Midseason Team Profile: Horizon Huskies

<p style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Overview</strong></span></p> Through five weeks of play, Horizon High has shocked everyone in the state as they remain undefeated at 5-0, which is already better than their 2020 six game season when they went 3-3. Not only are they undefeated thus far, but they have beaten some highly touted programs, which includes a 24-15 victory over the reigning 5A champs Sunrise Mountain, a 31-30 win over Desert Edge, and a comeback win 43-36 over Millennium. Bottom line, Horizon is gaining the attention they deserve, and it’s about time these 5A schools put some respect on Horizon’s name here in 2021. As of this week, the AIA open division midseason playoff rankings came out, giving Horizon the #7 seed out of 8 total spots here at the midseason mark. It seems that new head coach Andy Litten has turned this program around and is bringing out the best potential out of every athlete. I got a chance to see Horizon live a few weeks back against Millennium, and you can feel the different type of energy at Horizon High that hasn’t been there in the past. Not only do they have two highly touted prospects ([player_tooltip player_id="100648" first="Daniel" last="Santiago"] &amp; [player_tooltip player_id="42926" first="Matthew" last="Klopfenstein"]), but they have had several new names that caught my eye, and have now climbed up in our player rankings, establishing themselves as legit college prospects. Their remaining schedule doesn’t give them too many favors either, as they’ll still have to play Saguaro, and sneaky Notre Dame Prep and Campo Verde teams, so Horizon will continue to be one of the most interesting teams to follow. <hr /> <strong>Top players thus far:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id="100648" first="Daniel" last="Santiago"], <em>DL, ’22</em> Santiago is a flat out bully along the DL. Excellent power and explosiveness through the hips to beat opponents with pure strength, yet also flashes solid athleticism and quickness within his 6’2" 285lb frame to make plays lateral down the LOS. Tenacious player with a mean streak and loads of potential, as he currently holds 7 offers thus far. [player_tooltip player_id="42926" first="Matthew" last="Klopfenstein"], <em>TE, ’23</em> A big body kid at 6’5" 230lbs with the ability to run clean routes and catch the ball in traffic while anticipating contact, and the ability to make difference in the run game, making him a well polished TE and a huge asset to Horizon. Large catch radius with strong hands as he is a frequent mismatch. He currently holds 6 offers and will only continue to see his stock take leaps. [caption id="attachment_211675" align="alignright" width="225"]<img class="wp-image-211675 size-medium" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/10/IMG_6547-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="225" height="300" /> <span style="font-size: 10pt;">[player_tooltip player_id="211752" first="Cole" last="Linyard"], 2023 WR</span>[/caption][player_tooltip player_id="211752" first="Cole" last="Linyard"], <em>WR, ’23</em> Linyard has been the biggest sleeper in the state in 2021 and I was very impressed with him when I saw him live. An absolutely playmaker from anywhere he lines up and possesses reliable hands. Clean route runner with a strong ability and football IQ to find the soft spot in coverage, and has deceptive speed as he can make something happen anytime he touches the ball. So far, he leads Horizon in receiving with 26 receptions for 342 yards and 3 TD’s. He had mentioned that he is not talking to any schools yet, and that definitely needs to change. [player_tooltip player_id="211753" first="Wesley" last="Lambert"], <em>ATH, ’23</em> Primarily used as a RB, Lambert possesses some of the best balance I’ve seen from a ball carrier all season. Don’t underestimate his size at 5’8" 165lbs, as he runs with a purpose and flashes excellent physicality at the POC to run through opponents, stay on his feet and pick up extra chunks of yards frequently. Through 5 games, Lambert has rushed for 630 yards and 8 TD’s. Big fan of this kid as he possesses a fearless, gritty demeanor with the intentions to make a statement on every play. <em><strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">Other names to know:</span></strong></em> [player_tooltip player_id="210196" first="Skyler" last="Partridge"], <em>QB, ’22</em> [player_tooltip player_id="162082" first="Ethan" last="Tinsley"], <em>ATH ’22</em> [player_tooltip player_id="210195" first="Dylan" last="Murray"], <em>DB ’22</em> <strong>Chase Jung</strong>, <em>WR ’22</em> <strong>Jack Bodemuller</strong>,<em> DB ’23</em> <strong>Landon Smith</strong>, <em>DB ’22</em> <hr /> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong>Schedule/Results </strong></span><span style="font-size: 10pt;"><em>*Region game<img class=" wp-image-211724 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/10/IMG_6537-225x300.jpg" alt="" width="311" height="415" /></em></span></span> 9/3- <strong>Pinnacle: </strong>W 17-16 9/10- <strong>Sunrise Mountain: </strong>W 24-15 9/17- @ <strong>Desert Edge: </strong>W 31-30 10/1- <strong>Millennium: </strong>W 43-36 10/7- <strong>Apollo: </strong>W 58-21 10/15- *@ <strong>Gilbert</strong> 10/22- *@ <strong>Saguaro </strong> 10/29- *<strong>Maricopa </strong> 11/5- *@ <strong>Campo</strong> <strong>Verde</strong> 11/12- *@ <strong>Notre Dame Prep </strong>