The Discovered Undiscovered & Risers: 23′ Breakdowns Pt. 4
Welcome to The Discovered, Undiscovered, and Risers article series. In this series, we’re going to be diving into player breakdowns varying across positions and with players that you should have on your radar heading into the fall season. These student…
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Continue ReadingWelcome to The Discovered, Undiscovered, and Risers article series. In this series, we’re going to be diving into player breakdowns varying across positions and with players that you should have on your radar heading into the fall season. These student athletes range across all of Illinois and across all levels (8A-1A). Without further ado, let’s dive into part four of our 23′ breakdowns.
Check out the updated 2023 Rankings to see the entire Illinois 2023 hierarchy!
Malik Gordon Malik Gordon 5'10" | 195 lbs | RB Rockford East | 2023 State IL Twitter
Mr. Gordon is a running back that fights for extra yards by keeping his feet driving breaking weak arm tackles in the process. This is seen throughout his highlights, there’s one clip in particular where he’s able to get through the hole and is met with contact in the backfield. Instead of being stopped for a loss on the play this young man turns this into a ten yard game by not going down until there are three to four defenders on top of him. He’s not afraid to lower his shoulder either which provides an insight into having the strength and pad level to run through weak arm tackles gaining yards after contact. This young man also showcased glimpses of using quick cuts to hit running lanes off the blocks in front of him. This downhill back is one to keep an eye on heading into his Senior Season Campaign as I believe he’s going to bring his untapped potential to light and increase his recruiting stock. Currently holds no offers. Highlights
Evan Grace Evan Grace 6'0" | 175 lbs | QB Rolling Meadows | 2023 State IL Twitter
Mr. Grace is a quarterback that can add easy velocity across all level throws (level 1, level 2, and level 3). There’s a clip in his highlights where he delivers a strike in the middle of the field between the safety over the top and the linebacker underneath. Upon doing so, his receiver is able to come away with the completion downfield. He provides an insight into his ability to put the ball only where his receiver can get it. This is seen in his highlights where he takes a deep shot downfield to his receiver and puts the ball right into the receiver’s basket between the safety in a two deep look and cornerback to come away with the touchdown grab. He’s quick to set up and has a compact delivery/release when working in platform seen throughout his film. This young man does also provide a glimpse of being able to make backshoulder throws to his receivers. This is seen when he’s in the redzone has the timing with his receiver to deliver the ball before the receiver even turns to look at the ball giving the receiver seconds to react last second to secure the touchdown. He can also make quick dropbacks where he can drive off his back foot and get rid of the ball quickly. When he’s running RPOs, he reads the defense well and is able to get the ball out quickly when doing so. Each clip in his highlights when doing so resulted in a touchdown for his team. There’s one clip in his highlights where he gets flushed out of the pocket and is able to survey the field to find an outlet to keep the chains moving – his ability to buy second chances is a trait to keep an eye on moving forward. There’s another clip showcasing his poise in the pocket. Here, he stays strong in the pocket under pressure to get the ball off right before taking a hit from the defender. Currently holds no offers. Highlights
Nathan Greetham Nathan Greetham 5'8" | 180 lbs | RB Prairie Ridge | 2023 State IL Twitter
Mr. Greetham is a running back that has a solid burst and acceleration through the hole. Here, he uses his foot quicks to get into/through the hole and shows insight into his long speed when he breaks long runs. This is seen in the first few clips in his highlights showcasing just that as he gets vertical once he secures the handoff and uses his foot quicks to blow by the second level defenders as he gets into the endzone for the touchdown. There’s a clip in his highlights where he gets through the line of scrimmage and is able to keep his feet driving as he runs through weak arm tackles gaining yards after contact. There’s another clip in his highlights where he’s in the redzone on the goalline. In this clip, he’s met behind the line of scrimmage with initial contact but keeps his feet driving to fall into the endzone for the touchdown. All in all, this downhill runner is one to keep an eye on moving forward as he has the foundational skill set to have a breakout Senior Season Campaign. Currently holds no offers. Highlights
Dylan Groff Dylan Groff 6'1" | 180 lbs | QB Evanston | 2023 State IL Twitter
