Friday Night Watch List for South Dakota Week 9 Games

Miles Pastian

October 13, 2022 @ 02:33 PM

[player_tooltip player_id='56566' first='Rugby' last='Ryken'] - QB, Yankton   Ryken has been one of the more underrated QBs this year and as I have seen more tape of him, he truly stands out to me as an elite QB in SD. Ryken like most QBs in SD Is a dual threat when he is on the field but not like the average dual threat, he is much more like a gunslinger who can run when needed. Much more like an escape artist out of the pocket who can launch a ball downfield to link up with his wideouts. He has a great receiving core around them and Yankton as a team looks to Ryken to produce for them in tough moments and the clutch and suffices to say this season when those times have come up he has. Ryken has ice in his veins and is someone who loves to play in that big moment, an intangible that comes naturally to him. Watch for Ryken this weekend, he has some deadly weapons around him and he can link up with them any time he wants on the field, and I will be looking for him to cook.     [player_tooltip player_id='235736' first='Patrick' last='Kastning'] - DL, Elk Point Jefferson   Kastning has been playing a beast this season and I see that changing at no point for the rest of the year, I will have my eyes on him this weekend. Kastning has been the key piece for his team's defenses this year that has been nothing short of elite and has been great at stopping all facets of offensive production for whatever team they play. EPJ mainly plays in a setting where they face many of the top power rushers of the conference and they have been up to the task, being one of the top run defenses in SD so far. A big part of that is due to Kastning and the production that he does on the field, being able to stuff gaps up the middle quite well and making them not get any yardage when he is on the field. Not to mention his ability to overpower OLineman and blow past them to get into the backfield and make the QB know that he is out to get him the entire game. Overall, he is an elite defensive player who can do so much for his defense, and he has been playing well past what I thought he could do. He has impressed me with his talent and I will be checking him out in action this week, and you should too.     [player_tooltip player_id='161258' first='Tyree' last='Shorter'] - DB, Sioux Falls Lincoln   Shorter is a lockdown down defensive back in every sense of the word and this weekend will be big for not only him but his team as a whole. Sioux Falls Lincoln might not be off to the start that they might have wanted to be at this point in the year but they are still one of the best teams in the state. That is in big part to their elite offensive attack that has been playing great and their defense which was been improving steadily as the year advances. Shorter is part of that advancement and he has been playing on another level it seems, breaking up passes and not letting any players get any separation when he is on them. Shorter is a seriously talented DB and seeing his team only shows more of his talents and how he can guard the other team's WR1 without faltering. Shorter never takes a play off and gives 120% on the field, and I think this well will much of the same.     [player_tooltip player_id='160914' first='Noah' last='Kleinsasser'] - RB/OLB, Canistota-Freeman   Kleinsasser is an elite talent truly on both sides of the ball and you have to see what this kid can do when is playing both at a high level, in the same game. As an RB, he fits in as more of a crafty RB in my view, someone who might not have the highest YPC average early in the game but he will find holes and go off for big runs as the defense tires. That is how he can do so well while having high snap counts too, he might play the entire game but he will chip and work to get every single yard. When he goes off for those big runs, good luck stopping him when he is in the open field, Kleinsasser kicks it into another gear and takes off where people simply cannot stop him. On defense, he is a fast and agile edge rusher who can explode off the edge to get TFLs and stifle the offense in place. His coverage ability is also something that intrigues him, being able to lurk in the box and tip passes to either catch a few or force incompletions makes his defense second to none to his team.