Winona State Prospect Camp Standouts: Part III
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WINONA– Time to meet my final batch of standouts in Part III from the Winona State prospect camp from a little over a week ago. This list screams of prospects especially from SE Minnesota that are under the radar in…
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Continue ReadingWINONA– Time to meet my final batch of standouts in Part III from the Winona State prospect camp from a little over a week ago. This list screams of prospects especially from SE Minnesota that are under the radar in my eyes and made some noise for themselves at the Warriors camp last Saturday. Plenty of these young men are just scratching the surface for their next-level exposure, however we feel we got an early look for where their talent will take them. Let’s look at Part III as we close the book on the Winona State Camp.
For how well-framed Ethan was in Winona at 6’4 215 pounds, I enjoyed watching this young man’s immense balance and twitch he showed off getting off the ball with his first steps in 1v1 reps. He also showed off how much substantial reach he has within his reach which checks out on tape when you watch how far he can stretch to get that ball that will be slightly out reach for other tight ends with less length. That length extends nicely with some strength when I watched his run-blocking in Winona as he gets great bites of force from even light hands with his touch. This young man shows off to be a pain in the rear to bring down in the open field as he shows that balance in his feet in Winona on tape when he’s trucking over defenders on the edges of the football field. He has the positional versatility for TE and DE at the next-level but I love his next-level fit coming off the edge. Ethan looks like a hidden gem in my eyes coming out of Spring Grove in this 2024 class.
Highlights
Hunter Gruba
Hunter Gruba
Hunter impressed me most throughout the camp with just how solid this kid’s stamina was from start to finish of camp as I felt he left Winona as a DE prospect with excellent work ethic that has a motor that is built to last at 6’0 225 pounds. He also showed off a really effective short burst in some of the drills I caught him at in Indy and 1v1s. Hunter’s tape shows off a motor that never quits in the backfield, so I love that it matches with what I saw in Winona last Saturday. He is likely one of the most versatile prospects on this list as his tape shows off efficent reps at defensive tackle, defensive end and even can play in pass coverage as an outside linebacker when you need him. Personally at the next-level, I like Hunter coming off the edge, but he certainly with adding some frame in a college weight room could be a feisty fit at defensive tackle. Certainly a prospect that will be playing Saturdays in these eyes.
The quick and feisty hands I watched out of Jordan on Saturday on both sides of the ball, showed off a plethora of juice from my eyes. I also was intrigued with Jordan’s vertical with his long catch radius he showed off in the air in Winona on Saturday. Those hands fight their tail off as well as a 6’3 185 pound defensive end and he has the length in his motor to seal off the edge of the inside box and take it outside with his great base of stamina he shows off within his light sophomore tape. He also shows off great flexibility with his instincts coming off his blocks that plays like he is ready to find the ball with development of his next move within the field. The best fit in my eyes for this Rochester John Marshall athlete at the next-level points me to defensive end. He has the length, he just needs to grow out his frame in the weight room as I am intrigued with how efficent this young man’s hands are upfront.
Highlights
Walker caught the eyes of both of our Prep Redzone scouts in attendance on Saturday and for he the first skillset that popped out was how much power and strength was in Walker’s hips on Saturday in Winona. Walker to me played much bigger than his 6’1 235 pound frame showed off as he showed off a consistent base of aggression with watching his get off with his hands. I always love when a prospect’s live evaluation matches the tape as that power Walker has from top to bottom boosts nicely throughout the first minute of his tape. This young man plays with a massive motor and might have been one of the best ones out of the 2024 defensive ends I watched in Winona last weekend. He also showed off great stamina speed from start to finish in his 1v1 and Indy drills. He certainly will intrigue some next-level college football suitors more this summer for sure.
Jaxson to me would get my nod for the 2026 RB MVP at the Winona State Camp as from testing on down to 1v1s, this kid was super impressive to watch. The first look of Jaxson flashed off some catchy change of direction especially when I got my first glimpse of him in Indy Drills. He also showed off great vision for his age with his route-running as he was a running back that could adjust on the fly to where the ball placement was and showed off good athletic ability to bring the ball to his chest. His tape shows off a solid burst in the open field and I thought he looked faster on tape the more he progressed downhill as he also showed that same solid change of direction at his age with his elusive footwork for his age. Certainly a 2026 RB prospect to watch for out of Southeast Minnesota in my eyes.
