Jordan's Road Trip: Week 1 Offensive Standouts

We kickstarted IHSA Football this past Friday where these young men were finally able to put the pads on in hopes of making a playoff run for their perspective teams. For Week 1, Jordan’s Road Trip headed to Peotone to watch the Blue Devils take on Manual (Peoria). This game went down to the wire with big plays on both sides of the ball, at the end Peotone was able to come away with a 24-20 win to clinch their first win of the season. With that being said let’s look at the Offensive Standouts for this game below! Peotone (1-0) Manual (0-1) Game Score: 24 - 20 <hr /> [player_tooltip player_id="155339" first="Austin" last="Massat"] 6’1 245 OL Peotone Mr. Massat is not a new name as he’s been at Prep Redzone Showcases this past off-season as well as being able to see him play last spring season as well. Having a good idea of what to expect out of his game I was impressed with how he was able to further develop before the season started specifically on the offensive side of the ball. This young man creates running lanes for his teammates in a variety of ways such as blocking in open space, washing the defensive line down, hook blocking, and walling off defenders. What caught my eye the most for his offensive performance was the aggression that he showcased at the point of attack to drive the defender back 5 to 10 yards on multiple plays. There's a reason why he has college interest and holds two offers (one from Loras College and another from North Park University). [player_tooltip player_id="157743" first="Dylan" last="Sroka"] 5’10 165 RB Peotone Heading into this fall season there was buzz around what this young man can do and how he would transition his dominant JV performance in the spring to Varsity this fall. Let me tell you, he didn’t disappoint. He finished the game with 2 touchdowns and is going to be a focus for opposing defenses to limit him in each matchup. This young man bursts through the line of scrimmage blowing by the 2nd level of defenders when running between the guards and has the speed to turn the corner when he bounces the play outside. Mr. Sroka is a hard runner that fights for extra yards by keeping his feet driving and fits the style of running backs that Peotone continuously produces alongside [player_tooltip player_id="157744" first="Dawson" last="Piper"], Darek Knauer, and Ryan Moe. https://twitter.com/Jamaskane/status/1432363517202636810?s=20 [player_tooltip player_id="157744" first="Dawson" last="Piper"] 5’10 180 RB Peotone The Junior tail back finished Friday's game with a rushing touchdown and is going to be a name to watch this season for the Blue Devils. This is another Peotone Blue Devil that has gotten exposure at Prep Redzone Camps this past off-season as well as playing 7 on 7 ball. With that being said, I was excited to see how he developed since the spring season and he didn't disappoint as he came out with a chip on his shoulder with something to prove. He's a downhill runner that isn't afraid to lower his shoulder to play through contact, he also keeps his feet driving to fight for extra yards. Once the ball is in his hands he finds the running lane quickly and burst through by changing gears quickly. Mr. Piper is also used as a lead blocker in the run game where he takes on linebackers and defensive ends to create a lane for his teammate behind him. https://twitter.com/Jamaskane/status/1432363986754879488?s=20 TJ Chenoweth 5’9 160 QB Peotone Mr. Chenoweth has switched positions back to Quarterback after playing the spring season as a wing back, upon doing so his running skills have transitioned to the Quarterback position well. This young man is utilized in the running game on QB power (student body) where he isn’t afraid to lower his shoulder to fight for extra yards. There wasn’t a whole bunch of passing in Peotone’s offense but when there was we got a glimpse of his passing abilities as well, most notably how he’s able to get the ball off under pressure with a defender in his face. https://twitter.com/Jamaskane/status/1432364629301383169?s=20 Darek Knauer 5’11 175 RB Peotone This Peotone wing back caught my eye with his downhill running. Once the ball is in Mr. Knauer’s hands he’s patient as he waits for his blocks to get set up in front of him before changing gears. As he does so, he keeps his feet driving as the defenders try to arm tackle him resulting in extra yards on the play. This young man is a hard runner and might be an x-factor for this offense moving forward as Peotone has an army of backs that can get it done. https://twitter.com/Jamaskane/status/1432365181707948037?s=20 Tristen White 6’0 235 RB Manual Switching gears to Manual, this is my first time seeing Mr. White play and wow he was a sight to see. Once the ball is in Mr. White's hands, he plants his foot into the ground & gets upfield quickly bursting through the line of scrimmage. He's a bigger back that is hard to bring down as he kept fighting for extra yards by keeping his feet driving playing through contact as Blue Devil defenders tried to bring him down. This young man also has the vision to see cutback lanes as he rallied off a long touchdown to put Manual on the board with the first points of the game. https://twitter.com/Jamaskane/status/1432366846783672321?s=20 Marques Easley 6’7 245 OL Manual When you see that this young man stands at 6'7 245 you might be thinking that he's a slower player that doesn't have much speed to him but you would be drastically mistaken as this young man is a workhorse. On offense, he fires off the ball getting hands-on quickly driving the defender back creating a running lane for his teammate to run through. Mr. Easley works up to the 2nd level blocks, can wash the defensive line down, and plays through the whistle with his attacking playstyle throughout. On defense, he also makes an impact with his aggressive playstyle as well. This young man is only a Sophomore, keep an eye on him moving forward these next few seasons. Jamari Chance QB Manual What caught my eye about Mr. Chance was how he wasn't afraid of contact, rather he doesn't have a problem lowering his shoulder to fight for those extra yards. If there isn't anyone open downfield or if he gets flushed out of the pocket he'll pull the ball down to scramble where his ability to change gears quickly comes to light. What I would like to see more of is his arm talent, at the end of the game he made an impressive throw under pressure with multiple defenders in his face and ended up throwing a 50/50 ball where his teammate had a chance to come down with it. https://twitter.com/Jamaskane/status/1432372737746644996?s=20 Taijuan Johnson 5’9 154 RB Manual Mr. Johnson didn't get an enormous amount of touches this game, but when the ball was in his hands you had to keep your head on a swivel as this young man is very "twitchy" and elusive. He's a smaller back that changes gears quickly, once the ball is in his hands he plants his foot into the ground and attacks upfield. This young man has a good change of direction where he can stop on a dime then accelerate back to full speed quickly which opens gaps in the opposing defense for him to use to his advantage. Mr. Johnson and Mr. White remind me of a "Thunder & Lightening" combination in the backfield, one to look out for the rest of the season. <hr /> These are the Offensive Standouts from Jordan’s Road Trip, keep an eye on these young men as they head into their Week 2 matchups (Peotone vs North Central & Manual vs Normal Community). Be sure to follow @jamaskane regarding news & information for Illinois High School Football, @PrepRedzoneIL, and @PrepRedzone.