Mr. Groff is a dual threat quarterback that has high potential and is mobile. He runs the options using his foot quicks to burst through the line of scrimmage. There’s a clip in his highlights where he’s able to gain the step advantage on the second level defenders and gets brought down by the last line of defense after gaining 20+ yards on the scramble. This young man provides an insight into being able to set up and deliver a strike downfield by delivering a level three throw on deep shots downfield. There’s also a clip in his highlights where he’s able to get the ball out quickly upon setting up in the redzone delivering a level three throw on a fade route to the receiver in the back of the endzone. This results in a touchdown completion. The first clip in his highlights provides an insight into his arm strength. In this clip, he delivers a level three throw on a deep shot downfield to the opposite side of the field outside the numbers. Here, he delivers the ball right into the receiver’s basket hitting the receiver in stride resulting in a touchdown on the play. This young man showcases the ability to drop back where he drives off his back foot and can get rid of the ball quickly. When he has space in the pocket he can also stride into his throws on deep shots downfield. On all throws, he provides insight into his ability to put the ball into catchable positions for his receivers to secure the grab. This young man uses his foot quicks to slide and avoid pressure buying second chances on the play. Upon doing so, he can survey the field and if he sees nothing is open downfield he can pull the ball down to scramble. There’s a clip in his highlights where he’s able to weave in/out of defenders finding the cutback lane. Here, he turns a broken play into something to keep the chains moving. There’s one clip providing a glimpse of him being able to stand strong in the pocket getting the ball off right before taking a hit from the defender to keep the chains moving. In this clip, he slides to avoid the first defender before getting the ball off as the second defender is right in his face. Currently holds no offers. Highlights
Lucas Hagedorn Lucas Hagedorn 6'3" | 240 lbs | DL Lemont | 2023 State IL
Mr. Hagedorn works out of a 3-4 defense as a defensive end where he can work out of a 3 tech as well as a 7 tech/edge. He provides an insight into his quick first step at the snap which he uses to get on top of the offensive lineman before they’re set to block – mainly feel this impact in the run game. The first clip in his highlights showcases this young man getting through the line of scrimmage after shooting the gap. This happens once the ball is snapped and he uses his quick first step to penetrate the backfield resulting in him coming away with the tackle for loss. There are clips in his highlights where he showcases glimpses of being able to disengage and close on the quarterback securing the sack once the quarterback tries to escape the pocket. When the run is going away from him, he can work flat down the line of scrimmage which puts him in a position to meet the ball carrier at the line of scrimmage for no gain. This is seen on inside tackle runs and he has another clip where he works across the offensive lineman’s face to get into the far gap resulting in the same outcome. When the run is coming at him, he provides glimpses of his active hands to club/swim the offensive lineman. This enables him to get into the backfield putting him in a position to meet the ball carrier and wrap up securing the tackle for loss. There’s another clip in his highlights where he provides a glimpse of his power where he takes the offensive lineman run block head on and is able to play through the offensive lineman to secure the tackle at the line of scrimmage for no gain. In another clip, he plays through the offensive lineman and is able to free himself up to secure the tackle. Currently holds no offers. Highlights
Aidan Hallett Aidan Hallett 6'6" | 275 lbs | OL Lyons Township | 2023 State IL Twitter
Mr. Hallett is an offensive lineman that is quick off the ball where he can get through the line of scrimmage even when there’s little room to do so and can block the linebacker on the second level. The first clip in his highlights showcases his in-line blocking. In this clip, he’s quick out of his stance using his initial punch to gain inside hand placement and then drives the defender down the line of scrimmage washing the defender down on the play. This is also seen in the second clip of his highlights as well. He provides an insight into his strength to jolt the defensive lineman and drive the defender back on drive blocks. There are clips in his highlights providing glimpses of him being able to get out of his stance and into blocking position quickly. In one clip, in particular, he’s able to pick up the first defender coming into his gap and sees another defender rushing into his gap. This young man then passes his man off to the offensive guard and picks up the delayed defender to keep the pocket clean. There’s another clip in his highlights providing a glimpse of his ability to anchor against the bull rush where he ends up tying up the defender eliminating the pass rusher from the play. This young man flashes glimpses of his strength when he jolts the defender upright when he punches aggressively both in run blocks and in pass protection. He’s quick out of his stance and can get through the line of scrimmage when he’s working up to the second level delivering a good blow on the linebacker. Upon doing so, he stays over feet to stay on/maintain the block eliminating the linebacker from the play. Currently holds no offers. Highlights
