South Dakota: 2025 Winter Rankings Preview

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>SOUTH DAKOTA--</strong> We unleashed our 2025 winter rankings update in South Dakota tonight as well, as we found over 150+ prospects that makes the Mount Rushmore State great from a football perspective and more. Just like North Dakota, South Dakota stays consistent with this class and per usual, is dominated in the trenches (we will get to more in depth later). Let us take a look with this preview, our evaluation process, some superlatives, and much more!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Our PRZ Prospect Evaluation Process:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Our #1 priority and goal with Prep Redzone Dakotas is to put prospects on the map for college coaches and college programs at all levels to advance their exposure. We evaluate prospects on next-level potential not stats, not on the team's rankings in the state, it's all about the prospects upside and how his skillsets fit at the next level when it comes down to measurables, athleticism and everything else that college programs measure as far as skillsets. All prospects will need to have tape available or have been referred to us by our anonymous sources throughout the North Dakota or South Dakota. Some prospects will peak early in their high school career and which is why our rankings change 3-4 times per year at Prep Redzone Dakotas, because we also always factor in several live evaluations year-around thru prospect camps in the summer, games during the fall season, as we have seen prospects within a 3 month span add 30 pounds of muscle and a couple inches of height, while others stay the same. That is our process with every rankings update for those of you that are new to us! The main goal? Expose as many prospects state-wide to make sure they get next-level opportunities thru our network of college programs from Division I FBS, FCS, Division II, NAIA, Division and the JUCO ranks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>New Names In the Top 10</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong><em>Newcomers</em></strong>:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"It all starts up front," is a common quote you will hear from any high school and college coach and these newcomers to our Top 10 are the definition of that on both sides of the ball.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#10</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id='1152911' first='Lucas' last='Feldkamp'], OL, Brandon Valley <a href="https://twitter.com/LucasRFeldkamp">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#8</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id='1152909' first='Elias' last='Gillen'], OL, Rapid City Stevens <a href="https://twitter.com/elias_gillen">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#6</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id='1152910' first='Austin' last='Miller'], DL, Sioux Falls Jefferson <a href="https://twitter.com/Miller_Austin01">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong><em>Stockriser</em></strong>:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The most notable stockriser in the past couple of months hails from the Winner Warriors as his recruitment at the FBS level has shot up out of nowhere.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#1</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id='800405' first='Shawn' last='Hammerbeck'], OL, Winner <a href="https://twitter.com/HammerbeckShawn">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Key Points from the 2025 South Dakota Rankings Update</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong><em>Wake Up Fast</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>What stood out in this Top 10 2025 class in South Dakota is how fast this class has come along within the last month or so. Although not as stacked as North Dakota's 2025 class (as of yet) there is plenty of prospects in this top 10 that still do not have that first offer, but from a skillsets and measurables standpoint fit the bill. Who are the first two that come to mind? Sioux Falls Jefferson DE<strong> [player_tooltip player_id='1152910' first='Austin' last='Miller'] </strong>(6'6.5 215) and Rapid City Stevens OT <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1152909' first='Elias' last='Gillen']</strong> (6'6 305). I have seen both of their recruitment grow over the last few several weeks and I feel they are quite close to getting their first offers and then more dominoes will start falling. The target that I expect to rise the fastest in the Missouri Valley? Sioux Falls Christian's OG/OC <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='321168' first='Lincoln' last='Semchenko']</strong>, as I think the position flexibility has to intrigue any Missouri Valley program and I could certainly see SDSU and NDSU fighting heavily over this young man.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Trench Domination</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Have you noticed the trench dominance yet in our rankings? A scouting mentor of mine once told me "the big guys get all the breaks" and the longer i have been scouting high school football the more that quote resonates with me. The reason for it resonating with me is regardless of which side of the ball you are on, it has become more and more crucial that you win your battles up front. A running back is nothing without his offensive line, a secondary doesn't have a fair shake if the defensive line can't slow down the ball carrier, etc. That is why year after year you see more prospects in the trenches at the top of our boards as measureables are also becoming more heavily weighted based on conversations I have had with college coaches. 7 of our top 10 prospects are offensive or defensive linemen (70%) and 60% of our top 20 are also in the trenches by the numbers. I expect this trend to continue over the next several years as well in South Dakota. The prospects that make this list that hadn't already been mentioned are:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#24:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='210636' first='Connor' last='Harrison'], OL, Lead-Deadwood <a href="https://twitter.com/Connor_H2025">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#18 </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='798288' first='Easton' last='Van Scoyk'], DL/OL, Dakota Valley <a href="https://twitter.com/EastonVanScoyk1">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#16: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1003933' first='Benjamin' last='Paepke'], OL, Rapid City Central <a href="https://twitter.com/paepkebenjamin">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#14: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='797956' first='Jacob' last='Jongejeugd'], OL, Tea Area <a href="https://twitter.com/Jongejeugd_67">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#12:</strong> [player_tooltip player_id='351548' first='Carson' last='Hughes'], OL, Sioux Falls Jefferson <a href="https://twitter.com/carsonhughes52">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#11: </strong>[player_tooltip player_id='210623' first='Elijah' last='Boutchee'], DL, Pierre T.F. Riggs <a href="https://twitter.com/ElijahBoutchee">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>#9</strong>: [player_tooltip player_id='798250' first='Luke' last='Krempges'], DL, Sioux Falls Lincoln<a href="https://twitter.com/ElijahBoutchee"> </a><a href="https://twitter.com/Luke_Krempges">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>What is Next on Tap from the Content Side with the 2025 SD Rankings Now Released?</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Content will flow between both Dakotas daily over the next week or two from each of these groups of article series:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Newcomers (Multi-Part Series)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Who was added to our prospect database of 2025 prospects and what do they bring to the table as far as their skillsets?</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Stockrisers (Multi-Part Series)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Which prospects that were already ranked rose their stock from last fall into this offseason and why did their rank see improvement?</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Positional Breakdowns (Multiple Positions)</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>We will stack up some of our position groups and evaluate why x prospect was ranked over x prospect due to what their tape shows, live evaluations, etc.</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Small Town Sleepers</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list --> <ul><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>One of my favorite article series every ranking update. Which prospects from sleepy small town America made waves on our rankings whether newcomers or stockrisers? We always love to talk the population too showing off these prospects from small town South Dakota.</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list -->