PRZ Illinois Stock Up Showcase: Defensive Line Top Performers

Some heavy hitters on the Defensive Line from all over the Chicagoland area made their way to Barrington on Thursday, December 2nd and did not disappoint. Collectively, this group had a very high concentration of talent and showed off a lot of impressive ability during individual drills and one on one’s. Take a look below to see what stood out about each of the top performers from an athletic and technical standpoint. Kole Sneed, C/O 2023, Oak Park-River Forest, 6’3, 210, hudl, Twitter Sneed let everyone in attendance know that he has all the raw tools and natural ability you could dream of in an edge defender. He has plenty of length, an enormous wingspan, and a frame that could easily support the kind of size you see playing big time football on Saturdays. Sneed was very twitchy through changes of direction as showcased in a couple of the drills he competed in. His explosiveness transitioning from lateral movement to bending, which was also evident in his first step in a get off drill, is a tell-tale sign that he has the capacity to be absolutely dominant. Sneed owned one on one’s even though he was a little raw in his technique. He won at first with speed, but then after taking a couple pointers from coaches in attendance, was able to obliterate opponents with a long arm move and did a great job of accelerating his feet on contact. Tyler Michelini, C/O 2023, Lake Park, 6’3, 220, hudl, Twitter Michelini caught a lot of eyes right away on Thursday night with his speed that, in combination with an impressively filled out frame and plenty of functional strength, made him one of the event’s biggest standouts. Michelini was very agile throughout position specific drills showing that he had plenty of body control as he worked through drills that replicated game-like movements. The way he was able to drop his hips and shoulders to play low and shift his weight to lean to different directions really stood out. Michelini was virtually unbeatable in a hoop drill that had attendees competing head to head. This translated really well to one on one’s; his speed rush put Offensive Linemen in a serious bind. His get off got opponents out of their sets and chasing within just a few steps of the snap. He hit a dip and rip that made heads spin. Joey Ayala, C/O 2023, St. Francis, 6’3, 205, hudl, Twitter Ayala is another athlete that showed off an abundance of raw athleticism and physical tangibles that make up the checklist of someone who can be molded into a top edge defender. He did a great job of incorporating points of emphasis that were taught in each individual drill. His first step and bend, which were already strong, improved a lot through his reps at the event. Ayala excelled in a drill that had the Defensive Linemen competing with each other; they lined up in opposite shades on a coach and whoever got off the ball and tagged the coach first as he started kicking back won. He flew out of his stance at a nice, low angle that got him gaining ground and winning his reps. Ayala learned what a ghost move is during one on one’s and nailed his first attempt. He attacked the hip, flashed his hand, and ducked right under his opponent’s punch. Tyler Wood Tyler Wood 6'2" | 285 lbs | OL St. Francis de Sales | 2023 State IL , C/O 2023, St. Francis, 6’2, 265, hudl, Twitter It was very clear how impressed the scouts and college coaches in attendance were with Wood’s mature, refined mechanics and big tool box of position-specific technique. He did really well in head to head competition during individual drills that focused heavily on speed through different movements as one of the bigger Defensive Linemen in attendance. He really shined, though, in one on one’s and his different moves really stole the spotlight. Wood bull-pulled several of the Offensive Linemen at the event. The way he got hands on to knock them off balance and then snap them down to the turf got things started for him. After he hit that a few times and got the group’s attention he opened it up and took advantage of the fact that everyone across from him was expecting power. He made them look silly with jab-swipes and chop-spins all night. Luke Hagedorn, C/O 2023, Lemont, 6’3, 240, hudl, Twitter Hagedorn was without a doubt one of the more well-developed and physically impressive athletes in attendance; it was obvious that he has an excellent work ethic and takes the weight room and off-season training very seriously. Hagedorn could and is likely to continue to add size to his very lean 240 pound frame. Seeing Hagedorn in person lived up to expectations set by how successful of a season the interior Defensive Lineman had. He has what it takes to play at a very high level of college football and his skill set screams 3 or 4 technique. Hagedorn’s footwork and speed throughout individual drills was right up there with the best of the group. What impressed most was just how powerful and explosive of a young man Hagedorn is. While there is room to refine and develop technique, he just overwhelmed opponents during one on one’s. Andrew Zook Andrew Zook 6'4" | 235 lbs | DL Yorkville | 2023 State IL , C/O 2023, Yorkville, 6’4, 235, hudl, Twitter Zook had a big night and garnered plenty of attention right away during the combine and individual drills; he was one of a few athletes to be named a top performer on the PRZ Illinois account while the event was