Week 7 – Defensive Players of the Week

Week 7 of high school football in Colorado has come and gone. With that, there were some incredible nights for defensive players this past week. Here’s a look at the three best performances from last week and what made them possible. <strong>Players of the Week</strong> Isaac Engle, Highlands Ranch Falcons (LB)(Jr.)(9) - This is Engle’s second week in a row where he’s made this list...and this week’s showing was even more dominant than last week’s. Despite the Falcons’ 49-28 loss to the Rock Canyon Jaguars, Engle posted an absurd 24 tackles, 2 tackles for a loss, and a sack. When you watch Engle’s world-beating performance, you can see Engle’s relentless motor is the first thing that stands out. High energy LB that never gives up his pursuit on a ball carrier, even when working backside and chasing ball carriers that are well down field. Great physicality at the point-of contact with would be blockers, using a combination of a low pad level, good hand placement, and strength to shed blockers and make the tackle or continue his pursuit. Rarely takes bad angles, often chasing down faster ball carriers because of this trait alone. Good understanding of gap responsibilities to fill would-be running lanes and take away space for the ball carrier. Engle isn’t garnering a lot of recruiting attention at the moment, but if he continues to perform like he has the last two weeks, he’d be worth taking a flyer on for a smaller program. [player_tooltip player_id="209833" first="Nathan" last="Hallmark"], Fossil Ridge Sabercats (DE/LB)(Sr.)(20) - Hallmark has easily been one of the best defensive players in the state so far this season and is currently the state’s top pass rusher. Last Friday’s 40-32 win over the Horizon Hawks was more of the same, as Hallmark accounted for 7 tackles, 5 tackles for a loss, 4 sacks, and a pass deflection. I don’t think it would be farfetched to say that Hallmark was the biggest reason the Sabercats were able to pull out the win. Turning on the film, you can see that Hallmark displays elite first step explosiveness, often using that alone to overwhelm opposing linemen. Outstanding acceleration out of his stance allows him to easily convert speed-to-power when bull rushing. Excellent bend when turning the corner, forcing the opposing tackle to overextend when trying to maintain edge protection. Long armed, technically sound pass rusher that has a good understanding of hand technique, placement, and timing that gives him an edge when athleticism alone won’t win. Tenacious, high motor defender that will relentlessly pursue the ball carrier downfield. Versatile pass rusher that can play both a standard 4-3, hand-in-the-dirt end position or a 3-4 standup LB/rush end position. Hallmark is an immensely talented and exciting player that will certainly be a force at the collegiate level in 2022. Porter Sonntag, Pueblo West Cyclones (DE)(Sr.)(44) - Sonntag was a player that’s been relatively quiet most of the year, but in the Cyclones’ 35-14 win over the Mesa Ridge last Friday, he exploded onto the scene. For the night, Sonntag accounted for 6 tackles, 4 tackles for a loss, and 4 sacks. When you turn on Sonntag’s film from the game, the first thing that jumps out is his relentless motor. High energy pass rusher that doesn’t quit on the pursuit of a play even if he’s working back side. His smaller stature (5’11, 183 lbs) actually works in his favor, as his low center of gravity and lower body strength allow him to maintain first step explosiveness out of his stance. His low center of gravity also allows him to gain more bend when turning the corner and pushing the edge of the pocket. Strong, powerful hand placement when working against the opposing tackles often pushing them into the pocket on a bull rush with hand placement alone. Good understanding of how to counter the opposing blocker’s hand technique when losing at the initial point-of-contact. Standard 4-3, hand-in-the-dirt rush end out of a 4 point stance. While Sonntag isn’t grabbing a lot of attention on recruiting boards, he absolutely has the size, speed, technique, and overall athleticism to play at the collegiate level but projects more as a LB than a DE due to his smaller stature.