University of Jamestown Prospect Camp: Standouts, Part I

<strong>JAMESTOWN, ND-- </strong>On Thursday we made the just over 4 hour hail on Interstate 94 to Jamestown, North Dakota home of the world’s largest Buffalo in the United State and more importantly, home of the University of Jamestown Jimmies who hosted their first prospect camp in a long time on Thursday afternoon. With around 40 prospects in attendance, We were flying all over the brand new turf at Charlotte and Gordon Hansen Stadium getting as many live evaluations as we could and with a small group, it was a highly productive prospect camp with prospects getting very personal 1on1 coaching, building connections and much more in Jamestown. In this multi-part series, we take a first look at the handful of prospects that stood out. We won’t get thru all of them today, but will get as many as we can over the coming days. Here is the first batch of prospects that stood out at the University of Jamestown prospect camp. <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">[player_tooltip player_id="277667" first="Jake" last="Swanson"] | DL | Hillsboro-Central Valley (ND) | 2023</span></strong> <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-359850" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/06/swanson-rotated-crop-456x300-1654984792-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Jake played with a high amount of grit, which lead to him taking home one of the top performers MVPs. Jake appeared quicker off the snap since the last time I watched his tape a few months back, and also plays with such a sizeable frame that showed off a ton of mobility in the trenches. The length Jake possesses appeared longer than what he rolled out on tape which was a great site to see with a live evaluation of a prospect that is somewhat newer to my radar but is a Top 70 prospect in 2023. Jake has a high football IQ and is a determined prospect that will be a sound defensive tackle prospect at the next level wherever he ends up. <iframe src="https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/14911432/61a5851d7bddcd0f64398f5f" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Elliott DeVries | OL | Huron (SD) 2023</strong></span> <a href="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/06/devries-rotated-crop-456x300-1654984874.jpg"><img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-359852" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/06/devries-rotated-crop-456x300-1654984874-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /></a> Elliott came in as a new name to me in South Dakota’s 2023 class. He showed off some instinctive feet throughout the day in Jamestown. I believe he can improve his foot speed, but what this kid can do with a small window of space was a pleasure to watch live. He had some of the most feisty hands in the group of offensive linemen, releasing quick punches with a great pad-level to match and even drove a sizeable offensive linemen to the turf which was a "wow" moment from myself and the coaches. An under the radar prospect that really showed a lot of upside on Thursday in Jamestown. <iframe src="https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/15078731/614d1cb85ca9af12e4d7eed4" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Ethan Gall | DL | Jamestown (SD)</strong></span> I was very impressed with this kid’s explosion level coming out of his stance. Ethan also excelled by showing off a active footwork when changing directions in the later drills which drew him to the ball carrier quickly. I also really like Ethan’s range he can cover around the inside circle, as he has the depth to cover nearly sideline to sideline. I also thought Ethan showed high level physicality from the glimpses I took in from his tape. His biggest development is opening up his hips as an even faster pace off the snap, as his progressions each play end with solidity in his foot speed in his finish but take a little time to get going. I could see Ethan as a linebacker at the next level with his ideal 6’3 210 pound frame. <iframe src="https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/3434544/619afc3aa676c80e9c59a6f6" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>Jaden Eddy | LB | Bridgewater-Emery-Ethan (SD)</strong></span> <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-359848" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/06/jaden-eddy-rotated-crop-456x300-1654984719-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> The tape never lies as we always say and that would be true with Bridgewater-Emery-Ethan linebacker Jaden Eddy at the Jimmies prospect camp on Thursday. The first word that hit my notepad? Explosive, and when I pulled up his junior tape this morning, you can see that Jaden is a blow up tackler with very high physicality for the Seahawks. He also has fast foot speed that clings nicely into the root of contact on his tackles. He also showed competitive range on the turf at Jamestown, as he showed his coverage area off well when he unlocked his hips out of his stance. I don’t believe I had Jaden on my 2023 radar before, but he sure as heck is now after Thursday afternoon. <iframe src="https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/13225362/61dc5bdfbee085053cb06b1c" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <span style="font-size: 14pt;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="241344" first="Caden" last="Belgarde"] | DL | St. John (ND)</strong></span> <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-359846" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/06/belgarde-rotated-crop-456x300-1654984655-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> Caden is a Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase alum, that has added continued development since I watched him last November. He showed a more combative stance in the trenches that what I evaluated late last November. He also showed a quicker get off for his size in the 40 yard dash testing early in the Jimmies prospect camp. Caden had double digit sacks last year for the Woodchucks and I am very curious what number he will put up this year with an increased quicker trigger coming off the edge. His quick sheds in the trenches show off herds of athleticsm especially when he’s in a stand up position. Like the future coming thru for this young man. <iframe src="https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/13113243/61f35d8c4debcb05d42cc6d9" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe> <strong><span style="font-size: 14pt;">[player_tooltip player_id="234186" first="Aidan" last="Brower"] | OL | Sioux Valley (ND)</span></strong> <img class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-359844" src="https://prephoops-uploads.s3.amazonaws.com/redzone/uploads/2022/06/brower-rotated-crop-456x300-1654984601-300x197.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="197" /> I said it on Thursday afternoon, but the way Aidan was running like a downhill freight train early in testing, really made me think how productive this kid is going to be in the trenches for the Cossacks in 2022. He showed a much more athletic bend, as yet another Prep Redzone Dakotas showcase alum that is showing a heck of a lot of promise this offseason. Aidan is a sealer in the trenches especially in run block formations. He shows great finesse by controlling his defender and placing his leverage in the opposite direction of where his Cossacks ball carrier is going and gets good hand placement to move the pile sideways. To me he showed more strength than his junior tape might show when working in 1v1s as he always put up a solid fight from what I watched on Thursday and played very level headed when it came to his reps. What else do I love about Aidan? At the end of the Jimmies prospect camp Aidan very consistently was the first to step up for his reps and was one of the most determined young men from the offensive line position even after working his tail off for 3+ hours working on his craft, he still showed the stamina to step up in the end and earn his reps. <iframe src="https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/14911432/61a5851d7bddcd0f64398f5f" width="640" height="360" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>