Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase: The Gunslinger Standouts
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ABERDEEN, SD– We close out Monday night of our live evaluations from the Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase by switching to the offensive side of the ball to the Gunslingers. What are some of my quick notes from this list? I…
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Continue ReadingABERDEEN, SD– We close out Monday night of our live evaluations from the Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase by switching to the offensive side of the ball to the Gunslingers. What are some of my quick notes from this list? I have gotten to watch a bulk of these quarterbacks or tracked them already a handful this Spring and Winter, so it was great to see where to see how much progress they have made from a recent eval. On the other hand, I met a bunch of new names on this list of Gunslingers of some small school quarterbacks that made a name from themselves as underclassmen at Saturday’s Showcase at Northern State as although the weather was a factor, these younger QBs put themselves on the map for success in their football futures. Time to see who balled out below! Note: All headshots from Saturday will be added to each player’s profile within the article within the next 48 hours or less.
Kamden Schimmel Kamden Schimmel 6'0" | 170 lbs | DB Harrisburg | 2026 State SD , QB, Harrisburg (SD) 2026 Twitter
Kamden has continued to impress me from December into now with his ball-fitting ability especially within short and intermediate routes. I also saw the growth from my live evaluation in December 2022 to know with the growing poise this kid has within his plethora, as Kamden although slightly undersized carries himself well for his age especially from what I saw at our Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase in Aberdeen this weekend. He’s got some development incoming with the speed of reading thru his progressions, but with three more season of high school football on his plate, I love the potential & character with him already in his football future.
Alec Austin Alec Austin 6'3" | 205 lbs | QB Centerville | 2026 State SD , QB/ATH, Centerville (SD) 2026 Twitter
Alec was a brand new name I got to know on Saturday at the Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase in Aberdeen and one that showed some intriguing versatility as a 2026 prospect out of Centerville, South Dakota. For his age, Alec showed off a good quick release from the reps I caught on Saturday as a QB prospect that is just scratching the surface with his potential with a growing feel for the quarterback position. He has some raw development brewing with the balance within his footwork in my eyes, however Alec showed off a prospect that displayed a blue-collar work ethic and a strong willingness to learn based on watching him on Saturday. I got to watch some reps on tape and the positional flexibility Alec has should be intriguing to watch grow and develop from this swiss army knife in the coming years as his 6’1 nearly 200 pound frame as just a freshmen. Alec also seems extremely durable as well and should be a difficult tackle to make no matter where he lines up.
Blaise Showers, QB, Sioux Falls Lincoln (SD) 2025 Twitter
I swear I only watched Blaise about two weeks ago, however his arm strength just keeps getting more fire to it every chance I get to watch him within a live-evaluation. Even with that 6’3 205 pound frame, Blaise certainly showed off some intriguing numbers in early testing with his 4.87 40 yard dash and explosion that stuck out with his 8’10 broad jump. Blaise has also developed this Spring with the speed and balance within his progressions, as even on Saturday I could gauge more balance within him reading the coverage at a smooth pace that looked more comfortable from reps I have watched earlier this Spring. Blaise just made the move to Sioux Falls Lincoln over from Harrisburg, where he should learn the Patriots offense well under highly recruited incoming senior Tate Schafer Tate Schafer 6'1" | 180 lbs | QB Sioux Falls Lincoln | 2024 State SD as the Patriots will continue to be a hotbed over the last handful of years for scholarship-level quarterbacks which will continue in 2025 with Blaise Stowers.
Brady Schroedermeier, QB, Viborg-Hurley (SD) 2026 Twitter
Brady in my eyes was rated as my QB1 amongst 2026 quarterbacks on Saturday at our Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase in Aberdeen. At 6’0 nearly 170 pounds, Brady impressed me with the precison and arm strength he had within his deepest routes as I saw a bulk of consistency within his throws that threw more like an upperclassmen than an underclassmen on Saturday at Northern State. With plenty of time to develop, the biggest skillset Brady can work is identifying the proper arm strength within throwing on his routes as on occasion he could have utilzed more touch on his ball on some of his intermediate routes. Regardless, with three more years under his belt at Viborg-Hurley I like the upside Brady brings to the table over the next three seasons and can’t wait to see his sophomore tape in 2023 as he’s light on tape at this given moment.
Tee Sylling Tee Sylling 6'3" | 185 lbs | QB Maple Valley | 2025 State ND , QB, Maple Valley (ND) 2025 Twitter
Tee showed off on Saturday at our Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase some growing instincts from my eyes in Aberdeen. This young man showed off thru his progressions how quick he could turn with his elusive footwork with his 6’2 185 pound frame to get the best angle possible with his quick release. Tee also showed off good precision within some of the deeper routes I got to watch in 1v1 reps. Tee excelled on Saturday showing off some great consistency within his touch ball in not ideal weather conditions. Tee was one of the few quarterback prospects on this list that also showed off consistent testing numbers with a 4.91 40 yard dash, and some good bounce of explosion in his 6’2 185 pound frame within a 8’9 broad jump. Tee is certainly a quarterback prospect from Saturday that was a must-add for me to our North Dakota 2025 rankings, as although he has some limited tape available, he made it count in a live-evaluation in my eyes. A three sport athlete that is an exceptional javelin thrower in North Dakota.
