Thursday Night Lights: Grand Prairie vs Mesquite

Thursday night at the Gopher Bowl in Grand Prairie Texas, two teams looking to make their mark early in the season took the field looking to establish themselves and get on track heading into week three. The Mesquite Skeeters vs the Grand Prairie Gophers contest featured two quarterbacks, one who is trying improve his recruiting stock for the next level, and the second who made the switch to the quarterback position because he is the best athlete on the field most nights when he steps on the field. Which senior quarterback rose to the occasion , led his team, as well as elevated the play of his teammates around him? <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="60742" first="Savion" last="Red"] QB (6’1 2<span style="font-size: 1rem;">05 lbs.) C/O 2022 Grand Prairie HS {Prep Redzone Ranking: #293 State Tx, #31 WR Rank}</span></strong> SMU Mustang Pledge, [player_tooltip player_id="60742" first="Savion" last="Red"] is ranked as one top the top wideouts in the class of 2022 in the state of Texas. As a wideout, his strength sets him apart, which allows him to bully defenders off the line, he is gifted with next level speed, strong hands, believes that any ball thrown his way is his, excels at the jump ball and average high school defensive backs don’t usually have success when covering Red. But this season Red has made the switch to quarterback to put the ball in his hands every play. I witnessed Savion preparing for this position change during the 7v7 season this past spring as he played for True Buzz Athletics in some of the biggest tournaments around the country. Red has a strong arm, when he sets his feet and has a clean pocket, he delivers an accurate ball with good velocity. His deep ball had touch on it, accounting for two touchdown passes of 35 and 50 yards on the night. If defenses don’t contain him schematically, he will make you pay when he gets in the open field. <strong>Adrian Wilson DB (6’2 170 lbs.) C/O 2023 Grand Prairie HS</strong> Wilson is a safety who can cover slot receivers inside, but come down hill and lay the wood. He made several key tackles for loss to halt Mesquite drives. Wilson is rangy, rugged at the point of attack, and made big crowd stirring hits that got the Gopher faithful excited.  As the season goes on, Wilson will continue to raise eyebrows with his hard nosed play. Colleges should take an early peek at Adrian. <strong>Alex Torres LB (5’10 200 lbs.) C/O 2022 Grand Prairie HS</strong> Torres left the biggest impression on me of all the players!!! He is undersized at his position, but plays big, is a thumper, runs the alley well on stretch plays, has above average speed, and anticipates the blitz like a veteran linebacker. Alex trusts his instincts, which allows him to read his keys quickly. Small colleges should be taking a hard look at Torres, who has a Hendrix College offer, he recently picked up <strong>Chance Edwards QB  (6’3 230) C/O 2022 Mesquite </strong> I was familiar with Chance Edwards having seen him on the 7v7 circuit and several college camps this summer, but made the trip to the historic Gopher Bowl to get eyes on him in season. Edwards has the size and arm strength that college coaches covet at the next level. Chance passes the eye test, has a college ready frame and was impressive in warm ups. Edwards has the arm talent to fit the ball in small windows, moves well in the pocket, shifts his weight properly, has good bounce and stands tall in the pocket. Chance is mobile on the run, which lead to a short TD run and is a proven pocket passer. Edwards throws a smooth deep ball, and connected on a deep fade route before the half of 50 yards. Uncommitted, Edwards will be a steal for a school looking for a quarterback who can develop in a starter. <strong>KD Lee RB  C/O 2022</strong> [caption id="attachment_199302" align="alignright" width="300"]<img class="size-medium wp-image-199302" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/09/533286F4-B7ED-4BBC-9F31-0983AF06C887-300x115.jpeg" alt="" width="300" height="115" /> {"subsource":"done_button","uid":"EA1CA99A-9C29-44D4-8E52-29F2099F04BF_1631284368185","source":"other","origin":"gallery","is_remix":false,"used_sources":"{"version":1,"sources":[]}","source_sid":"EA1CA99A-9C29-44D4-8E52-29F2099F04BF_1631284368821","premium_sources":[],"fte_sources":[]}[/caption]<strong>(5’6 200 lbs.) Mesquite HS</strong> Lee is a downhill runner , who has a strong lower body, breaks arm tackles with ease, hits the hole violently, makes one cut and gets north. KD impressed me from the first time he touched the rock!! Lee burst up the middle on the Gopher defense before the end of the second quarter to make a house call from 50 yards out, showing burst, elusiveness and speed. Lee has the strength and stout build Division II and NAIA programs search for to come on campus and be a factor once they have a chance to compete in college.