Southern California Top Defensive Performances: Week 2

<strong>[player_tooltip player_id="141878" first="Hero" last="Kanu"], Santa Margarita, 2022</strong> Kanu is a 16-year old prospect who rapidly rose to national recruit status last season. He had only played five games in his life prior to this season but impressed everyone at camps and showcases. Kanu was good on the field for Santa Margarita in a crucial win over St. Augustine of San Diego last week with three tackles for a loss. https://twitter.com/gmartlive/status/1431068961924284424?s=20 <strong>Daimon Pine, Rancho Mirage, 2022</strong> Pine is off to a hot start for Rancho Mirage and is a very underrated pass rusher. He had two sacks in a shutout win against Tahquitz and two forced fumbles. He also had two sacks the previous week against Indio. Rancho Mirage has a stellar defense and Pine is one of its better player. https://twitter.com/daimonpine6/status/1251699505805713408?s=20 <strong>Zac Sheets, Nordhoff, 2022</strong> Nordhoff suffered its first loss of the season and the hands of Santa Ynez, but the defense played well, allowing only 10 points. Sheets has been the star of Nordhoff’s defense for awhile and had another great game. The senior had 24 tackles, three for a loss and four hurries. He also forced a fumble and had two pass deflections. I don’t think he is a high-caliber college prospect, but he is one heck of a high school player. He could definitely be a quality Division 3 player. https://twitter.com/vcspreps/status/1435819163818225665?s=20 <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="141920" first="Treyton" last="White"], Eastlake, 2022</strong> Eastlake had a huge win against a quality Orange County team in La Habra. For those who are unaware, San Diego teams don’t generally fare well against good Orange County teams. White and the Eastlake defense were outstanding, holding La Habra to 14 points. He was in the backfield all game with five sacks and three additional hurries. White is one of the top 10 players in San Diego and has offers from San Diego State and Northern Arizona. https://twitter.com/aedmondstv/status/1433177964938612736?s=20 <strong>Juju Zamudio, Garfield, 2024</strong> It’s not often that LA City Section players make these lists, but the Garfield defense played very well in a win against Jefferson and deserves to have a guy on this list. Zamudio led the Bulldogs in tackles with 12, had three sacks and a forced fumble. He is a guy to keep an eye on in the City Section for the next two years. <hr /> <em><strong>Other top performers: </strong></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Nathaniel Alarcon, California</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Alex Arroyo, Roosevelt (Los Angeles) </span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Trevor Bananal, Mt. Carmel</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Niko Banuelos, Rosemead</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="25252" first="Tayvion" last="Beasley"], St. John Bosco</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Guy Bellingrath, Westlake</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="45038" first="Dane" last="Benedix"], Capistrano Valley</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Angel Bernal, Rosemead</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="25362" first="Sinn" last="Brennan"], Los Alamitos</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Sean Brown, Simi Valley</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Jayden Cortell, Eastlake</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="25376" first="Matthew" last="Erhart"], Oaks Christian</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Abel Flores, Rancho Mirage</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Michael Flores, California</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="141995" first="Samuel" last="Gbatu"] Jr., Temecula Valley</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Battle Gideons, St. Margaret’s</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Austin Grbic, Edison</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Tyler Gregg, Santa Ynez</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Jake Higgins, Mission Viejo</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Hunter Ledesma, Mt. Carmel</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Cade Mahaffey, Aliso Niguel</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Jeremie Mcgurn, Jordan (Long Beach)</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="155848" first="Weston" last="Port"], San Juan Hills</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Brian Roberts, Lincoln</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Cole Robertson, San Clemente</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">David Saldivar, San Ysidro</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Gabriel Sanchez, Legacy</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="25302" first="Jairus" last="Satele"], St. John Bosco</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="187247" first="Patrick" last="Sodl"], Loyola</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">JP Synnott, Capistrano Valley Christian</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Paul Villafana, Barstow</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="141895" first="Jayden" last="Virgin"], Mt. Carmel</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Tate Zimmerman, Irvine</span>