North Dakota Flagship Camp: Standouts, Part III
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We close out our live evaluations from the OL/DL/TE group in the morning session at the North Dakota Flagship Camp last weekend with our Part III standouts. This group has plenty of 2024 prospects that are flying under the radar…
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Continue ReadingWe close out our live evaluations from the OL/DL/TE group in the morning session at the North Dakota Flagship Camp last weekend with our Part III standouts. This group has plenty of 2024 prospects that are flying under the radar and also includes some of Minnesota’s and South Dakota’s top offensive linemen that made significant noise at the North Dakota Flagship Camp last weekend.
I got to watch Cole later in the morning session, however I liked how much his football IQ developed from the start of watching him in Indy drills to the end into 1v1s. What Cole improved on most in my eyes was the angles he took getting to the ball as I thought his path into the backfield improved by the end of camp as he was able to fully show his agility thru heavier contact. Cole won a bunch of reps last year with his balance getting thru contact at 6’3 220 pounds and I thought his launch angles as well from camp were much more developed than the live reps I saw last fall in Fargo. Cole has two offers on the table from the Division II and NAIA levels and is a DE prospect I expect his recruitment to trend deeper into the early 2023 fall season. Twitter
Jon is an offensive tackle that got on my radar late in the morning session, but still left an impact with what I saw from my eyes up in Grand Forks. He impressed me with his length in 1v1 reps with his 6’4 265 pound frame, as he showed off a long reaching ability with fluid power of strength with his hands with that reach I mentioned and landed a handful of punches with good pad-level and solid balance in his footwork. Jon shows out a well-tuned trigger when he gets out of his stance to the other side of the line with his pull-blocking on tape and shows off the consistent pad-level I saw up at UND. He also does well with his angle-blocking as he shows off that continued power in his hands to drive the defender off balance into the turf. I have to say that I think Jon is significantly under-recruited as far as his level, as this kid looks like an ideal fit at the Division II level coming out of my side of town of my hometown of Sun Prairie West. Twitter
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Branden impressed me most at the end of the morning session when I got to watch him in 1v1s where he showed off some skillsets that are already impressing college coaches within his recruiting trail. He showed one of the stronger bases at the point of attack out of the offensive linemen I got to watch. Branden also showed off plenty of strength with his pad-levels, as his hand position was smooth from the reps I got to watch up for in Grand Forks. His junior tape shows that this kid has grown his development with his hands since last fall, as he certainly has gained more balance with his footwork also as well as that hand technique I mentioned showing a smoother base in his 6’3 275 pound body. He certainly is due for more Northern Sun attention in the next coming months. Twitter
Lincoln certainly showed why he is one of our top 2025 prospects in South Dakota and our #1 ranked offensive linemen from his showing up at the North Dakota Flagship Camp. Lincoln from my eyes showed off one of the most powerful and athletic stances I could gauge from the 2025 offensive linemen up in Grand Forks. Lincoln showed off excellent fluidity with his footwork in his 1v1 battles and had great instinctive hands with his strong technique in those reps. We should know by now, that I love an offensive linemen that can finish with strong leverage with their drive blocking, and Lincoln certainly showed that off with his downhill motor that could drive his defender multiple times into the next-level. He already shows off what looks like a Division I prospect in my eyes coming out of Sioux Falls Christian as a prospect that also has very high character for a locker room at the next-level. Twitter
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Isaac came away as our offensive linemen MVP at our Prep Redzone Minnesota Showcase and ever since May, has been a stockriser when I have watched his reps in multiple prospect camp settings including what I saw at UND last Saturday. What has improved most for Isaac is with his technique mostly with his hands, as he has gotten more elusive with his pad-level and the strength that is in his hands. Isaac has so much driving strength when he gets to the second level as an offensive tackle that has that block to the whistle finishing ability that you certainly don’t want him upfront as a lead blocker if you are the defense. Where Isaac can grow into the 2022 season is improving his second level athletic mobility to develop an even more downhill presence with his pad-level. Isaac has been a heavy suitor in the NSIC this summer and is a prospect that should get more attention over the next couple of months with his recruitment. Twitter
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The Pequot Lakes offensive tackle impressed me up in Grand Forks by showing off solid fire with his instinctive first steps into the trenches. Riley showed off an OT that has fluid rotation athletic movement within his athletic lower body that he showed off well in Grand Forks from my eyes. Based on those skillsets I saw, I certainly can see Riley having a more second level presence with affecting the power in the Patriots run game as we look ahead a couple months into the fall 2023 season. Riley is another offensive linemen on our list that impresses on tape with his angle blocking with plenty of balanced pad-level and that rotational balance I saw up at the UND Flagship Camp, as certainly improved this summer with more agility in his lower body than what we saw on tape from last Fall. Riley already has a couple of NSIC offers, and I believe should see himself more opportunities coming his way in the coming months as I see this young man as slightly under the radar based on what you see on tape and his development he has showed off since then at prospect camps this summer. Twitter
Last but certainly not least from the morning session standouts from the OL/DL group, was the significant impression Buffalo (Minn) 2025 offensive tackle Ryan Babatz Ryan Babatz 6’4″ | 275 lbs | OL Buffalo | 2025 State MN made on myself as well as the UND coaches last Saturday morning in Grand Forks. I loved watching how smooth Ryan was with the well-balanced footwork he showed off last Saturday morning and showed off strong aggression with the fluid hands his 6’4 275 pound frame showed off. On tape, Ryan shows off that smooth touch with his hands and shows off agile athletic movement with his positioning at the point of attack. Ryan was one of very few 2025 prospects in the morning session at the UND Flagship Camp to walk out with an offer from the Fighting Hawks as that won’t certainly be the end of his Division I level recruitment over the next 6-12 months as from connecting with my sources, that Ryan is one of the top offensive linemen in Minnesota’s 2025 class. Twitter