2023 Rankings: The Stockrisers, Part III

We unleash the final list of stockrisers from the February update for our 2023 rankings. These 10 young man really flipped the script as far as rising their stock and were more than deserving for a bump up of our rankings. Check em' out! <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="101181" first="Griffin" last="Wilde"] | Wide Receiver | Sioux Falls Jefferson (SD) | 2023</strong> The #1 wide receiver is as dynamic of a playmaker as they come around here. He is as smooth as you can get when it comes to his route-running abilty. I talk a lot about wide outs footwork, and to say the least Griffin has a lot of shake in his sides when moving from side to side. His ability to switch directions on his route shows off incredible instinctiveness and creates a huge window of separation from the secondary. He also has a long extension to make catches that were slightly out of reach for some. To add to his sound ability at wide receiver,  Griffin has to be rated the best return man in all of the Dakotas. I love the QB/WR duo Griffin and [player_tooltip player_id="56545" first="Taylen" last="Ashley"] bring to the table into their senior seasons, and with one final year with the Cavaliers, I’ll say it again these two set the tone offensively to make Jefferson one of the favorites in my book to make a deep run in the 11AAA playoffs. Griffin is a Power 5 prospect in my eyes. <a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2GBT6Y">Jr Tape</a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="101153" first="Logan" last="Arason"] | Tight End | Grand Forks Red River (ND) | 2023</strong> Logan has a exceptional punch with his hands and gets some considerable leverage when he is pull blocking around the inside line. He also has outstanding durability as it sometimes takes an army of tacklers just to bring him to the turf at 6’4 245. This young man has great vision when it comes to identifying the first down marker on shorter routes, and I am sure is a clutch threat on later downs. He shows off sizeable hands that have a natural lock of the ball. Logan moves up 12 spots to just inside our top 50, due to his solid next level size for a tight end and strong skillsets as a blocker and pass-catcher. <a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2GHaM8">Jr Tape</a> <strong>Taven Clapper | Linebacker | Sioux Falls Lincoln (SD) | 2023</strong> Taven has a sizeable coverage area he can make significant noise inside of. He shows good speed in the open field to get to the football. One of his most impressive skillsets is his vision, as he can wander thru a significant amount of traffic and find the ball. He impresses me with his ability to yield off the blocker in a quick span of time. I think Taven can develop even more speed off the snap and keep getting stronger in the weight room, as we have seen him up 10 pounds and taller since our last update. One of the more off the radar prospects from the Patriots in my eyes. Up 8 spots into the top 125 prospects in the Dakotas. <a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2GqBbD">Jr Tape</a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="101150" first="Oliver" last="Lucht"] | Linebacker | Fargo Davies (ND) | 2023</strong> I have always been intrigued by Oliver’s motor wherever he lines up on the field. He does a fantastic job identifying the tight gaps inside to power thru with his speed. Not to mention, his ability to be incentive in pass coverage is another growing asset on his game, as he trickles into a key spot and uses that vision to secure the spot hoping he can shut the gap and encroach. Oliver gets a consistent amount of leverage when driving the defender backwards due to his increased size he’s grown over the last year and he’s going to finish his tackles with plenty of oomph in them until the whistle gets blown. I think with more development as far as his testing speed, this kid will turn a few heads at prospect camps this summer, because he’s got strong measurables for linebacker at 6’2 210. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="56556" first="Cooper" last="Long"] | Athlete | Garretson (SD) | 2023</strong> Cooper has a great route-running ability from start to finish. His demeanor when looking in the football looks to be very instinctive. Cooper does a great job of exploding on his routes with his speed. This offseason, I am sure that Cooper can develop slightly on his longer runs with building up some better longevity with his stamina. His best skillset is the separation he can create from the start of the route, and it really sets the trend for the duration of the route. He is a very efficient pass-catcher that should get some looks this summer at prospect camps once coaches can see the elusiveness he plays with. He averaged over a first down and half as junior for the Blue Dragons. <a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2GHz8Q">Jr Tape</a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="101173" first="Charlie" last="Prien"] | Offensive Line | Mount Vernon-Plankinton (SD) | 2023</strong> Charlie has always been an intriguing offensive line prospect, but the way he can plug the holes on the other side of the line on and before the first level, intrigues me just as well. Charlie does a excellent job moving his hips in rotation and is a great example of a player that loves to finish his blocks to a 100% level. His hip speed is also a great asset he has, as despite not being the biggest linemen in the world, he competes at a high level with bigger defensive linemen and still keeps such a fantastic competitive edge in his game. You get a herd of consistency with this young man, when you watch him in every game on tape which is hard to find in some linemen I have watched. Charlie’s versatility and motor, is going to take him a long ways when he gets to the next-level, trust me on that. Looking forward to see what kind of boom Charlie can create for the MVP Titans as a senior. I always say it’s at it’s toughest to move up inside (as moving smaller numbers carry a lot more weight) our top 50, but Charlie is up 4 spots to #36. <a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2GJDdn">Jr Tape</a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="161243" first="Noah" last="Hutmacher"] | Linebacker | Chamberlain (SD) | 2023</strong> The intense strength Noah keeps adding to his resume, just keeps getting better and better by the season. Noah has one of the strongest contact levels for sure on this list as his ability to drive the defender in reverse is what makes him so fun to watch. He does a super job with being one of the most instinctive players on the football field as he’s usually found to consistently be one of the first to make contact with the ball carrier from the MIKE position. I also love how well Noah’s pad level is when he does make his consistent contact on the ball carrier as his position is top-notch. I am excited to see how much more size and solid technique Noah will bring at prospect camps this summer, because I have a gut feel he’s going to make a lot of noise on the camp circuit. <a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2GHrWX">Jr Tape</a> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="101217" first="Lucas" last="Slack"] | Quarterback | Brandon Valley (SD) | 2023</strong> Lucas is one of the most mechanically strong quarterbacks I have watched in-person in the Dakotas. Not just that, but his poise is at an incredibly high level and that really showed off in the 2022 season. Lucas has excellent ball placement as with ample precision, gives his Lynx wide outs plenty of space to run after the catch. I love the finesse he has in his vision, as he can go from read #1 to read #2 without much stare down of his wide receivers, he just fire pops in the near exact spot he wanted to put it in. Lucas is a QB prospect that I am sure I will run out of quality adjectives by the time his career is over to describe his game, but I believe this skilled young man will create even more attention from prospect camps this summer than I saw last summer with the added skillsets he keeps bringing to the table. Lucas goes up 5 spots to #17. <span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.hudl.com/v/2GmP0n">Jr Tape</a></span> <span style="font-size: 18pt;">More Stockrisers to Watch:</span> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="161255" first="Hayden" last="Gebhart"] | DB | Rapid City Stevens (SD) | 2023</strong> Raised 7 spots from #49 to #42. <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/13307764/61df6d0b479763058c886209" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="160908" first="CJ" last="Smith"] | Quarterback | Dell Rapids St. Mary | 2023</strong> CJ was one of the biggest climbers on this list, up 24 spots to #101. <iframe src="//www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/11462935/6171c32d2351dd09f82396d9" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>