918 Elite Spotlight (Mar. 18-19)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The DR7 7v7 tournament circuit made its way through Oklahoma over the weekend and stopped in at Broken Arrow and Prep Redzone was there from start to finish. Throughout the week, we'll be putting a spotlight on some of the best players that we caught for an extended period of time. In this post, we're taking a look at several standouts from 918 Elite's 18U squad and get ready, there's a lot of Union in this breakdown. Keep it locked in to Prep Redzone for more spotlights, looking at some of the top players throughout the weekend in Broken Arrow.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["110754"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Union 2024 wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='110754' first='Brendon' last='McQueen'] continues to have an impressive offseason. In the last few 7v7 tournaments we've covered where 918 Elite was playing, McQueen has stood out almost every time. A new thing that stood out to us this weekend was his versatility. McQueen would turn around and play some defense and he wasn't just an extra body out there. He was making plays at a high level with some consistency. But when it comes down to it, McQueen is a wide receiver and that's what he did best this weekend. He made some really good catches throughout the tournament and we think that his game is continuing to grow and he can contribute to the Union offense this fall. Union could very well lean more on the passing game this season and McQueen will certainly give them another weapon at the wide receiver position.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["330941"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Union 2024 defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='330941' first='Damien' last='Marshall'] is another name that is continuing to have a good 7v7 season this spring. 918 Elite was playing this weekend without their star [player_tooltip player_id='319804' first='Devon' last='Jordan'] at one of the cornerback spots so that put more pressure on Marshall to be the top corner for 918 Elite this time around. Marshall answered the call and made some some big plays in 1 on 1 situations. Marshall seemed to get better as his team's backs were against the wall. As 918 Elite moved backwards, Marshall's game would elevate and his red zone defense was impressive. He had quite a few plays this weekend where he broke up passes that would have been touchdowns for their opponent. It was good to see Marshall in a position where he had to be the guy for 918 Elite and he stepped up to the occasion. He's having a really good offseason.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["724374"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"A new name on our radar after this weekend is Union 2025 speedster [player_tooltip player_id='724374' first='Jarek' last='Watie']. The wide receiver has good size at 6'1 and is also a standout on the track. Throughout the weekend, Watie provided the 918 Elite offense with a playmaker that has strong hands and is pretty shifty in the open field. Even though he's 6'1, Watie moves like a shorter and shiftier wide receiver after the catch. There's definitely some quick twitch in his game where he can move laterally very quickly and the acceleration is impressive to see. We mentioned the strong hands and that was impressive to watch as Watie made some pretty good snags throughout the weekend. Coming into this recent tournament, Watie was not a name that we knew but we're definitely going to keep an eye on him moving forward as we get closer to spring football opening up.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["724376"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"If we gave out an MVP for each team, there is no doubt that Union 2025 wide receiver and defensive back [player_tooltip player_id='724376' first='JT' last='Fridrich'] would receive it for 918 Elite after this weekend. We've watched Fridrich in these 7v7 tournaments quite a bit over the last 15 months and this past weekend was by far the most productive we've ever seen him. Because 918 Elite was a little shorthanded on the offensive side of the ball, Fridrich lined up at wide receiver after primarily just playing safety. He excelled on offense and made catch after catch as one of their leading receivers. On defense, Fridrich was just as impactful. He was flying all over the field making play after play. We've mentioned this before with a few other players this week, but it was eye-opening just how many clips we got of Fridrich making plays after going back and reviewing the video.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["110745"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"2024 quarterback [player_tooltip player_id='110745' first='Knox' last='Dyson'] continues to be one of the more intriguing quarterbacks in the state's '24 class. He's had quite the journey so far in his high school career but he's back at Owasso and looking to finish off his career with a strong senior season this fall. We've watched Dyson quite a bit over the last two years during the offseasons while he played in various 7v7 tournaments. The arm talent is something that always impresses us during these tournaments. But this weekend in particular, we watched Dyson a little closer and between in person as well as looking back at the video, his growth reading the defenses has taken a big step. Dyson was quick with his decision making and going from read to read to find the open man. Dyson had a good year with Beggs last fall and he's looking to continue that momentum this fall.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["724375"],"_player_evaluations_5_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"Our final player spotlight is very similar to the one on Watie earlier. Union 2025 tight end [player_tooltip player_id='724375' first='Myles' last='Davis'] was a new name for us this weekend but after watching over the two days in Broken Arrow, we came away very impressed and wanting to see more. Davis was incredibly reliable in the 918 Elite passing game and like most good tight ends in a 7v7 setting, he served as a u0022security blanketu0022 for his quarterback. When the first or second read wasn't there, Davis would find a way to get open and even when he wasn't open, he made some outstanding catches. And like most tight ends, he became a big threat when they were near the end zone and one catch in particular had Davis fighting off a defender with one hand and snagging the ball out of the air with the other. Like Watie, Davis will provide good depth to the Union offense this fall.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":6,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-641c510fa1fba"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->