Highlights
Kaaleem continues to impress me consistently camp after camp over the last year or so. What stuck to me about Kaaleem this time? It was how much his hands have developed since I watched him April as he caught anything and everything that came his way in 1v1 reps and showed instinctive vision to use his football IQ to adjust with smooth balance to give himself the best angle to the ball. He has also gotten swifter within his route-running especially on short and intermediate routes as he could flip his hips with his change of direction on a dime and get ample separation from his defender at the Winona State Camp. This young man is so efficent in getting out of quick jam when you get the chance to roll his tape which I have watched a bunch over the last several months as each time I find more skillsets I love about Kaaleem. No matter on which side of the field Kaaleem is on he shows off how dominant of an athlete he is with his growing football IQ. It is crazy to me that this young man still has three more high school football seasons to develop his craft. The top 20 overall prospect in our 2026 Minnesota class, certainly shows off a stock riser up the rankings in my eyes looking ahead to the next 2026 update. I also cannot say enough great things about this kid’s character at every camp I catch him at as he will be a huge locker room asset at the next level.
No matter which line I got to watch Landon last Saturday in Winona, this young man showed a plethora of fluidity thru and thru. I also liked watching Landon’s first step off the snap on Saturday, as he shows great length in his get off in his lower body. Landon also showed off some great change of direction skillsets and could flip his feet quickly to adjust to the ball when I caught him on defensive back reps in Winona. Landon shows off too on tape a very smooth route-runner no matter which route he is travelling upfield on as this young man has some great downhill speed with the separation he can get. With one WIAC offer on his plate already, I certainly expect this kid to get more opportunities this summer headed into fall.
Highlights
Mason Werfal
Mason Werfal
Mason showed off some good base of athleticism from the glimpses I watched out of him at the Winona State prospect camp. I was intrigued with the fluidity from start to finish this young man brought to the table at 6’1 230 pounds. Mason also impressed me with his instinction he showed off in 1v1 reps and Indy drills, as he showed off a great vision and knack for finding the ball quickly in my eyes. His tape shows off some good soft hands thru the point of attack with some slight development brewing with his balance. Mason might be just a 2025 prospect, but I see college football in his future as that instinct is only going to keep getting better in my eyes.
Colby in my eyes was one of the top 2024 QBs in attendance at the Winona State prospect camp, as this kid stuck a major chord with me watching his poise thru Indy drills certainly. He showed off the best ball security I watched amongst at the QBs I saw in attendance and showed off good efficiency with his footwork from start to finish from what I gathered. Had a good conversation with my PRZ Nebraska scouts after camp and they also are intrigued with this young man’s skillsets out of Gross Catholic. That poise Colby showed off in Winona checks the box with his first clip on tape, as Colby knows how to get out of a very tight jam and still make a throw from the run to turn a nothing play for some QBs into positive yardage. He shows off a quarterback that can thread the needle on his deeper routes but still show off excellent ball placement where only his WR can get it. I also was intrigued with Colby’s deep ball touch and precison the deeper I got into his tape as QB in my eyes you go outside the measurables threshold for with his play-making ability from start to finish. Colby should be a good fit in my eyes at the D2 or NAIA level.
Highlights
Jack Carlson
Jack Carlson
Jack was another 2026 RB that played with a smooth base of balance in my eyes coming out of local Goodhue, Minnesota. This young man for his age showed off a good amount of consistency with what his good change of direction in his footwork showed off from start to finish at the Winona State prospect camp. He showed off versatility with his position flexibility as well at the linebacker position too, as Jack showed off a handful of ball-hawk tendencies which is not commonly seen amongst linebackers at prospect camps at Jack’s age. Jack also has some intriguing size for his age at 5’11 190 pounds which shows to me that this kid has some chemistry with the weight room from both position spots. He shows off good instincts with his football IQ on tape with his quick finding ability around the football and will show off more physicality at at middle linebacker as his skillsets progress over the next three seasons at Goodhue.
Ayden Howard
Ayden Howard
Ayden was a late-bloomer from my scouting lenses at the end of the Winona prospect camp from his 1v1 performance. He showed off a strong base of physicality as a pass-catcher that will put up a fight on any WR rep to make sure the ball in his hands. Ayden impressed me with his football IQ on the reps I got to watch as you can tell this young man has a good presence of vision within his routes especially on short-intermediate routes I recall watching Ayden’s tape somewhat recently actually and although his junior season tape was light, this is an example of a small school prospect that with be a big senior season, he will certainly gain more exposure at the next-level like he did in my eyes on Saturday in Winona.