Blaine Halley Blaine Halley 6'6" | 280 lbs | OL Olympia | 2023 State IL Twitter
Mr. Halley is an offensive lineman that can kickout the contain defender opening up a hole of his block when pulling. When he’s blocking in-line, he’s quick off the ball and is able to deliver a quick punch getting inside hand placement on drive blocks. Here, he keeps his feet driving through the whistle. This is seen in the second clip in his highlights where he ends up driving the defender 5+ yards downfield before pancaking the defender on the play. This young man can also deliver a quick blow on the defender and drives the defender down the line of scrimmage washing the defender down. In pass protection, this young man has clips in his highlights where he gets set up quickly with a good base and gets hands on the rushing defender quickly helping him slow down the pass rusher’s initial charge. He does so by anchoring at the point of attack and can tie up the rushing defender taking away the pass rush threat on the play. This young man also has foot quicks which help him set up to block quickly. Upon doing so, he does a good job of getting set up to block with a good base which helps him block with leverage. All in all, this young man is one to keep an eye on heading into his Senior Season Campaign as he has the foundation set to make his mark. Most recently picked up an offer from Southern Illinois University. Highlights
Jake Hamilton Jake Hamilton 6'3" | 190 lbs | WR Sacred Heart Griffin | 2023 State IL Twitter
Mr. Hamilton is an outside receiver that’s more of a smooth build up speed type of player. In the first clip in his highlights, he’s able to play above the rim utilizing his long catch radius to secure the contested catch above two defenders in tight coverage. During the QB scramble drill, there’s a clip in his highlights where he runs a receiver screen and sees his quarterback is in trouble. Upon recognizing this, he plants his foot to get vertical along the sideline and goes up for a 50/50 ball attacking the ball at the highest point to secure the contested catch. This young man is a BIG redzone target for his quarterback as he can adjust to fade routes in the endzone. Here, he can climb to play above the rim as he adjusts last second to secure touchdown passes. In the second clip in his highlights, he can slow play the route as he finds the soft spot in zone coverage and sits becoming an outlet for his quarterback. Upon doing so, he secures the catch and gets vertical utilizing his long strides. There’s a clip at the end of his highlights where he secures the receiver screen and gets vertical to turn the corner and come away with a big gain on the play. He would have gotten into the endzone if he didn’t get shoe string tackles last second. When he’s going up against the press, he can win over the top with his long strides and long catch radius which is seen throughout his film. He can also bend his fade route outside gaining depth on the route further creating separation from the press defender along the sideline where he’s able to haul in the deep shot downfield. Currently holds no offers. Highlights
Sam Deligio Sam Deligio 5'10" | 170 lbs | QB Huntley | 2023 State IL Twitter
Mr. Deligio is a dual threat quarterback that showcases glimpses of using his foot quicks to slide to avoid pressure before delivering a strike downfield to keep the chain moving. When he gets flushed from the pocket he showcases the athleticism to stay under control and mkae strong throws on the move/out of platform. This young man also provides insight into having the ability to re-set and get rid of the ball after sliding to avoid the sack. He showcases glimpses of being able to make strong throws into tight windows as well as providing an insight into his ability to add easy velocity across all level throws (level 1, level 2, and level 3). Both in the pocket and on the move working out of platform, he provides an insight into being able to put the ball into catchable spots for his receivers as well as putting the ball only where his receiver can make a play. There’s a clip in his highlights where he’s working on the move on a rollout and delivers a strike just out of bounds along the sideline only where his receiver can reach out to secure the catch – which the receiver does by getting a toe in after extending to haul in the grab. He runs the option showcasing his mobility. There’s a clip in his highlights where he uses his foot quicks to get through the line of scrimmage and weaves in/out of defenders in open space. There’s another clip in his highlights where he runs a QB design run and is able to find the cutback lanes which he hits using a quick cut. Once he does so, he delivers a stiff arm to the first defender trying to tackle him before he turns the corner breaking a long run on the play. Currently holds no offers. Highlights
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