Layne Cotton Layne Cotton 6'3" | ATH Faulkton | 2024 State SD , QB, Faulkton (SD) 2024 Twitter
Layne impressed me most with his broad jump on Saturday as the #1 overall quarterback in that category jumping with an explosive 9’8 on both reps he got in the early going of the Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase. He also showed off reps of consistency in a couple categories of testing, as Layne saw his numbers improve from rep #2 versus rep #1. When watching Layne in Indy drills, you can quickly engage with the versatility this young man brings on the football field, as I certainly see him as a prospect that brings positional flexibility at the next-level as he shows off mobility outside of the pocket and some great arm strength that has significant potential with how much he can grow within it. I’ll look forward to tracking Layne with his upcoming junior football tape this coming season for sure.
Ryan Wetch, QB, Rapid City Central (SD) 2024 Twitter
For as much length I saw at Saturday’s Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase at Northern State in Rapid City Central 2024 quarterback Ryan Wetch, you could also gaze into the athleticism skillset this young man brings to the table, which was not a skillset I have engaged with yet with Ryan’s skillsets. At 6’3 180 pounds, Ryan showed off in testing some great bases of durability especially from when I watched him in the L-Drill where he posted a 7.59 drill which for his size, posts well on my SES analytic scale (will talk more in depth about this in the coming weeks). Although he has some high upside with his throwing mechanics, Ryan showed off on Saturday that he can excel throwing the ball on all three levels, and his best work I saw was done within the intermediate routes he hit in 1v1s which consistently resonates with what you see out of Ryan on his junior tape from the 2022 season. He does well threading the needle on tape with his angles by giving his wide receivers precision with enough depth in his arm strength and accuracy for them to catch & go. Ryan is certainly a QB prospect deserving of an opportunity to play on Saturdays.
Burk Blasius Burk Blasius 6'1" | 180 lbs | QB Wall | 2024 State SD , QB, Wall (SD) 2024 Twitter
Burk was a quarterback that walked up on Saturday at our Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase that has already been a stockriser in our 2024 class of quarterbacks this Spring. Burk showed off some well-versed mechanics watching his throwing motion and Burk had one of the most eye-appealing touch throws on intermediate and deep routes from what I saw at our showcase in Aberdeen. Even with the wet weather we dealt with on Saturday at Northern State, Burk was poised and precise within his delivery on those deeper routes. Burk was also impressive with his testing numbers, showing off a 4.59 in the short shuttle and his best number of the day in eyes came in the L-Drill where he went for a 7.43 in the blitzing rain in Aberdeen. I have Burk listed as QB3 in the 2024 South Dakota rankings, and I thought certainly has closed the gap immensely for the QB2 stop in the last couple weeks from his performance at the Elite 11 Showcase and last Saturday in the Deen. Burk should certainly be a popular QB name this summer, showing college coaches their is more in Wall, SD than just a world famous drug store. Burk is also a 4.0 GPA and certainly a quarterback you go outside the measurables threshold for as he also has excellent character from what I engaged with on Saturday.
Jett Lundeen Jett Lundeen 6'0" | QB Minot Bishop Ryan | 2025 State ND , QB, Minot Bishop Ryan (ND) 2025 Twitter
We say it again tonight we save the best for last in the quarterback MVP from the Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase in Minot Bishop Ryan 2025 quarterback Jett Lundeen Jett Lundeen 6'0" | QB Minot Bishop Ryan | 2025 State ND . After being named our selection from December’s Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase as our runner up for quarterbacks, Jett certainly turned it up a few notches at Saturday’s showcase. Jett by far had some of the best accuracy I could gauge in the rain at Saturday’s showcase and was exceptional with his ball placement on all three levels of the field whether he was throwing over the middle of the field or to the edges. Jett also was very proficient with his high football IQ, utilizing consistently the proper strength for the ball and angles he was given with his poised vision he showed off on Saturday in Aberdeen. This kid is mechanically sound across the board and doesn’t need much space to fit his ball in the area of his wide receiver. I can honestly say no matter what college camp or showcase I have found Jett at, this young man keeps making waves and keeps rising his stock as one of North Dakota’s best gunslingers in the 2025 class. He also has grown athletically over the last several months with the amount of live evaluations I have gotten from him. Jett is certainly another 2025 prospect that I can already call a stockriser within our 2025 rankings well-before the next update comes out before the 2023 season starts. College coaches will also fall in love with this kid’s character, as he is a prime example character wise of what you want in your QB room at the next-level.