2024 Rankings Newcomers: Defense

<em>Deep dive into some of the new defensive prospects in the 2024 PRZ Rankings. </em> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="217565" first="Lenoxx" last="Hicks"], DL, Sierra Linda</strong> The 6’1” 215 lb. DE already possesses an outstanding skillset as a sophomore. He’s a plus athlete with great initial quickness and explosion off the LOS to beat blockers off the edge and disrupt plays as they are developing. He flashes good natural movement skills with his ability to bend and use his speed to close on the ball and deliver violent contact. He’s well coached displaying good command and technique of a variety of moves to disengage from blockers as a run stopper or rush the passer. He’s got great upside and potential as a college prospect and will be one of the top DE’s in the state. https://twitter.com/KingHicks_/status/1460643289997012992?s=20 <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="217571" first="McKay" last="Beardall"], DB, American Leadership Academy – Gilbert</strong> Beardall has shown great versatility throughout the season with his ability on both sides of the ball. He’s an impressive athlete that is fluid with his movement and change of direction. He transitions well out of his backpedal showing good leg drive and acceleration to break on the ball. He’s a rangy defender that can cover all areas of the field in both coverage and run support. Flashes impressive ball skills using his body control, coordination, and timing to effectively track and play the ball in the air. He will be a big time playmaker on both sides of the ball for the next several seasons at ALA. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="217573" first="Samuel" last="Johns"], DB, Desert Ridge <img class=" wp-image-238921 alignright" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2021/11/Foosers-2.jpg" alt="Week 3 State Playoff Preview" width="390" height="256" /></strong> Johns is a well-rounded DB prospect that is capable of playing as a deep cover safety or in the box defender. He’s loose in the hips and shows good long and short speed to close space and make plays all over the field. Great instincts and field awareness, he understands down and distance and his eye discipline allows him to be quick with his key and play diagnosis. Love the way he competes and his toughness. He’s a confident one on one open field tackler that comes downhill hard in run support and is smart with his attack angles in pursuit. High football IQ, he makes smart decisions in the secondary and possesses a strong skillset to build on. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="217576" first="Logan" last="Rogers"], LB, Desert Ridge</strong> Rogers filled the stat sheet this year racking up over 100 total tackles before Desert Ridge’s first round playoff loss to Brophy. Not the biggest guy at 5’8” 170 lbs. but he’s an instinctual LB with a high IQ and a great nose for the football. He flashes a good ability to diagnose run/pass and possesses a quick trigger to react and put himself in position to make a play. Love his patience and efficiency as he makes his reads, very little wasted movement and false steps. He’s a reliable open field tackler that wraps up to the ground and can deliver strong contact through the ground. One to watch as he continues to mature and develop. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="217577" first="Donovan" last="Aidoo"], DB, Higley</strong> Good size, length, and frame to build on at 6’1 170 lbs. He runs well showing good top end and recovery speed as a safety in coverage. Good awareness and route anticipation and flashes good reactionary quickness to transition out and break on the ball. Great ability in run support, he’s strong at the POA and shows he can be striker when he’s able to line up a ball carrier. He’s also able to see his run fits and understands when he is the last line of defense and has to make a one on one tackle in space. He’s a high effort player with good raw athletic ability to play the whole field. Racked up 67 tackles during his sophomore season campaign and will look to contribute on both sides of the ball next season. https://twitter.com/DonovanAidoo/status/1462908191214215170?s=20 <strong> </strong>