still live. He was also, without a doubt, one of the more well-rounded athletes in attendance who had developed technique and a more apparent understanding of playing Defensive Line to go along with top notch athletic ability. There was a lot of feedback provided during individual drills to help athletes learn how to better perform what each drill was testing; Zook was already doing much of those things and it was noticeable. That knowledge he displayed in drills carried over to one on one’s really well as it was clear he was rushing his opponents with a plan. Zook proved he is versatile and had success on the edge and inside gaps. Jakolbi Wilson, C/O 2022, Leo, 6’3, 330, hudl, Twitter There are very few young men out there who can move as well as Wilson does at his size; he is someone to take a hard look at if you need a 2022 who can play an A gap technique. By far the largest Defensive Lineman in attendance, Wilson excelled in individual drills and showed off impressive athleticism. The drill where he impressed most tested footwork and the ability to maintain speed through changes of direction. The way Wilson was able to keep his hips down, aim his weight, and take precise steps resembled that of a much smaller athlete. Many his size drift when they have to bend or take too many steps when moving laterally; that was not the case for Wilson and it shows how high of a ceiling he has. Wilson has probably been able to rely on size to win battles, so technique is green, but it’s scary to think about how good he can be once that develops. Nathan Dinse Nathan Dinse 6'2" | 240 lbs | OL South Elgin | 2023 State IL , C/O 2023, South Elgin, 6’2, 235, hudl, Twitter Dinse has played mostly Offensive Line to this point, but you would never be able to tell that by the way he moved through individual drills and showed flashes of really high-end pass rush technique. He is very light on his feet and his reaction time at the snap and in the middle of a rep is reminiscent of someone who has spent a lot of time fine tuning their craft. He performed well in the hoop competition and get off drill during the indy portion of the event. He was able to apply that to one on one’s and rep after rep got his opponents out of their set and knew just how to take advantage of the imbalances it created. On one rep, lining up inside, he got the Guard to overset and cut across the face with a big club and flip of the hips to get home. On another his opponent lunged at him so he used his hands to separate, flip his hips, and snatch him down to get by. Boston Bower Boston Bower 6'1" | 230 lbs | DL Huntley | 2023 State IL , C/O 2023, Huntley, 6’1, 230, hudl, Twitter Bower is no stranger to the showcase scene and he continues to impress and show development with each appearance. This time around what really stood out was how much more comfortable he looked through the combine and individual drill portion; it is clear that his balance, coordination, and body control has really caught up with his size. This was most obvious during one on one’s as he read the angle of his opponent’s set and adjusted his path and pass rush plan based on it. Bower was able to put his foot in the ground and out leverage Offensive Linemen across their face or adjust depth and turn his inside foot if he recognized he was winning with speed. Bower has always had strong hands and packed a powerful punch. On a few reps he noticed an overset, so he went speed to power and ran right through his opponent. Porter Mihelich Porter Mihelich 6'1" | 270 lbs | DL Burlington Central | 2024 State IL , C/O 2024, Burlington Central, 6’2, 230, hudl, Twitter Mihelich, the only 2024 in Thursday night’s group of Defensive Linemen, looked right at home working with the rest of the group that featured some very experienced, established athletes. It was obvious that he was excited and determined to show everyone what he can do and grab some well-earned recognition. Mihelich is big for his age and, by the looks of it, is going to continue to grow; he is going to have the kind of measurables that desirable prospects possess. There was plenty of evidence during individual drills that suggests he is catching up with his size athletically and functionally. He was able to adjust during drill reps to maximize explosive movement and hit really impressive chop-rip and long arm-rip moves during one on one’s. With two years to go there are a lot of reasons to think that Mihelich can become a household name in Illinois. Chris Trotter, C/O 2022, Thornwood, 6’4, 245, hudl, Twitter Trotter is an interesting prospect in the class of 2022 and potentially a real diamond in the rough. He is shaky with his position specific technique and the application of his athletic ability to the football field needs some fine-tuning, but all the tools are there and he just needs to learn how to use it correctly. With the right coaching he could be molded into quite a player at the next level and is someone that college coaches should definitely take a look at and be excited about. Trotter looked outstanding in parts of drills: his lateral movement, straight line speed, and hip and ankle mobility were among the best in the group. Once it clicks and he knows how to translate that into drills and technique all of those parts will come together and he will do some pretty impressive things. Trotter’s length, wingspan, hand size, among other things, give him a big ceiling.