2023 Season Preview Steelton-Highspire

Steelton-Highspire won the PIAA Single A State Championship last year, bringing back a ton of talent this year. Andrew Erby has been the Head Coach since 2014 and helped lead Steelton to a PIAA State Title last year and in 2020. He is a graduate of Steelton where he excelled in football and basketball. Under his leadership, Steelton has been one of the best programs in the State of Pennsylvania and he has continued the great tradition of Steelton football. This season will again be special for Coach Erby because he has his twin sons Andrew and Alex on the team again for their Senior years. Steelton again should have a good team and have an excellent chance at winning another PIAA State Championship.   Top players returning next season:    Andrew Erby. Erby is one of the best players in the State of Pennsylvania. He is a good offensive and defensive line prospect. He and his brother both have visited a ton of Colleges and it sounds like they could be going to the same school together. Below is what I said about Erby earlier this year:   One of the most impressive parts of Erby's game is how athletic he is. Several times on film Steelton ran running plays where Erby pulled. He pulled and kicked out defensive ends, went upfield and blocked linebacker, and occasionally even dominated defensive backs when he got one on one blocks. Erby is 6'3" and plays with a big-guy mindset. He is also developing as a very good pass-blocker.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/ErbyAlex/status/1670610941254221825?s=20 </div></figure>    [player_tooltip player_id='64022' first='Alex' last='Erby']. Erby is one of the best quarterbacks in the State of Pennsylvania. He has great size for the position standing 6'4" inches tall. He has had a great career playing for his father and with his brother and he has one year left to put an exclamation point on his career. Below is what I said about Erby earlier this year:   Alex can make all the throws. On his film, you see him complete deep balls, intermediate throws, and check downs as well. Also when the play breaks down that is where he can excel. He is able to scramble around and make plays with his feet. Just like his brother Alex has a legit chance to be a Division 1 player and with a strong senior year he should be able to put himself in a good spot to pick a college of his choice.    Durrell Ceaser. Ceasar is a legit wide receiver that is a highlight film waiting to happen. He has visited several Colleges this summer and I expect more offers to come as well. Ceaser is a talented wide receiver that should have a strong Senior year. Below is what I said about Ceaser earlier this year: He is very good on deep balls. He shields his body well against the defender then goes up and gets the ball. He is also very good on short passes and he can make people miss and take it to the house anytime. Ceaser also has very good size. Being 6'1" allows him to have a higher catch radius.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/DurrellCeasar/status/1672712048889802762?s=20 </div></figure>    [player_tooltip player_id='164601' first='Ronald' last='Burnette Jr.'] Burnette is not the highest-rated prospect, but when you flip on his film you are really impressed. Burnette is a dynamic running back who can do it all. I expect with a strong Senior year he should be able to get some College Football offers. Here is what I wrote about Burnette earlier this year:   Burnette is a perfect one-cut-and-go running back. When he hits the whole he explodes in it. He rarely gets tackled by one tackler and runs with a physical punishing style. Burnette is also very good at taking it to the house. If you give him a seam and he gets to the open field he is gone. Burnette is also a very fluid athlete that can make people miss.    [player_tooltip player_id='377422' first='Eugene' last='Green']. Green is another dominant player. He is a difference-maker defensive lineman who has all the tools to play at a high level in College. He recently picked up his 1st Division 1 offer from Saint Francis. Below is what I wrote about Green earlier this year:   Green has great size for the position, standing 6'3" tall. He is athletic and uses that athleticism very well. He is a playmaker at the defensive end, with Green constantly creating pressure on the quarterbacks. He also creates turnovers as well. In his film, I saw him recover and return 2 fumbles for touchdowns. He sets the edge very well. When he sets the edge he either forces the ball carrier inside or makes the tackle. Green also has a motor that never stops. He is constantly chasing down plays all the time.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/Eugenegreen05/status/1664428656045768705?s=20 </div></figure>      [player_tooltip player_id='386328' first='Nazier' last='Fuller']. Fuller played defensive back primarily for Steelton but was also a playmaker all over the field. He is good in coverage and coming up and providing run support from his defensive back position. He is good at tackling players in the open field. Fuller has two more years left, so he should have plenty of opportunities to get College Football looks. Here is what I said about Fuller earlier this year:   At cornerback, he has good size, for the position. Fuller has good coverage skills. When he is in coverage he has the ability to stay in front of receivers. He then has the ability to make plays on the ball and to create turnovers. Fuller is an intriguing prospect and I cannot wait to check his film out next year.    [player_tooltip player_id='386326' first='Javius' last='Dent']. Dent is a hybrid payer that played linebacker/safety position last year for Steelton-Highspire. He is an intriguing prospect who I expect will get more playing time this year and be a bigger part of the Steelton-Highspire team. Below is what my colleague [player_tooltip player_id='1156407' first='Vic' last='Castillo'] wrote about Dent earlier this year:   6'1, 190 pounds. Reps as a sophomore at DB/OLB. Much of his tape showcases opportunities taken advantage of during special teams. [player_tooltip player_id='386326' first='Javius' last='Dent']<a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/javius-dent/"></a> is going to have to earn his role this coming season. I'd bet he does just that, especially considering the number of seniors moving on to the next level. Spots are to be had, roles are to be filled. Looking at the way Dent finishes some of his tackles, I expect the SHS coaching staff will work to turn the young man into a special starter moving forward, we'll see.    Jaieon Perry. Perry played wide receiver and defensive back for Steelton-Highspire last year. At wide receiver, he is a good wide receiver that makes spectacular catches on deep balls. When the ball is in the air he attacks it and usually comes down with the catch. He also has good speed and catches the ball well. Below is what my colleague [player_tooltip player_id='1156407' first='Vic' last='Castillo'] said about Perry at the PIAA State Championship Game last year:   Jaieon Perry will see a ranking solely based on his performance in this one. Perry came down with a ridiculous catch in this one that finally opened up this matchup. Both offenses were stagnant, yet Perry took it upon himself to make a play. Perry came away with other catches as well. Perry forced numerous stops from his linebacker spot, setting the tone on defense as well.  Perry eventually came away with the game-sealing interception in this one. cementing his MVP performance in my opinion. He left a lasting impression on me.    [player_tooltip player_id='145881' first='Amari' last='Williams']. Williams is another impressive prospect. He is an instinctive linebacker that plays at a high level. He recently picked up his 1st offer at Clarion University. Below is what I wrote about Williams earlier this year:   Williams is super athletic and you see it in the way he plays. He is very good at reading and reacting and then getting downfield to make the play. He is an excellent tackle and uses his body well to secure a tackle. He also does a great job attacking different angles and chasing down plays from behind. He also played some defensive end, where he uses his athletic ability to pressure the quarterback.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/solomari_00/status/1664429386764779522?s=20 </div></figure>    Sean Bennett. Bennett played defensive line for Steelton-Highspire last year. He is a disruptive force in the middle of the defense. He has a great get-off and uses that to get into the offensive backfield. Several times on film he is blowing up offensive lineman right when the play is snapped. He has good strength and uses that strength to control offensive linemen. He has a good motor and does a nice job chasing down plays. Bennett is a good player who should have a chance to play College Football with a strong Senior year.    [player_tooltip player_id='377819' first='Taevon' last='Legrande']. Legrande played linebacker at Steelton-Highspire last year. He is a difference-maker at linebacker. He is a bowling ball at linebacker that is hard to block. He has natural instincts for reading and reacting to the play and then flying upfield to make the play. When he tackles a ball carrier he lets those ball carriers know he is ready to play by laying a good tackle. He was also used as a hybrid tight end who would go in motion and block. He laid some devastating blocks at tight end. He also showed he has soft hands to catch the ball. Linebacker is where he really excels though. He is a good blitzer and does a nice job creating chaos in the backfield. Legrande is a legit linebacker who should have a strong Senior year.   Final Thoughts: Steelton-Highspire is loaded. Looking at the talent above I got 11 prospects who probably will have a chance to play College Football. 10 of the 11 players are Seniors so this Steelton team is a Senior laden team of players coming off a PIAA State Championship run. Now repeating as champs will not be easy because they play in a good League and there are several teams in the State that could knock them off. It should be a fun final ride for this group of Seniors.

Steelton-Highspire won the PIAA Single A State Championship last year, bringing back a ton of talent this year. Andrew Erby has been the Head Coach since 2014 and helped lead Steelton to a PIAA State Title last year and in 2020. He is a graduate of Steelton where he excelled in football and basketball. Under his leadership, Steelton has been one of the best programs in the State of Pennsylvania and he has continued the great tradition of Steelton football. This season will again be special for Coach Erby because he has his twin sons Andrew and Alex on the team again for their Senior years. Steelton again should have a good team and have an excellent chance at winning another PIAA State Championship.