Division 2 Defensive X-Factors For The State Semi-Finals

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Believe it or not, we are already into the State-Semi finals for the Michigan high school playoffs. <strong>Birmingham Groves</strong> will play <strong>Waren De La Salle Collegiate </strong>at <strong>Troy Athens</strong> high school Saturday, November 19th at 1 pm. <strong>Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central</strong> will play <strong>Dexter </strong>at <strong>Portage Northern </strong>high school Saturday, November 19th at 1 pm. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#99 Devon Emrick | DL |</strong> <strong>Dexter |</strong> <strong>Plays Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/13387849/6313c856da5b5d081cf3cc00">Hudl</a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Emrick has played outstanding football this year for <strong>Dexter</strong>. He is a true run-stuffing defensive tackle who is very difficult to block. Emirck does a great job of getting off blocks and making tackles for loss. He gets off the snap quickly and has the athleticism to shoot gaps and disrupt run plays. Dexter's defense has been so good against the run this season and <strong>Devon Emrick </strong>has played a big role in that. If Emrick can disrupt<strong> Forest Hills'</strong> run game you have to like <strong>Dexter's</strong> chances to win this game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#9 | Brandon Valerio | LB | Dexter | Plays Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/11782197/63593e2564decd0dc0d259d4">Hudl</a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Valerio is relentless in his pursuit of opposing ball carriers. Like his teammate <strong>Devon Emrick</strong>, Valerio has been a key part of <strong>Dexter's </strong>success in stopping the run. Valerio does a great job of meeting ball carriers in the hole using his size and strength to drive them back and prevent them from falling forward. <strong>Dexter</strong> will blitz Valerio up the middle and he has the ability to fly past blockers and get after the quarterback. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>#<strong>11 [player_tooltip player_id='407397' first='Griffin' last='Phillips'] | DB | Warren De La Salle | Plays Birmingham Groves | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/12858289/6326375c0428ae051c103d0c">Hudl</a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Phillips does a great job of reading where a quarterback is going to throw and then breaking on the ball and coming down with an interception. Phillips can change direction with ease and this ability helps to put him in a position to make a play on the football. [player_tooltip player_id='407397' first='Griffin' last='Phillips'] will come downhill and make tackles in the open field. <strong>Birmingham Groves</strong> needs to have Phillips on their radar. Phillips has the ability to make game-changing plays and a state semi-final game would be a great time to make another one. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>#7 [player_tooltip player_id='409671' first='Jamari' last='Allen'] | DB | Warren De La Salle | Plays Birmingham Groves | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/12865923/632f7e1bda523109341f44c1">Hudl</a></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Allen is very physical on the outside at the cornerback position. Receivers have a very hard time getting separation from him especially when he plays press man-to-man with them. Thomas does a good job of mirroring the receiver's movements and playing under control. He is good in zone coverage and always stays in an athletic position to either make a play on the football or come up and make a tackle. I like his game a lot and even though I did not get the chance to watch <strong>De La Salle</strong> play in person, having both <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='409671' first='Jamari' last='Allen']</strong> and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='407397' first='Griffin' last='Phillips']</strong> in the secondary gives opposing teams a lot of problems. <strong>Birmingham Groves</strong> may have a difficult time throwing to the receivers that Allen covers in this game. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->