Southern California Top Defensive Performances: Semifinals

<strong>[player_tooltip player_id="144960" first="Daylen" last="Austin"], Long Beach Poly, 2023</strong> Austin did a good job locking down the Cypress receivers in Poly’s 35-0 win in the Division 4 semifinals. But he had the biggest play in the game, a 79-yard kick return touchdown on the opening kickoff of the second half to blow the game open. He is the fastest player on the field in nearly every game he plays. Austin has offers from most of the major schools including Alabama. https://twitter.com/DaylenAustin4/status/1462156847633223680?s=20 <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25234" first="David" last="Bailey"], Mater Dei, 2022</strong> He’s the best pass rusher in the state in my opinion. Bailey is around 6-foot-4, around 230 pounds and has great quickness. Bailey had 2.5 sacks and tallied over 30 yards lost on those sacks in a semifinal win against Centennial. He has offers from 13 schools with Cal, Stanford, UCLA, USC and Oregon leading the pack. https://twitter.com/latsondheimer/status/1461920242578309120?s=20 <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="141879" first="Jahlil" last="Florence"], Lincoln, 2022</strong> Lincoln’s defense forced five interceptions in a semifinal win over Madison in the San Diego Section Division 1 semifinals. Florence had two of those interceptions and returned them for a combined 40 yards with a pick six. He is committed to Oregon and one of the best athletes in San Diego. He and the Hornets have a tough matchup in the Division 1 championship against Helix. https://twitter.com/JahlilFlorence8/status/1462485438946365447?s=20 <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="141891" first="Mason" last="Graham"], Servite, 2022</strong> Graham is the best two-way lineman in the state and he showed up bigtime on defense for the Friars in a semifinal game against St. John Bosco. He led Servite with 5 tackles, 3 for a loss and a crucial sack. Graham was originally committed to Boise State but has since reversed his decision and is committed to Michigan. https://twitter.com/ServiteFootball/status/1461935793472081920?s=20 <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="25246" first="Sterling" last="Lane"], Oaks Christian, 2022</strong> Lane was constantly in the backfield and causing major problems in Oaks Christian’s win over El Modena in the Division 5 semifinals. He had three sacks and five hurries for the Lions in the 24-14 win. Lane is committed to Arizona and also had offers from LSU, Michigan, Oregon and Utah. https://twitter.com/GregBiggins/status/1463289387123314688?s=20 <hr /> <em><strong>Other top performers:</strong></em> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Jonny Cohen, Ramona</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Elijah Gipson, Oaks Christian</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Jalen Johnson, Long Beach Poly</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="173344" first="Trevor" last="Monteleone"], Cypress</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Jacob Porter, Serrano</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">Jesse Schumacher, Centennial</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="187307" first="Houston" last="Thomas"], Servite</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="25231" first="Niuafe" last="Tuihalamaka"], Alemany</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="142012" first="Xavier" last="Van"], Helix</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="25459" first="Aaron" last="Williams"], Centennial</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="25244" first="Damonic" last="Williams"], Alemany</span> <span style="font-weight: 400;">[player_tooltip player_id="195568" first="Tanner" last="Williams"], Mater Dei</span>