It’s Monday, Rise and Shine! Rising Freshman set to Shine in 2023
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Below are a handful of freshman (class of 2026) ready to make their mark on the varsity field this coming fall. Anthony Walker NJ #WL LB #15 HEIGHT 5'11" WEIGHT 195 POS LB CLASS 2026 View Profile Anthony Walker Twitter…
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Continue ReadingBelow are a handful of freshman (class of 2026) ready to make their mark on the varsity field this coming fall.
Bergen Catholic has another potential 3-year starter in the pipeline ready to continue his 4-year crusade in Bergen County. At 5’11′” 195lbs, Anthony Walker Anthony Walker 5’11” | 195 lbs | LB North Brunswick | 2026 NJ has the frame and ability to step in and make an immediate impact. Last fall he was credited with 11 tackles, 2 TFL, 2 QB hurries, 1 FR, and 2 FF.
Walker plays mostly along the edge. He has burst off the ball, so much so that at the freshman level he can meet the QB and RB at their mesh point as if the handoff was supposed to be given to him. Walker plays at full speed, which means he is confident in knowing what to do. This allows him to take advantage of opponents who are not going full speed. Against twins Walker will be about 3/4 the way over the #2 receiver. When stuffing the run, Walker will look to make the tackle underneath the play when blockers are coming at him. I love how Walker does a great job sizing up tacklers in the open field and seems to have perfected the hawk-roll tackle; however, he should look to get lower when making tackles.
Bergen Catholic has another talented prospect coming up for 2026. Certainly wish to see Walker compete and win varsity time in 2023.
St. Joe’s Montvale adds another physical specimen to their varsity roster for the 2023 season. At 6’2″ 190lbs, Cristian Alvarez Cristian Alvarez 6’2″ | 190 lbs | DL St. Joe’s Regional | 2026 NJ is a physically imposing end who made 2 tackles in 2 games for the Green Knights last fall.
Physical is the operative word to describe Alvarez’s approach. He uses his physicality to get consistent penetration in the backfield against lesser opponents. Equally as impressive, Alvarez effectively strings along reach blocks forcing ball carriers to cut back inside to his help. What do both these traits have in common? They are a result of him getting his hands on the man in front of him each and every play. Alvarez’s technique allows him to rip into either gap to make plays as well. Closing speed is something Alvarez possesses as well, as he seems to accelerate as he closes in on the ball carrier. Alvarez plays a bit high, but keep in mind he is such a young player that this will get corrected as time goes on. We also would love to see more recent film of his.
With Alvarez lining up against them, opponents of the Green Knights are sure to be green with envy his coming season wishing that he was on their squad.
Delbarton has a rising freshman who has the potential to single-handedly wipe out the entire side of a defense for the Green Wave. At 6’3″ 292lbs Chris Dadas Chris Dadas 6’3″ | 300 lbs | DL Delbarton | 2026 State NJ is looking to raise the standard of line play in Morristown.
Something that is not particularly emphasized at the high school level is the ability for d-linemen to make a “U-turn” on the heels of the o-linemen when they are slanted the wrong way. Dadas does an excellent job of this. Dadas also possesses a sufficient base, which allows him to move bodies when drive blocking (he also gets hands on d-linemen to control them). Scheme-based technique will clean up as he gets exposed to more coaching and more reps, for in once instance he out blocked the d-end when he was backside on a play.
Dadas has varsity-ready size to play anywhere in the trenches. With a few years of solid coaching and more reps, we can only speculate where Dadas will end up playing college football.
Highlights
This Ironman, who can do several things well on the field, looks to break the starting lineup at Don Bosco this fall. At 5’9″ 170lb ATH Colin Brennan plays a little bit of everything on the football field.
Lining up at a safety on defense, Brennan is well coached as he is consistently early to the pass and late to the run. He is able to fill the alley, break down, and make a sure tackle. When the ball is in his hands, Brennan has great vision and can bust a play wide open. On film it looks as though Brennan plays a few yards too deep at the snap of the ball, but this may just on one particular clip in a limited amount to view.
In time, Brennan looks like he will be an integral part of what the Ironmen are about in all three phases of the game. Whether it be returning, defense, or offense, expect Brennan to have his imprints all over the field in years to come.
We often do not know the name of a kicker until either something really good happens or something really bad happens. However, if Prep Redzone is telling you about a kicker, good things are to come from him. Enter the 5’10” 170lber for the Red Bank Catholic Casey’s named Blake Caruso Blake Caruso 5’10” | 180 lbs | K Red Bank Catholic | 2026 NJ .
Caruso seems calm under pressure. I say this because he does not rush and waits for the ball to be placed before entering his PAT/FG motion. In terms of his leg strength, in one clip we see him hit from 51 yards out; however, this clip was without pads and using a manless holder. When kicking off in game situations, it appears that his furthest kick was to about the opponents 5 yard line. I would like to see Caruso follow through a bit more on his kick in order to squeeze all the juice that he can out of that leg of his.
Please do not mistake Caruso as only a kicker. He is athletic enough and does several nice things for his team on offense and defense; however, Caruso just seems to have a penchant for booming kicks. Expect him to be one of the state’s top kickers in 2026.