South Dakota 9B Preseason Player of the Year: The Top 5

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>SOUTH DAKOTA--</strong> Now that our first South Dakota 9B Preseason Player of the Year poll has concluded, it is time to look at the <strong>final five</strong> prospects that made the cut down from our first fourteen prospects we started with. Even though it might be South Dakota's smallest division for football, we still tallied nearly 20,000 votes which from a population sense, would be the 6th largest city in South Dakota right in between Mitchell and Watertown if the whole city voted to put it into perspective. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Below, we will break down the final five prospects by our evaluations and will add yet another fan vote into the mix for our final poll to find out the biggest question in South Dakota 9B: <strong>Who is the South Dakota 9B Preseason Player of the Year?</strong> </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["305526"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"The top vote-getter in our South Dakota 9B Preseason Player of the Year Poll with 5,463 votes is Hitchcock-Tulare 2024 running back/linebacker [player_tooltip player_id='305526' first='Erik' last='Salmen']. At a sizable 6'0 208 pounds Erik is the most effective prospect on this list by far with his durability running thru contact as that shows off consistently within his tape within the first few clips as he gets plenty of yards after contact. Erik also carries well-balanced vision as an east-west runner when he gets downhill as he can make small lanes look enormous when you throw on his tape as this kid is a workhorse in the backfield. Not many prospects have the durable frame at the 9B level to drag dozens of defenders on tape like Erik does within his first minute, as it's no surprise to me why he was the favorite amongst the fan vote as I also was intrigued with Erik as a linebacker in the state championship game last year, as a linebacker that is highly physical upon contact. Erik also holds one offer from Black Hills State. u003ca href=u0022https://twitter.com/ErikSalmenu0022u003eTwitteru003c/au003e","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["418269"],"_player_evaluations_1_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_1_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_1_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"Kadyn was second in the South Dakota 9B Preseason Player of the Year vote with 3,935 votes which to put in perspective, is nearly four times of the population of De Smet to you South Dakota geography fans out there. Although I haven't gotten a hand of Kadyn's football tape via Hudl as of yet, I have seen in a live setting what this kid is capable of from his football skillsets. Kadyn shows off plenty of fluid burst especially when he catches the edges of the football field and has shown off how elusive he can be when playing in space in the open field when it's given to him. Kadyn is also a heck of a basketball on the hardwood, as our sister site Prep Hoops Dakotas has featured him on many occasions this summer. Kadyn certainly is one of the top football prospects South Dakota 9B has to offer and a second trip to De Smet might be in the making for me this fall to get more eyes on this young man.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["825413"],"_player_evaluations_2_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_2_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_2_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"Coming in third in our South Dakota 9B Preseason Player of the Year poll with 3,072 votes (nearly 4 times the size of his hometown) was Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase alum [player_tooltip player_id='825413' first='Layne' last='Cotton']. Layne showed off very intriguing explosive skillsets at our Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase as he was the top quarterback in the broad jump with a whopping 9'8 which is not a length you commonly see at the quarterback position. He brings a quarterback prospect with probably the best ceiling on this list for his upcoming senior season in 9B, as Layne has plenty of athleticism to advance a handful of plays beyond the pocket and has the long-striding ability to use his legs in his 6'3 180 pound frame. I certainly see this young man as a senior bloomer for the Faulkton Trojans. u003ca href=u0022https://twitter.com/Layne24Cottonu0022u003eTwitteru003c/au003e","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["447252"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":["override_image"],"_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_player_featured_image":951815,"_player_evaluations_3_player_featured_image":"field_62f141137ead9","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"One of two Potter County Battlers within our South Dakota 9B Preseason Player of the Year nominees is 2024 athlete [player_tooltip player_id='447252' first='Carter' last='Luikens'], who racked up 2,369 votes for 4th place within our fan voted top five which had just about 100 votes left of the population of Potter County (pop. 2,475 as of the 2021 census). The first skillset that pops out about Carter is his instincts he has defensively as he makes some quickly efficent reads getting back to the ball carrier and I see even more twitch coming thru coming with his upcoming senior season coming up. I also like watching his vision he shows off with his ball-tracking ability as he shows off well-versed range within his coverage area. Switching to offense, I like watching his accelerator take off when Carter gets into the second level of the field, as he certainly has a bigger game-speed with the ball in his hands as far as these eyes could tell which adds up as he is a 400 meter and 800 meter runner on the track. With Carter's versatility, you certainly see a prospect that has a solid chance of player on Saturday's on either side of the ball as I see a fit at defensive back with development of that agility I mentioned. u003ca href=u0022https://twitter.com/LuikensCarteru0022u003eTwitteru003c/au003e","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":["not_in_db"],"_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_player_details_selected_featured_image":951808,"_player_evaluations_4_player_details_selected_featured_image":"field_62cca28ffa4e7","player_evaluations_4_player_details_player_name":"Ryder Falkenhagen","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_player_name":"field_62aba4c9ecf2f","player_evaluations_4_player_details_graduating_class":"2024","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_graduating_class":"field_62aba4ddecf30","player_evaluations_4_player_details_height":"null","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_height":"field_62aba4e8ecf31","player_evaluations_4_player_details_position":"2411","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_position":"field_62aba4f0ecf32","player_evaluations_4_player_details_school":"Potter County","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_school":"field_62aba4fdecf33","player_evaluations_4_player_details_club_team":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details_club_team":"field_62d20e723441a","player_evaluations_4_player_details":"","_player_evaluations_4_player_details":"field_62aba4afecf2e","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"The final prospect within our South Dakota 9B Preseason Player of the Year was another Battler from Potter County in athlete Ryder Falkenhagen who tallied 2,301 votes in our poll. Ryder defensively has a significantly quick trigger with his release to the football as if you want physicality at the next level, you will want to watch his first clip on tape. Ryder also shows off smooth balance with his footwork, and has a long frame that athletically can get up with great height with his vertical and shows it off consistently. Ryder also fills out his skillsets offensively, as he shows off catchy route-running ability and a strong catch radius to take in all slightly out of reach for other wide receivers. In my eyes from a recruiting lens, this young man might be one of the biggest 2024 sleepers in 9B as his tape on both sides of the ball has some electricity. u003ca href=u0022https://twitter.com/HagenBro06u0022u003eTwitteru003c/au003e","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":5,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-64dc2c7d6371f"} /-->