Muskegon Scouting Report vs. De La Salle

<p>A few days ago I had the pleasure of attending my first ever game at historic Hackley Stadium in Muskegon. There was a ton of hype heading into this matchup. Both Muskegon and De La Salle had fought their way to Ford Field last season. Now, both of these teams are in Division 2 and have a good shot at facing each other in the final game of the season. De La Salle came out victorious, but that doesn't mean I didn't see great things from Big Red players. So, here are my thoughts on seven Muskegon athletes! </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">QB | M'Khi Guy | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15239319/Mkhi-Guy/about">Hudl</a></h2>   <p>Guy led a great game for the Big Red offense. He had a few decisive plays on the day, including an impeccable high-point throw in the endzone and an 85-yard touchdown after an excellent option read. The pass in question is the best throw I've ever seen from Guy. There were several other times where Guy successfully made positive yardage out of a broken-ish play. Also other plays where he gains several extra yards by making a man miss. Maybe not the greatest game he's ever played statistically, but I thought he played great considering the competition. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">G | [player_tooltip player_id='253307' first='Miguel' last='Botello'] | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15560398/Miguel-Botello-Jr/about">Hudl</a></h2>   <p>I won't lie- The Big Red O-Line was very inconsistent in this one. The one guy I could rely on to make a block was [player_tooltip player_id='253307' first='Miguel' last='Botello']. I've sung his praises for a while now. In short, I still think he's the best, most consistent piece of this elite O-Line. His run blocking is impeccable. The film below shows a mauler who quickly fires off the ball, and violently engages with his defender, oftentimes pushing him back several yards or pancaking him. It's impressive enough that an O-lineman's highlight tape for a single game is over 2 minutes long. Hats off to Miguel for having the best game I saw from any lineman during this game. </p>    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">DT | [player_tooltip player_id='253308' first='Chris' last='Jones'] | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/16138166/Chris-Jones/about">Hudl</a></h2>   <p>I watched [player_tooltip player_id='253308' first='Chris' last='Jones'] a lot during this game. To start the game off, Chris was getting consistent penetration against a few great interior O-linemen. Chris disrupted the QB, stopped the run, and even got in the backfield where he recovered a fumble and nearly scored. After an extremely hot start, I saw him get stiffed at the line several times in the 2nd-quarter. I started to see some more double-teams on him, so perhaps there was a shift in blocking scheme, but he still wasn't near the production he was at for most of the 1st-quarter. Halftime came and went, and Chris immediately sheds a block and makes a great tackle in De La Salle's first offensive play of the half. For much of the rest of the game, I didn't see too much else. </p>   <p>Chris has obvious talent and he's proved that he can win against highly-regarded offensive linemen, though there are a few very fixable flaws in his game I'd like to address. First, the consistency. I could be completely wrong, but it seemed like Chris simply ran out of gas at a certain point. Whether he needs to work on his stamina or plain effort, it's a fixable problem. Secondly, I imagine Chris's game taking a significant jump if he had a better getoff. Reaction time to the snapped ball is one important aspect. It's extremely hard to get it perfect, but the best D-Linemen I've seen fire off the exact moment that the ball is snapped. General explosiveness is also somewhat an issue, but that will likely improve with more consistently / stamina. Overall, I absolutely loved Chris's best moments in this game. If he can improve, he could be a true force at the D3 or D2 collegiate level. </p>   <p>(Forgot to mention, Chris also played some H-Back, utilized as a lead blocker. He did well in this position.) </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">DE | [player_tooltip player_id='740721' first='Stanley' last='Cunningham'] | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15291018/Stanley-Cunningham/about">Hudl</a></h2>   <p>Stanley may have been Muskegon's most consistent defensive player. A lengthy DE, I saw him win several blocks and at times it seemed like DLS was purposefully running the opposite direction of him. Stanley is a master at using his size to his advantage defensively as he doesn't allow the opposing lineman to get hands on him, and he also uses his length to make sure no ballcarrier gets past him. A great tackler and likely a future D1 college athlete, I'm looking forward to seeing what Stanley can do defensively and offensively the rest of this season. </p>   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">ATH | [player_tooltip player_id='253303' first='Destin' last='Piggee'] | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15297190/Destin-Piggee/about">Hudl</a></h2>   <p>Destin had a few nice plays on the day, headlined by a 95-yard kick return touchdown to end the first half. The kick return in question came at a time where DLS had all the momentum, a 13-point lead, and the ball to start the second half. Destin cut the lead to just 6, and led Muskegon into the locker room with some good to talk about. Destin had a few good runs on offense, including a 13-yard run on 3rd down to keep the game alive in the 4th quarter. </p>   <p>After the game, a few players spoke up in the huddle. Destin had an amazing postgame speech for the team and he showed true leadership and passion in that moment. With players like Destin propping themselves up as vocal leaders, I'm confident that Muskegon has an opportunity to make it back to Ford Field this year. </p>   <p><strong>Other players I liked</strong></p>   <p><strong>G | [player_tooltip player_id='253306' first='Karl' last='Brooks'] | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15207525/Karl-Brooks/about">Hudl</a></strong></p>   <p>Played a good game on the O-Line. </p>   <p><strong>WR | Da'Carion Taylor | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/15271854/Dacarion-Taylor/about">Hudl</a></strong></p>   <p>Extremely impressive touchdown catch in 1st quarter</p>

A few days ago I had the pleasure of attending my first ever game at historic Hackley Stadium in Muskegon. There was a ton of hype heading into this matchup. Both Muskegon and De La Salle had fought their way to Ford Field last season. Now, both of these teams are in Division 2 and have a good shot at facing each other in the final game of the season. De La Salle came out victorious, but that doesn't mean I didn't see great things from Big Red players. So, here are my thoughts on seven Muskegon athletes!