Mission Viejo Passing Tournament: Top Offensive Performers
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The Mission Viejo passing tournament took place last Saturday and 20 quality Southern California programs took place in a 7-on-7 tournament and lineman competition. Mission Viejo won the tournament to cap its impressive summer of passing league titles. I got…
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Continue ReadingThe Mission Viejo passing tournament took place last Saturday and 20 quality Southern California programs took place in a 7-on-7 tournament and lineman competition.
Mission Viejo won the tournament to cap its impressive summer of passing league titles.
I got a chance to see the majority of teams play. Here were the top offensive performers that caught my eye:
Kadin Semonza Kadin Semonza 6'0" | 190 lbs | QB Mission Viejo | 2023 State CA , Mission Viejo
Semonza was one of the best quarterbacks at the event and showed off his accuracy on the deep throws. He was picking apart very good defenses during pool play and kept it going against Warren in the championship game. He did a nice job spreading the ball around to all of his receivers and made some impressive off-platform throws. Semonza carries himself with confidence and commands the huddle even though there are multiple Division 1 caliber players in there with him. Ball State got a steal in Semonza.
Mikey Matthews Mikey Matthews 5'10" | 180 lbs | WR Mission Viejo | 2023 State CA , Mission Viejo
Defenders had to pick their poison while trying to cover Matthews. He was beating guys deep in man coverage routinely and when defensive backs gave him a big cushion, he would catch underneath throws and make big plays after the catch. He was lining up at running back occasionally and making catches on swing routes or in the flat on boots. Many Mission Viejo receivers played well Saturday, but Matthews looks like a candidate to be the most exciting receiver in Southern California.
Darius Cowens Darius Cowens 6'0" | 170 lbs | QB Warren | 2023 State CA , Warren
Cowens transferred into Warren from Pacifica and the coaches told me he has picked up the offense fairly quickly. He improved as the day went on and was firing on all cylinders when I saw him play against Servite. He is much bigger than when I previously saw him and he has a real connection with receiver Jordan Ross Jordan Ross 6'0" | 175 lbs | WR Warren | 2024 State CA . It will be interesting to see what happens with Warren with the return of Tennessee Nico Iamaleava Nico Iamaleava 6'5" | 200 lbs | QB Warren | 2023 State CA at quarterback. There are rumors that Iamaleava will not play this season and if so, Cowens is more than capable of leading Warren to a great season.
Emmett Mosley Emmett Mosley 6'1" | 180 lbs | ATH Santa Margarita Catholic | 2024 State CA , Santa Margarita
Mosley transferred to Santa Margarita from Servite and everyone knows he is a top cornerback, but he was very impressive at receiver on Saturday. Jaxon Potter Jaxon Potter 6'4" | 180 lbs | QB Santa Margarita Catholic | 2023 State CA was finding him with regularity over the middle and on the outside. He high points the ball well and has improved his speed greatly this offseason.
Trey Kukuk Trey Kukuk 6'0" | 190 lbs | QB Capistrano Valley | 2023 State CA , Capistrano Valley
Kukuk is really fun to watch and even more fun when the pads come on. His release is quick and he is very accurate. The Cougars had a lot of top players missing but Kukuk took the role of team leader and was vocal in the huddle and on the sidelines when the defense was on the field. The coaching staff trusts him to make tough decisions with the ball and fit it into tight windows.
Izzy Carter Izzy Carter 6'1" | 180 lbs | QB Centennial - Corona | 2023 State CA , Centennial
Carter was picking apart major defenses like Santa Margarita in pool play. He sees the field better than a lot of quarterbacks and he has a lot of zip on his throws. Coach Matt Logan trusts him with challenging reads and he often would hit his fourth or fifth reads on check downs. He takes care of the ball and has really improved as a picket passer. Arizona State got a good one in Carter.
