Washington 2028 Initial Watchlist – Linebacker Breakdown

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Personally, linebacker is my favorite position on the field. The monsters of the midway have to be able to have the vision and brains of a quarterback, athletic ability of a running back, speed of a receiver and the power of an interior lineman. In this write up below, you'll see some 2028 prospects from Washington that are starting to exhibit that play at this point.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We are half way through the month of September and there are a number of 2028 prospects out of the state of Washington that have already separated themselves from the pack. The initial&nbsp;<a href="https://prepredzone.com/washington/rankings/2028-watch-list/">Prep Redzone Next Washington 2028 Watchlist</a>&nbsp;is live and&nbsp;<strong>will be updated three more times before August 2024</strong>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:acf/evaluation-block {"name":"acf/evaluation-block","data":{"player_evaluations_0_player":["569908"],"_player_evaluations_0_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_0_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_0_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"Ah-Loe is another prospect that was set to be on my Washington 2027 list, until I learned he was reclassing to 2028, which makes him an obvious choice here. Initially loved him as a tight end towards the end of last season, but after watching the last several months, I think he has a future as a Linebacker or even an Edge. A legitimate 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds, Ah-Loe gets downhill quickly and can lay some devastating hits as an outside linebacker. Plays with disciplined eyes and does a great job of reading and reacting quickly. He's wrapping up his youth career with Gridiron AIGA this season.","_player_evaluations_0_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_1_player":["985351"],"_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":"Madden is a 5-foot-8, 195-pound middle linebacker that is built like a fire hydrant and is a tough kid to play against. On the offensive side of the ball he's a bowling ball that mows over would-be tacklers, he's a great short yardage guy. However, defensively, is where I think he'll be long term. He can read, react and come down hill with the best of them from the Mike spot. He can control the A and B gaps and does a great job fitting against the run. He's one of the standouts on the HEIR 13U team this season.","_player_evaluations_1_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_2_player":["984914"],"_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":"Lake Stevens has a very impressive class of 2028 group and Sandstrom is one of the defensive players I like a lot. In the neighborhood of 5-foot-11 and 175 pounds, he looks like what an eighth-grade linebacker should look like. Good muscle mass, a ton of athleticism and plays out of his mind. Not sure how else to describe his play on the field, other than a wolf hunting its prey. He's an instinctual backer and plays at high rate of speed. Right now, with his skillset, he is best-suited to play inside linebacker. However, he possesses some natural ability to defend the pass, so a switch to the outside may not be too far.","_player_evaluations_2_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_3_player":["999744"],"_player_evaluations_3_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_3_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_3_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"If he wasn't on this list, [player_tooltip player_id='999744' first='Wonderful' last='Glenn'] would certainly be on the All-Name list. Glenn, who plays for Rise, comes with exceptional quickness on the blitz and can time the snap like a pro. I like what he brings to the table in terms of all around athleticism. Also a highly-accomplished amateur boxer, he uses a lot of his boxing traits. He can bob and weave to see around blockers, can quickly strike to keep others from getting into his chest, has the agility to get into a good position for a tackle and understands how important balance is. Speed at any level is a difference-maker and that's my biggest take away from watching him.","_player_evaluations_3_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_4_player":["990071"],"_player_evaluations_4_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_4_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_4_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"Heading back to Lake Stevens, [player_tooltip player_id='990071' first='Lincoln' last='Brien'] is a 2028 prospect to be excited about in both football and basketball. At 6-foot-1 and 165 pounds he has a long, lean, wiry build that has allowed to him play wide receiver and safety in the past during his youth career. He plays an attacking style of outside linebacker/strong safety which makes it very hard to run against his side of the field. I don't have a crystal ball so I can't say for sure, but with his frame and build, a permanent place in defensive secondary could be the answer long term. That said, right now, I like him as a blanketing outside backer.","_player_evaluations_4_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_5_player":["987107"],"_player_evaluations_5_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_5_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_5_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"With teammate [player_tooltip player_id='984945' first='Ryder' last='Sandstrom'] sharing the offensive backfield with him, the bulk of [player_tooltip player_id='987107' first='Beau' last='Springer']'s early season film comes from the offensive side of the ball. Yet, with his stocky build and shorter stature, playing middle linebacker may be the answer long term. The height is certainly a question right now, but his production is not. He defends the pass much better than a lot of prospects at this level and can get his hands on poorly-thrown balls. If that does happen, his vision as a running back on O results in some big returns after the interception.","_player_evaluations_5_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_6_player":["986886"],"_player_evaluations_6_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_6_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_6_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"Akuffo, like others in this write up above, is more of your tradition thumper in the middle of the linebacking corps. At 5-foot-9 and 185 pounds (unverified size) he almost could pass for an undersized defensive tackle with his mass and build. With that mass comes good strength, sporting a benchpress of over 210 pounds already. However, with his frame, keeping that weight in check so he can move well in the tackle box is something to be aware of. A running back on the offensive side, he understands how to fill a gap in a way to make people think twice about coming back.","_player_evaluations_6_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_7_player":["985347"],"_player_evaluations_7_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_7_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_7_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_7_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_7_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_7_evaluation":"One of the Stalwarts at the Benson Bruins defense, Prince has been getting it done as a middle linebacker throughout his youth career. As a prospect, he is cut from a u003cstrongu003every u003c/strongu003esimilar mold as [player_tooltip player_id='987104' first='Malcolm' last='Akuffo']; Short and stout in stature with weight and mobility being aspects that need constant maintenance at this stage of the game. Physically there's not a ton that jumps off the film when comparing him nationally, but there's no teaching/coaching the natural linebacker instincts he has. Reads plays very well and his nose is around the ball on the majority of plays.","_player_evaluations_7_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations_8_player":["986697"],"_player_evaluations_8_player":"field_62ab9d62ecf2c","player_evaluations_8_override_profile_image":"","_player_evaluations_8_override_profile_image":"override-player-profile-image","player_evaluations_8_not_in_database":"","_player_evaluations_8_not_in_database":"field_62aba48cecf2d","player_evaluations_8_evaluation":"Continuing the trend of shorter plugs in the middle, Aiono rounds out the initial list. He's likely in the bottom third when it comes to height, but he's one of the best tacklers in this Washington 2028 linebacker list. He's an effort kid that is starting to thin out a little bit, as he matures. Without ever meeting him personally, he comes off as a kid that doesn't care what the mission is, but he'll follow it. Whether it be special teams, filling a hole to take on blocks or moving out of positionu002du002dwhatever it takes to get a win. Also plays basketball for his middle school and serves as one of those kids that just wants to win above anything else.","_player_evaluations_8_evaluation":"field_62aba51aecf34","player_evaluations":9,"_player_evaluations":"field_62aba7547dc44"},"mode":"edit","alignText":"left","anchor":"acf-block-65089405e93ef"} /-->