Orange Unified College Showcase: Top Performers

Three schools in the Orange Unified School District got together to showcase their athletes for several college coaches. Many scouts were already in the area to see Servite and Mater Dei’s college showcases that were held earlier in the day Thursday. But some players stood out and were drawing attention from the college coaches on hand. Here are some players that stood out to me during the event. Disclaimer: I did not get to watch much of the lineman 1on1 pass blocking period of the day so the list does not include many linemen. <strong>CANYON</strong> <strong>Anders "Christian" Lundsberg, QB, 2023: </strong>Lundsberg is a really solid high school quarterback with some tools that college coaches covet. He is every bit of 6-foot-4, mechanically sound with a plus arm and confidence. The ball jumps out of his hands and he threw the best deep ball of the day during the 7on7 period that one of the other quarterbacks at the event was extremely hyped up about. He is going to the Elite Underclassman Camp in Vegas in May and recently visited USD. He is better than at least 10 of the quarterbacks ranked on Prep Redzone and could be a steal for a FCS school in my opinion. https://twitter.com/Chris_Lundsberg/status/1525000226821443584?s=20&amp;t=fdzP836iCT3v6wec65Cylg <strong>Fox Haugen, WR, 2023: </strong>Haugen can line up all over the field for Canyon and understands route running and spacing. He is lengthy and knows how to use his body to shield defenders from the ball in traffic. He still needs to work on his speed but he shows some explosiveness and is a really good athlete. <hr /> <strong>EL MODENA</strong> <strong>Mayson Hitchens, LB, 2023: </strong>Hitchens was the most impressive linebacker at the event and sticks out when you watch El Modena’s skill players. He is very built at 220 pounds and has the speed to cover a lot of receivers. He made teams stop trying to throw routes over the middle during 7on7 and he has good timing while deflecting passes. He got some reps in at running back and he looks faster in person than he does on film. New Mexico State has offered him and I saw some of the college coaches talking about him during the event. https://twitter.com/elmodenafb/status/1468639299033731072?s=20&amp;t=fdzP836iCT3v6wec65Cylg <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="261715" first="Elishah" last="Jackett"], OL, 2023: </strong>Jackett was in a walking boot and a scooter after suffering an injury at a camp recently. He obviously did not participate on Thursday but he was the highest-profile uncommitted player at the event and had to be included in any list that includes El Modena top players. He’s physically impressive in person and should be healed up before camp in August. <strong>Xzavior Guess, QB, 2025: </strong>Guess was fresh off a good showing at the PRZ Prospect Tour in Northern California over the weekend. He ran a 4.59 at the event and is a real dual threat QB. Thursday was my first time seeing him throw in person and his arm was better than I expected. He throws hard on the intermediate routes and can get the ball deep when he plants his feet. His delivery is a little slow but he throws hard enough to get the ball there before defenders can get to the receiver. He doesn’t throw the tightest spiral but he is very young and I expect his hands to get a little bigger and improve the look of his throws. The El Modena coaches are excited about him and his teammates respect him. https://twitter.com/mikehuntley63/status/1524940559474823170?s=20&amp;t=fdzP836iCT3v6wec65Cylg <hr /> <strong>ORANGE</strong> <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="115424" first="Kobe" last="Boykin"], RB, 2024: </strong>Boykin is one of the best receiving running backs I have seen in a long time. He is too fast for a lot of defenders to cover in man coverage and he is almost always open on wheel routes. After the catch he is shifty and can make guys miss. Everybody knows Orange is going to try to get Kobe 20-25 touches a game and they will basically dare opponents to try and stop him. Spoiler alert: most of them will not be able to and he will get close to 2,000 all-purpose yards. https://twitter.com/kobe_4thawin/status/1454965600430657540?s=20&amp;t=fdzP836iCT3v6wec65Cylg <strong>Jaelen Lightfoot, DB, 2023: </strong>I’ve seen Lightfoot play before but he looks much more muscular than he did in the fall. He is fluid with his movements had the speed to be in the hip pocket of receivers in man coverage. He was one of the more athletic guys at the event and will probably get some run at receiver this year too. Grambling State gave him his first offer this week and other coaches were talking to him after the event. He has a visit lined up before the summer and the Orange coaches were raving about his progress this offseason. https://twitter.com/mikehuntley63/status/1524949786008244224?s=20&amp;t=fdzP836iCT3v6wec65Cylg <strong>Jonathan Smith Jr., WR, 2023: </strong>Smith is lengthy at receiver and is a good enough receiver to earn some catches in a loaded Orange offense which features multiple Power 5 skill players. He has solid speed, can high-point the ball really well and if teams bring the secondary up to stop Boykin on the short routes, Smith has the ability to burn teams deep. Colorado State offered him on Thursday and is the first school to do so. https://twitter.com/_j0nathan_23/status/1524964983917797376?s=20&amp;t=fdzP836iCT3v6wec65Cylg