Whitewater Football’s Top Returners For The 2022 Season
The Whitewater Wildcats have been one of the more underrated, but highly talented high school football programs in the state of Georgia for quite some time. Specifically, in 2021, they flew under the radar for most people, but still managed…
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Continue ReadingThe Whitewater Wildcats have been one of the more underrated, but highly talented high school football programs in the state of Georgia for quite some time. Specifically, in 2021, they flew under the radar for most people, but still managed to achieve an 11-2 record in the regular season, with six of these wins coming within their own division. Outside of their loss in the third round to Creekside, they only had one regular season loss, which came to East Coweta in the first week of the season. Entering into 2022, even though the Wildcats will be losing plenty of talent to graduation, we still expect them to rise to the occasion, grow their talent, and make their way back to the playoffs.
Popo Aguirre- LB
Aguirre is a very talented, underrated LB throughout the state of GA. As a rising senior, his role with the Wildcats will continue to grow, and be reflected on the overall success of the defense. As a returning player, we have high hopes for him, as we see plenty of talent in the way he plays the game of football. To start, he appears to play very light on his feet, thus allowing him to do a good job of making stops in pursuit or in the backfield. In addition to this, he also does a good job playing at a reasonable speed, and pad level, which ultimately contributes to the leverage he takes upon tackles. In addition to this, Aguirre also uses his hands well, and plays a very natural, and reactionary version of football, which is something we like to see out of a player his age.
Will Snellings- LB
Contrast to Aguirre, Snellings is a bit of a different kind of backer, as he plays a it more stiffly, and slowly at times. Even though he is more patient, he still makes good plays in pursuit, and is unafraid of stepping up to make tackles. With this being said, he also has strengths in his reads, and his drops steps, which constantly positions him well to make plays. On contact, he has a slight pop, but rolls his hips, and wraps up well, making it easier for him to bring players to the ground. Going into next year, we have high expectations for Snellings, but would like to see him improve in the speed in which he processes the game, his physical speed, and the way he uses his hands when making contact with opposing players.
Stephen Johnson- DT
Out of this entire list, Stephen Johnson is one of our favorite prospects to track for various reasons. To start, he is a bit of a big, wide bodied player who is unafraid to plug gaps, and stick his nose in tackles. When he makes tackles, he does a great job of wrapping up, and bringing players to the ground, or halting them in their tracks before forcing them to the turf. With this, we love Johnson’s reach, and his length. His ability to grab hold of ball carriers in the box, even when he is double teamed, is impressive in itself. As the 2022 season will be underway this upcoming fall, we would like to see Johnson improve in his overall speed, and be able to add on to his already impressive explosive ability off of the ball.
Nate Sikes- DB
Sikes may be a tad raw at the CB position, but he has plenty of potential, and is easily going to be one of the top returning players for the Wildcats next year. Not only will he be a key part of the defense, but we think he will make plays against the pass all year long. Last year, Sikes proved that he plays with great spatial awareness, and that he is capable of holding his own in both man to man, and zone coverage. He moves with a solid crossover run, and he has a fluid set of movement skills as well. While he is a bit shorter frame, we do feel his ability to play on his toes and position himself well is what sets him apart. This also allows him to always capitalize on his footwork, bend, and ability to react naturally. Going into next year, we would like to see more consistency out of his breaks, and with his use of hands, as well feel that improvements in these areas can make him an even greater asset to his defense.