Prep Redzone Next Midwest Camp: QB Standouts

BARRINGTON, IL-- We check into Canlan Sports Complex in Barrington, Illinois for the first ever Prep Redzone Next Midwest Showcase. Throughout the day, we scouted plenty of position groups but my focus was to find the best quarterbacks in the facility, and I feel confident we found some of America’s best, ones that are getting their "first looks" as junior high quarterbacks, and some that already have Division I offers in their back pocket. Find out which 6 QB prospects really rocked their stock into this scout’s eyes. [player_tooltip player_id="212320" first="Owen" last="Lansu"] | Downers Grove North (IL) | 2026 <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-345834" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/05/owen-lansu-rotated-crop-456x300-1653358369-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> The arm strength Owen showed when firing that football out of his hands, showed a strong reason why he was named our QB Camp MVP. His ability to keep all that zip on the football and still use his precision to give the wide receiver a strong route was a electric skillset to watch all day Saturday in Barrington. Owen is a QB prospect that can cash in on all three levels of the field with his massive arm and significant touch on the ball. He makes sound throwing adjustments to become more in tune with his wide receiving core. By far one of the best QBs I have watched in the Midwest over the last 6-9 months from the Class of 2026. This young man throws straight rocket balls, something you might have heard from the lines of Brett Favre back in his early years. Owen for sure is one of the top 2026 QBs in the nation. <iframe src="https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/11831271/618ed66b578ddb0a1480e17f" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> Leo Slepski | Providence Catholic (New Lenox, IL) | 2026 <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-345836" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/05/idk-rotated-crop-456x300-1653358471-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Leo was a QB prospect I got significant glimpses of the future in Indy Drills, with just how much his shoulder rotation and the balance of his throws showed off potential as he enters into high school. Later into 1v1 reps, Leo continued showing that excellent touch and balanced throwing motion and added in a decisive throwing ability that put the ball right into the bread basket on where it was supposed to be with his wide receiver. Caught some tape on Leo from a couple seasons ago, and it’s very intriguing to see how much he’s developed on his balanced throwing motion from when he was a 7th grader. Look out for this young man as he enters the high school ranks as he’s already gotten a ton of reps on the middle school level. Griffin Chamberlain | Harvest Christian (Elgin, IL) | 2027 Griffin showed off a developing QB prospect that wired me in with his athletic flexibility in our early warmups. When it was his turn to roll into Indy drills, Griffin showed a significant touch on his ball that has plenty of room to develop to come into his wide receiver at an even stronger rate of speed. Griffin has a lot of upside when you read into that athleticism I mentioned above, as he’s a solid track athlete as well at Harvest Christian. One of my other scouts loved the workhorse mentality Griffin brought in on every rep he showed in our Prep Redzone Next Midwest showcase, which speaks volumes to this young man’s future. Trae Taylor | Bernotas Middle School (Crystal Lake, IL) | 2027 <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-345839" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/05/trae-taylor-rotated-crop-456x300-1653358534-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Fresh off an offer from the University of Maryland last week, Trae was one of a few QBs I was intrigued to see live & in person from Canlan Sports in Barrington. Seeing what I saw from Trae on Saturday, I thought this young man was very mechanically gifted compared to some other QBs out of his 2027 class. Trae also brought a very calm demeanor when it was his turn to rapid fire in 1v1 drills as my eyes thought he looked calm and collected. He needs some development on his intermediate routes with his ball placement, but all in all, you can certainly see why this young man has Division I football already on his resume that will see even more growth with the 5-6 years he has left before college ball. [player_tooltip player_id="285075" first="Riley" last="Contreras"] | Hinsdale Middle School (IL) | 2026 I read into our QB preview my guy Al Pops put out before the Prep Redzone Next Midwest Showcase about [player_tooltip player_id="285075" first="Riley" last="Contreras"] and I was delighted to see him tapped into my notepad from Saturday afternoon. The first skillset that pointed to what Al had brought up was Riley’s footwork, as it looked to be one of the best in the QB group from the 2027 class, as he showed it out well. With a lot of younger QB prospects I watch, I look a ton into their balance which Riley showed significant balance from the start of his rep until the rep was over. Watched a little tape out of Riley and love this kid’s mobility outside of the pocket as he can make plenty of plays with his legs. Matthew Lee | St. Francis Xavier (Wilmette, IL) | 2028 I would say from the 2028 class of QBs, if I had to give out a QB MVP it would got to Matthew Lee of St. Francis Xavier. I was substantially surprised finding out that Matthew is only a 12 year old, as he showed a considerably finished throwing motion and finished those throws with noticeable arm strength. Matthew’s also looked locked in with his precisive throws I watched him make in 1v1s and Indy drills. Already 6’0, I will be certainly watching this young man to see his growing development as he enters high school