa as Union hosted five other schools for scrimmages and three mini games. Among the schools participating were Bentonville, Edmond Santa Fe, Owasso, Springdale Har-Ber, Union and Westmoore. Check out our mini game recaps <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2021/08/free-gridiron-classic-recap/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">RIGHT HERE</a>. In this post, we’ll take a look at standout prospects from all of the Oklahoma schools. For some of these guys, we already knew about them. For others, they might be on the verge of having that breakout season. Every time we cover a game throughout the season, we’ll also have a scouting report on each team, talking about all of the marquee prospects but all of the other guys who stood out who could end up contributing at the next level. EDMOND SANTA FE [player_tooltip player_id="188013" first="Demarius" last="Robinson"] - 2025 Running Back Our first prospect is one that we didn’t know about because he’s only been in high school for a few days. Freshman running back [player_tooltip player_id="188013" first="Demarius" last="Robinson"] has already done enough over the last few months to prove that he not only deserves to be in the lineup for the Wolves, but he can contribute in a starting role. That was one of our biggest questions around Edmond Santa Fe heading into this season. How would the Wolves replace their two-headed monster they had at running back from a year ago in Ethan Hyche and [player_tooltip player_id="61222" first="Micah" last="Snoddy"]. Both players had double digit touchdowns and Hyche ran for over 1,700 yards. The Wolves will continue to use multiple backs this fall but Robinson got a lot of work throughout the scrimmage-portion of the afternoon as well as in the mini game. We think with 2022 quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="61144" first="Scott" last="Pfieffer"] and several weapons at wide receiver, the Wolves will look to be a team that does the majority of their damage in the passing game. However, if they get production from Robinson that’s even remotely close to what Hyche and Snoddy had last fall, that’s a big bonus. And we’ll throw it out again that this kid is a freshman and already having the ability to make an impact. [player_tooltip player_id="188008" first="ElTramane" last="Neal"] - 2022 Wide Receiver You probably expected if we were going to be writing about a Santa Fe wide receiver, it would be about All American [player_tooltip player_id="38667" first="Talyn" last="Shettron"]. And while Shettron was without a doubt one of the best football players on the field on Thursday, we’re going in a different direction with this pick. The Wolves have another senior wide receiver that will actually help Shettron this season and that’s [player_tooltip player_id="188008" first="ElTramane" last="Neal"]. He saw some playing time last year as a junior but we believe he’ll be Santa Fe’s legit number two receiver this fall. Neal had a strong showing throughout the afternoon and into the evening for the Wolves. He has size, speed and good hands as well. We won’t be surprised at all if Neal ends up having a really good start to the season. He’s coming into the year as somewhat of an unknown and because of that, Shettron will get more attention, and rightfully so. But that will open up things for Neal to make some plays. And with 2022 quarterback [player_tooltip player_id="61144" first="Scott" last="Pfieffer"] throwing him the ball, Neal could be a household name as an offensive weapon by the time district play rolls around in late September. <hr /> OWASSO [player_tooltip player_id="51037" first="Austin" last="Havens"] - 2023 Quarterback We tried to pick someone other than one of the obvious choices for Owasso but we couldn’t deny [player_tooltip player_id="51037" first="Austin" last="Havens"] his rightful spot right here. He had a stellar sophomore season but we’ve been waiting to see what he could do this fall. We’ve also made no secret that we think the Rams have some of the best skill players in the state on the offensive side of the ball, but they do have a completely new offensive line and that could provide some issues. However, after seeing Havens this offseason, we were impressed with his running ability. He didn’t have to run and Owasso didn’t want him to run last fall but that just adds another dangerous element to an already loaded offense. As a passer, there’s no doubt that Havens has a big arm and excels on some of the deep passes that we’ve seen time and time again. We saw them again on Thursday evening. But one area that we immediately saw improvement in was his ability to throw on the run as well as throw the shorter and intermediate routes over the middle and towards the sidelines. Havens has one of the best deep balls in the state and that didn’t need much polish. But adding more throws to his book makes him a dangerous quarterback to watch. We’re very excited to see what he does in this Owasso offense this fall. [player_tooltip player_id="61147" first="JaRay" last="Austin"] - 2022 Wide Receiver Here’s the thing about Owasso 2022 wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id="61147" first="JaRay" last="Austin"] and we’ve written about it a few times this year. He’s small. He’s a small wide receiver and that’s the ONLY thing that keeps him from being considered one of the top wide receivers in the state’s 2022 class. He’s listed on the Owasso roster at 5’9 and you have to be a flat out speed demon superstar to be considered a top receiver prospect at that height. However, Austin continued to do on Thursday what he has done to countless teams over the last two years. He runs right by anyone and everyone that tries to stop him. We mentioned Havens at the quarterback spot for Owasso and his ability to throw the deep ball. More times than not, it’s Austin who’s running under one of those high-arching deep balls and just like that, he’s in the end zone. Again. This isn’t as much of a breakdown on Austin as a prospect as it’s a plea for coaches to open their eyes a little wider when they watch the film. Austin is running by guys. And he’s not just a