Friday Film Review – May 5th, 2023

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em><strong>Get 25% off your subscription by entering Knight25 in the coupon code area. Enjoy!</strong></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I'm jumping back in the film room throughout the month of May, looking for some prospects that are either flying under the radar or haven't been covered that much on Prep Redzone Iowa. Once we find those players, it's time to throw on the film and break down their game. Every Friday, I'll be throwing on the film and breaking down some of Iowa's best and some of the hidden gems. This week, we're putting an emphasis on the 2024 class and this post has some beef to it with four of the five prospects featured coming from the offensive and defensive lines. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["133308"],"_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":"Kickers are prospects too! Mediapolis has one of the best 2024 kickers in the country with [player_tooltip player_id='133308' first='Drew' last='Miller'] and that's apparent not only from the film, but from all of the offers and recruiting attention Miller has received in just the last six months. The recruitment of a kicker is always incredibly tough because there are simply not many spots available in each class in big time college football. But Miller has earned the attention of reigning national champion Georgia, among others, and it's easy to see why. The ball just flies off the foot of Miller and it's not surprising to see that he averaged nearly 50 yards per punt last season. And he's not just a guy who can boot it a mile, he has control and hang time that you just don't see very often at the high school level. Some of the punts he had last season when you combine distance and hang time, you don't even see that at the college level. Miller is special and plenty of people have noticed it. He's already accepted an invitation to the US Army All American game as one of the best kickers in the country. And he's also a weapon on the kickoff team as nearly all of his kickoffs last season were not returned.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["573561"],"_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":"As a regional writer and not specific to Iowa, I don't know that much about the five prospects in the top five of the 2024 rankings, but I don't think it's a far-fetched thought to say that Logan Magnolia offensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='573561' first='Grant' last='Brix'] could be the best of the bunch. And especially when you talk about offensive linemen. Playing at right tackle last season, Brix's film was unbelievable from the first couple plays. He is incredible at locking on to a defender and driving them backwards until they're on their back in a hurry. Another trait that Brix had that stood out to me was his first step at the snap. He is so quick out of his stance and when you combine that with his power, opposing defensive linemen had no chance. And he wasn't just destroying opposing defensive lines, he never got satisfied on a play and there were multiple instances when he would flatten a defensive end, work his way to the second level and go after a linebacker. And at 6'6 and over 270 pounds, Brix is going to win that every single time. He's terrifying as a blocker and big time college programs are starting to take notice. His recruitment has exploded since January.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["511949"],"_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":"We stay on the offensive line for our next prospect breakdown and we go to [player_tooltip player_id='511949' first='Jace' last='Borcherding'] out of Cedar Rapids Xavier. Borcherding helped lead a rushing offense all the way to a perfect season and state championship last fall. While Brix did all of his work at tackle, Borcherding is your prototypical interior offensive lineman and the majority of the film we watched had him lined up at left guard in 2022. He has the body type and skills to eventually move to the center position. Borcherding really impressed me when I put on his film from a football IQ perspective. He understands play design and running lanes incredibly well for a current high school junior. He knows how to set his feet to block off a defender from the intended running lane. And he is an absolute people mover at the point of attack. Standing 6'4 and nearly 250 pounds, he also has incredible quickness when it's time for him to get out of his stance and pull down the line. He gets from point A to point B in a hurry and that was problem for defenders. It was almost unfair when they were running the ball and he could just power forward with no resistance.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["320786"],"_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 you're looking for a hidden gem in Iowa's 2024 class, look no further than defensive lineman [player_tooltip player_id='320786' first='Trent' last='Cakerice'] from Grundy Center. I loved his film from last fall and when you combine his size (6'5 and nearly 250 pounds) with his skillset on the football field, the sky is the limit. Oh, and throw in the fact that he's an outstanding wrestler and you have the makings for a college football star that we look back and wonder how anyone waited to recruit this prospect. Cakerice earned All State honors last season and it's easy to see why when you see the frame and watch the film. The first thing that really stood out, other than the size, was his ability to shed blocks with ease. He keeps his eyes in the backfield and knows when to get rid of his opposing lineman to make a play on the ball carrier. And when he gets his hands on you, he's a wrestler, you're going to go down in a hurry. He has a good first step and combination of moves to go along with it. The variety of his moves was something else that impressed us. He didn't just rely on one move to get into the backfield. We think that Cakerice could be pretty special and not enough people know it.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["247997"],"_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":"Our final prospect on this week's film review is another lineman on the defensive side of the ball with [player_tooltip player_id='247997' first='Sam' last='Watts'] out of Linn-Mar. Watts lined up primarily as a defensive end on a defense that used three down linemen. He was consistently going up against both the tackle and the guard in some instances last season so he needed to bring the juice to their defense. That's exactly what came across on film. Watts was an energizer bunny and he clearly brought the energy of the Linn-Mar defense and it was very impressive to watch. He ended up earning a spot as a captain on the team and that's not all that surprising when you watch how much effort he gives on every single play. Watts is incredibly disruptive along the line of scrimmage and that's an underrated trait with defensive linemen. Even when you can't make the tackle or sack, how much disruption did you cause that allowed a teammate to make that play? That's something that always stands out when we see it and Watts had it and then some. Even when he wasn't making the play, he was causing enough havoc that it opened things up for someone else.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":5,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-6455677680e8f"} /--> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->