5 Acadiana area players PRZLA hopes to catch as spring opens

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The LHSAA's official window for spring football opened Monday with a few schools around the state already taking the field and the vast majority kicking off their sessions in the next two weeks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Prep Redzone Louisiana has already started making some rounds, but won't be able to catch everyone. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We'll start over the next few days by pointing out and highlighting five players from each area we'd like to see — with priority given to rising upperclassmen and for prospects we'd be seeing for the first time, the first time in an extended stretch or the first time since some notable development.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And a series will follow highlighting six or more student-athletes from each school visited with a mix of returning veterans, breakout candidates and underclassmen to know for years to come.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Acadiana area in particular feels as though it could warrant its own top-25 list and an entire month of visits. But, in sticking with the running format, here are a leading handful.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='144893' first='Trae' last='Grogan'] —&nbsp;6-1, 180 WR — Lafayette Christian (2024)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>[player_tooltip player_id='139261' first='Ju'Juan' last='Johnson'], [player_tooltip player_id='285654' first='Melvin' last='Hills III'] and [player_tooltip player_id='421516' first='Sandy' last='Lewis'] have headlined the Knights' impressive 2024 class throughout their high school careers, and largely underrated cornerback [player_tooltip player_id='145325' first='Ty' last='Lee'] has started to gain some traction on the recruiting trail. But Grogan showed some flashes late last season of his potential for a breakout final year of high school and his own college opportunities. And with top receivers such as [player_tooltip player_id='276373' first='Alonzo' last='Ryes'] and [player_tooltip player_id='275592' first='Alex' last='Beard'] graduating, Grogan may also be a notably pivotal player in the Knights' title hopes this fall.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='912270' first='Landon' last='Hammond'] — 6-2, 160 DB —&nbsp;Opelousas (2025)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Or any number of Tigers' standouts, particularly from the 2025 class: running back [player_tooltip player_id='710072' first='D'Shaun' last='Ford'] (5-11, 210), edge rusher [player_tooltip player_id='710273' first='Corey' last='Amos'] (6-3, 205) or wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='710769' first='Korey' last='Fontenot'] (6-1, 165) among other headliners. Prep Redzone Louisiana hasn't had a chance yet to see this Opelousas group in person and hasn't seen as much footage of Hammond or Fontenot as Ford and Amos. But Hammond, a long, lean and speedy corner is on the heels of an all-district and all-parish sophomore season in an area enjoying a strong run of talent and has started to hit the recruiting trail with Mississippi State and LSU trips. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='920606' first='Darryus' last='McKinley'] — 6-3, 225 DL — Acadiana (2026)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Big brother [player_tooltip player_id='421603' first='Dominick' last='McKinley'] has exploded on the recruiting trail into one of the definitive top prospects in the 2024 class, and Darryus has enjoyed his own rapidly growing offer list that suggests he likely warrants similar status for the 2026 cycle. This week will mark Prep Redzone Louisiana's first real look.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='710274' first='Dylan' last='Singleton'] — 6-4, 280 DL — Loreauville (2025)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The couple minutes of combined freshman and sophomore film on the big defensive lineman piqued our interest in a similar fashion to early film on eventual Neville star and LSU signee Zalance "Lance" Heard when he was a young defensive lineman at Bastrop. Getting a better look in person at where Singleton is physically and his movement and explosiveness for his size will help provide a far clearer sense of where he belongs in the next rankings update.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='145333' first='Diesel' last='Solari'] —&nbsp;5-6, 160 ATH — Cecilia (2025)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Bulldogs' versatile and explosive athlete has been a Prep Redzone Louisiana favorite in his class from early on and consistently showed why before being sidelined early this fall. Solari has been working back from his injury, and getting a chance to see him back on the field will be a welcomed sight on a variety of levels.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->