speed player. He has no problem being physical as well. Obviously, it’s not one of his go-to moves but if he has to lower the shoulder he will. And one thing that makes Austin who he is has to be his ability of timing. He just knows the right moments to go get the ball at it’s highest point and make a catch over a defender or two. Austin had another big night on Thursday and he’ll continue to have them this fall. <hr /> UNION [player_tooltip player_id="188149" first="RJ" last="Wilson"] - 2022 Defensive Lineman You’ll read below that we believe that Union has one of the best offensive lines in the state, regardless of class. The defensive line isn’t too shabby either. The two-headed monster of [player_tooltip player_id="57208" first="De’Marion" last="Thomas"] and [player_tooltip player_id="188149" first="RJ" last="Wilson"] should give opposing quarterbacks nightmares this fall. With Thomas also doubling as an offensive lineman, Wilson is the main guy on the defensive front that sets things up for everyone else. We watched Wilson closely going into the mini game because we didn’t know much about him coming into the scrimmage. Taking a look at him when we were on the field, he certainly passes the eye test and we wanted to see him in action. He had a fantastic start to the mini game against Edmond Santa Fe and had a pretty good showing overall. This Union defense is definitely at their best when they have Thomas and Wilson along the defensive front just absolutely wrecking shop on the line of scrimmage. However, when it’s just Wilson, he’s able to carry the load and things did open up for Union’s linebackers to move freely and make plays. Wilson played primarily on the interior of the defensive line and it’s not a very glamorous position with tons of stats but if you’re doing it right, all the guys around you will excel. He’s certainly a name to watch, along with Thomas on this Union defensive line. [player_tooltip player_id="38675" first="Will" last="Thomas"] - 2022 Offensive Lineman We could have picked the entire Union offensive line, we could have gone with either of the running backs or even the quarterback but we’re going with 2022 offensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id="38675" first="Will" last="Thomas"] on the offensive side of the ball. Thomas is one of our highest rated senior offensive line prospects. However, his recruitment has been incredibly quiet because of an offseason that required more rehab than camps or visits. Because of that, Thomas is one of the highest rated prospects that is still available in the 2022 class and he got his senior season off to a great start. Again, it can’t be stressed enough, this Union offensive line as a whole is incredibly special and the running game is going to be one of the best in the state. But Thomas in particular is a special talent and he wasted no time getting right to work on Thursday night. Time after time, Thomas was absolutely mauling his opponent and pushing him 10-20 yards away from his original spot. You could tell that Thomas was itching to get back on the field and wreck shop on the line of scrimmage. It even cost him a false start penalty during the mini game against Santa Fe where he fired off the ball and immediately put his opponent on his back. It didn’t count but Thomas was on top of his game from start to finish and all times in between. Thomas should be at the top of the list for college coaches looking at senior offensive linemen in Oklahoma this fall. <hr /> WESTMOORE [player_tooltip player_id="188002" first="Kaibren" last="Grant"] - 2022 Running Back It was a rough day for Westmoore during the scrimmages and then getting mauled by Springdale Har-Ber in the mini game, losing 35-7. However, even though they struggled, we still saw plenty of bright spots, especially in the Westmoore offense. The Jaguars are young at the quarterback position as they had two players getting reps during the mini game and both were sophomores. But the two players that we’ll highlight here are both going to be seniors this fall. The first is running back [player_tooltip player_id="188002" first="Kaibren" last="Grant"]. The Jaguars also rotated players at the running back position. Brandon Arnold also got reps at running back but it seemed like Grant was more of an electric running back that could make big plays happen while Arnold was more of a power back that could do damage in short-yard situations and he would keep it between the tackles. Grant showed flashes of being a running back that could end up being a breakout player. He runs incredibly hard and if he gets into the open field, he has the wheels to make a highlight play. He didn’t have very many opportunities on Thursday but Grant is a name that we’ll be watching throughout this fall. [player_tooltip player_id="188003" first="Xazavier" last="Ware"] - 2022 Wide Receiver The second senior that really stood out to us was also on the offensive side of the ball and that’s wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id="188003" first="Xazavier" last="Ware"]. (Pictured at the top) The Westmoore standout really did an excellent job in the scrimmage portion and in the mini game against Springdale Har-Ber. When we were watching the Westmoore offense during the rotating scrimmages, it was Ware that was making some big plays in the Jaguar passing game. It’s pretty easy to see why. Just looking at Ware, he passes the eye test. He stands at 6’3 and weights 180 pounds. He could end up being a big weapon in this Westmoore offense. They’ll need a steady force at the receiver position as they continue to work with two sophomores at the quarterback position. The Jaguars have had consistency at the quarterback position for three years with [player_tooltip player_id="38527" first="Dayton" last="Wolfe"] but with him graduating, the offense will look a little new this fall. It’s unclear at this time whether the quarterback battle will continue as they open up the season next week in Texas, but Ware will provide whoever ends up under center with a security blanket. At the very least, just throw it up and see if Ware can make a play. He made plenty of them on Thursday.