Eight Incoming Breakout Seniors to Watch

DAKOTAS- We watched a handful of more tape today as we turned the calendar to the Class of 2023 with National Signing Days in the books for 2022s. With watching these eight young men, we got a feel that they might have a massive senior season and entice plenty of college coaches to their games, to watch their tape, and much more. Find out which eight from all over the Dakotas made the list. Note: This will likely be a continued series throughout the offseason. Ryan Brynjolfson Ryan Brynjolfson 6'1" | 175 lbs | DB Bismarck Century | 2023 State | DB | Bismarck Century (ND) | 2023 Ryan does a great job in the secondary making a jump for the football, but not overselling his welcome in the wide receivers arsenal. This young man has a significant reach that he uses to his advantage against smaller wide receivers as his lengthy 6’1 frame gives him a sound height advantage on most occasions. He shows off solid footwork when working his feet in reverse and also works his positioning really well to engage his hands around that football. His focus on making the smart football play vs. going for the golden interception on every play is what makes this kid a great college football target at the next level. Jr Tape Carson Kirwan Carson Kirwan 6'3" | 190 lbs | ATH Castlewood | 2023 State | RB | Castlewood (SD) | 2023 I couldn’t catch Carson when I watched the Warriors later this season, but I have seen the damage this young man did to defenses in the 2021 season with his rushing attack. He has great mix of speed and power in his runs and reads both the inside and outside of the field well to use both skillsets to his full advantage. He also shows that pull away finishing speed at the end of his runs that I love about watching running backs. I think he has good footwork to get from side to side, but I think he has some juice left in the tank to improve even more this offseason. I certainly believe Carson has the skills to play football at the next level, but my only question is where he projects position wise. Game Tape Gabe Tschetter Gabe Tschetter 6'1" | 185 lbs | LB O'Gorman | 2023 State | LB | Sioux Falls O’ Gorman (SD) | 2023 Watching Gabe’s tape for the first time, I loved watching the stance this kid lined up in to start his tape off. His hip rotation to get to the ball is super quick from my eyes, as he can turn on a dime and go in either direction at just about the same rate of speed. He also makes physical contact when he gets to the ball. Gabe’s ability to be a rock for the Knight’s not only attacking the run but looking comfortable in coverage, is such a win-win for this young man. If this kid can continue to grow in coverage play by improving his ball-tracking ability on longer routes, I have a great gut feeling he will end up playing scholarship level football in 2023. Jr Tape Gracin Schroeder Gracin Schroeder LB Ray/Powers Lake | 2023 State | LB | Ray-Powers Lake (ND) | 2023 Gracin’s brother and Minot State signee Noah Schroeder was one of the first kids I ever evaluated for the Dakotas site, so it’s no wonder he follows a great path on tape. Gracin has this instinctive gene in his system coming off the edge. He has great a great attacking burst when he hits the gas and if no one is going to block him,- he will end up deep in your backfield without much warning. Watching what I can see on offense, I think this kid would be a quick learner if he needed to drop back in pass coverage when the situation comes based on his able to quickly flip his hips. I am firm believer Gracin is going to have a massive senior season and an college football opportunity coming his way. Game Tape Abraham Myers Abraham Myers 6'4" | 215 lbs | DL Sioux Falls Washington | 2023 State | DE | Sioux Falls Washington (SD) | 2023 I love just how quickly Abraham sheds off his blocks, by barely grasping touch of the offensive linemen. His reading ability on where to find the best gap to explode into the backfield, is for sure D1 level. Abraham has a very natural feel for identifying how he can still be disruptive even when the pressure is hot from the offensive line as his swim move abilities really speak high volumes of his game. I love this kid’s speed when he sees the ball carrier within his sight. Whether it is being the quarterback’s worse enemy in the backfield or stuffing the run inside, there will be be plenty of Division I suitors for this young man by the time his career is up being a Warrior, which is a great adjective to describe Abraham’s game too. Jr Tape Jack Merkwan Jack Merkwan 6'3" | 180 lbs | WR Pierre T.F. Riggs | 2023 State | WR | Pierre (SD) | 2023 I love how much of a workhorse Jack is when he gets thru contact, no matter where he is on the field. Jack makes a lot of his plays in very tight windows, which is a high credit to his tape as he sells himself well early in his film to those college coaches watching. He also creates space with some powerful footwork which can send the secondary in the opposite direction if that don’t have the great balance Jack has in his arsenal. Jack is very crisp route runner that is player that works his tail off for the entire duration of his route and it certainly shows. With another year of the Pierre Duo of to , I would expect Jack to have a massive senior season, and have some high level scholarship opportunities come his way along with a Pierre Governors six straight 11AA state title. Jr Tape Sam Hindbjorgen Sam Hindbjorgen 6'5" | 230 lbs | TE Sioux Falls Lincoln | 2023 State | TE/DL | Sioux Falls Lincoln (SD) | 2023 The aggressiveness of Sam’s hands regardless of where he lines up on other side of the ball has to really impress college coaches at the next level. He not only has that "it" factor, his hand placement is also spot on. As a tight end he plays with great balance and is a huge threat for the Patriots especially in the redzone, where they have a 6’5 225 pounder that has a very long reach. I love how Sam works the lines and his footwork stays balanced regardless if he’s around the sidelines or the back of the end zone. Sam was an All-State and All-Conference performer in 2021 and is also a high-academic prospect to go along with it. I believe Sam might projects slightly better at defensive end as far as the next level but I could see him on the offensive side of the ball too. Needless to see this kid has FCS or D2 football in his near future. Jr Tape London Kolb London Kolb DB Sioux Falls Jefferson | 2023 State | DB/WR | Sioux Falls Jefferson (SD) | 2023 You better be careful running the ball in London’s direction, as he is probably one of the hardest hitting defensive backs in the Dakotas. He shows off very efficient footwork and gets to the football very quickly. London is a very high IQ football player, that as a free safety knows exactly where to line up to give him the best angle to attack the football. He certainly has a ton of speed in his arsenal along with a burst that can explode not out at wide receiver, but shows off his excellent range as a FS. He logged nearly 115 tackles as a junior for the Cavs. London came away as one of the top performers on my radar from my live showing at Howard Wood Field last season, and expect this kid to be one of the bigger Stockrisers in our upcoming rankings coming out by next week. Jr Tape