Cory Butler, Centennial
Malachi Riley Malachi Riley 6'2" | 180 lbs | WR Centennial | 2023 State CA played well at receiver for Centennial as expected but Cory Butler really impressed me with his route running. There were multiple times where the offensive coaches saw the opponents lined up in man coverage against Butler and they were signaling touchdown before the play even started. He is undersized at 5-foot-9 but can line up all over the field and has offers from Utah, Oregon State and Arizona among others.
Damon Wrighster Damon Wrighster 6'3" | 170 lbs | QB Inglewood | 2024 State CA , Sierra Canyon
Wrighster got a lot of reps at quarterback in the game I saw and so did Alonzo Esparza Alonzo Esparza 6'0" | 175 lbs | QB Los Alamitos | 2025 State CA . Wrighster is a year older than Esparza and more physically developed. He spread the ball around well to the Sierra Canyon receivers like Lavon Brown Lavon Brown 6'1" | 180 lbs | WR Sierra Canyon | 2023 State CA and Josiah Phillips Josiah Phillips 6'4" | 185 lbs | WR Sierra Canyon | 2023 State CA . Quarterback is wide open for Sierra Canyon and I got the impression that the coaching staff likes all of their options.
Braedon Simonian Braedon Simonian 5'10" | 175 lbs | ATH St Paul | 2023 CA , St. Paul
Simonian transferred to St. Paul from La Habra and the Swordsmen were getting him the ball frequently on Saturday. He is an underrated slot guy who they love running corner and out routes with. I got to see him play against his former La Habra teammates for a bit and he was fired up and the team was feeding off his energy. He has some size and could get some lower level offers soon.
Dereun Dortch Dereun Dortch 6'0" | 200 lbs | QB San Jacinto | 2023 State CA , San Jacinto
Dortch is a dual threat quarterback but I was very impressed with his ability to be comfortable in the pocket and deliver accurate throws on time. He goes through his reads quickly and makes good decisions with the ball. I saw him play against Temescal Canyon and guys like Vincent Holmes Vincent Holmes 6'2" | 175 lbs | ATH San Jacinto | 2023 State CA and Dillon Gresham were wide open and he was hitting them in stride. The San Jacinto coaching staff will have a lot of fun drawing up plays for Dortch this season.
Husan Longstreet, Inglewood
Longstreet is noticeably more muscular than when I saw him at Turf Wars in January playing for one of the Premium teams. His delivery is long but the ball comes out of his hands smoothly and he has chemistry with receiver Terrell Bradshaw Terrell Bradshaw 5'9" | 175 lbs | WR Inglewood | 2024 State CA . He sometimes eyes down his first target, but he is improving steadily and I am sure his ability to read defenses will improve as well.
Quinn Rosenkranz, Servite
Servite is a big mystery this season but a few receivers looked more polished than I expected. He has great body control and can make difficult catches look easy. Ethan Naudin Ethan Naudin 6'1" | 185 lbs | WR St. John Bosco | 2025 State CA looked good and the coaches said positive things about him. Jaxon Hughes is 6-foot-4 and a receiver to keep an eye on this season as well.
Jamari Johnson Jamari Johnson 6'5" | 250 lbs | TE Inglewood | 2023 State CA , Inglewood
Johnson is massive in person and every team that plays him looks at him in disbelief. An opposing coach told me, “I thought he was a tackle from the lineman competition.” He moves so well for his size and causes matchup nightmares for opponents. He will be even better when the pads come on, but his physicality stood out to me this weekend.
Joaquin Johnson Joaquin Johnson 5'9" | 155 lbs | WR St. Bonaventure | 2023 CA , Saint Bonaventure
Every media person I talked to Saturday mentioned “Juice” Johnson and how dominant he looked for Saint Bonaventure. He and Alemany transfer quarterback Anthony Wolter Anthony Wolter 6'1" | 190 lbs | QB Saint Bonaventure | 2024 State CA were dominant and clearly have a connection. He created big matchup problems against a shorthanded Los Alamitos team and competed well against the Division 1 defensive backs of Millikan. He isn’t a big guy which is why he has zero offers yet, but he could be a 1,000 yard receiver this season.