PrepRedzoneMN 2025 Rankings Update: Top Newcomer Part III
Final 2025 Rankings Update feature for a little bit coming in hot! Just as a heads up, I’ll be taking the next 3-5 days to refurbish and refresh the 2026 rankings on PRzMN. Still, I was hoping to leave you…
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Continue ReadingFinal 2025 Rankings Update feature for a little bit coming in hot! Just as a heads up, I’ll be taking the next 3-5 days to refurbish and refresh the 2026 rankings on PRzMN. Still, I was hoping to leave you with a boatload of content for the time being, and will also be working on some recruiting-focused features to keep our lovely readers in the loop on the recruiting trail as well. As I mentioned in a couple of previous post-publishing articles, we added well over 100 new names to the 2025 Big Board, so although these titles are a little more straightforward and repetitive than I’d usually like, there’s simply too much talent to not tell you guys about. These 13 Top Newcomers mostly hail from the trenches, and with high-quality competition experience, eye-catching size, serious recruiting interest, and even returning All-Metro and All-State selections, these rising seniors are going to be seriously popular prospects on top of their serious talent. Welcome to the Big Board, fellas!
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Eastview High School has been putting out some beefy prospects as of late, and their 2025 class is looking like the most talented I’ve seen since I started working for NorthstarFootballNews/PrepRedzoneMN. There is some serious size on their offensive line going into the 2024 season and a couple of standouts have made big debuts on the 2025 Big Board, starting with 6’4, 260 lb. OG/OT Jack Bauer.
The LG, who has received Gustavus, Augsburg, Winona State, Sioux Falls, Augustana, MSU-Moorhead, and St. Thomas junior day invites to the junior thus far, is one of the more mobile OL in the class and is very comfortable finding work on the move and is a strong kid at the point of attack who is only getting stronger. Bauer shoots out of his stance, displays good pop at the initial contact point in both run and pass-blocking situations, and is strong enough to finish routine down blocks on larger Metro DTs. He looks balanced and quick when changing direction and is effective and physical laterally and on the move, which proved him to be an asset for the Lightning’s offense as a puller and trapper who will make you pay for it if you meet him head-on when he’s got a full head of steam. Bauer shows a good motor, blocks through the whistle, will let an opponent know when he dominates them, and experienced in pass pro, and looks comfortable in a pass set and dropping that anchor. He doesn’t seem to be happy or fulfilled rep to rep unless he puts someone in the dirt, always a great quality in an offensive lineman.
You’re going to be hearing a lot about the Shakopee 2025 class in the coming months, many of whom shot themselves into the MN recruiting stratosphere this fall in the Sabers 6-4 2023 campaign. A player we haven’t mentioned yet officially but deserves some love is 6′, 170 lb. DB Brody Miller, who posted 44 tackles, 14 PBUs, 3 FFs, and 2 INTs in his nine games as a junior. The film, production, and size also helped him introduce himself filmy on the recruiting trail, as Miller is fresh off visits to Cedar Falls for Northern Iowa’s Junior Day and Grand Forks to meet the Fighting Hawks staff and has received a junior day and spring ball invite from the Golden Gophers as well as junior day invites from NDSU, Iowa State, and SDSU. St. Thomas also got a junior day visit from the junior in late January.
Playing CB and safety, Miller possesses noticeable length for 6′ and uses it well to break up passes at the catch point, and he played man as both the perimeter CB and from the slot with not a lot of press shown in his highlights. His 14 PBUs came on routes all over the field and mainly came to how well he recognizes and triggers on the ball gets out of his breaks, and Miller has the speed to stay with receivers deep and shows good ball skills and hops when going up and climbing the ladder. He’s also communicative and effective in zone coverage, does a good job of maintaining eye discipline and not getting his head around too early when running with WRs deep, and patient in his read steps owns the speed to undercut routes, and shows good acceleration out of his breaks. Overall as a coverage corner, he’s patient yet decisive when waiting for WRs to break and is athletic enough to take risks in man coverage, as he knows he has the speed to get back into the receivers pocket and still make a play on the ball. I could see him doing well during summer camp szn and he’s got a great shot of continuing to shoot up the rankings this offseason and beyond.
Highlights
I was very excited to breakdown Kingsland’s All-State TE/DE Parker Johnson for this Top Newcomer feature, as he’s one of the biggest Darkhorses and mysteries in the state recruiting-wise and has the chance to be a big-time win for a future college coach or recruiter. Things are always a bit more of a mystery with 9man players, and Johnson isn’t the biggest kid at 6’2, 200 lbs., but he absolutely earned his All-State selection last fall and owns some impressive, albeit limited, junior tape that got those recruiting butterflies fired up.
There’s a lot I could say about Johnson, but the big takeaways are that he was on another level of athleticism and playstyle in 2023, was incredibly dynamic, and plays the game with a fun-to-watch and easy-to-appreciate aggression and control that flashed a ton of dominance last fall. Best player on the 2023 9-man runner-up Knights, he primarily was a TE and DE, but was all over the field and did a lot of good things well. Explosive with the ball in his hands, Johnson laid some violent trucksticks and showed good pace when he got the rock in space, and he was also an aggressive blocker who manhandled opponents at the LOS and in space alike. Defensively is where he really shined, as he was a sideline-to-sideline defender who rag-dolled opponents when he got ahold of them, looked twitchy, bent the corner well, and used chop/rips and utilized a refined pass-rushing game effectively. He exploded out of his stance, had impressive closing and pursuit speed that was too much for the best 9-man competition to handle, and was strong enough to shed blocks and eat contact while still making plays in the trenches. I’m not sure what he plays at the next level, but I like his pass-rushing tools, and with a good frame and a nothing-to-scoff-at 6’2, 200, I could see him putting on some weight and doing well at a standup EDGE role. I also think he’s athletic enough to play off-ball LB, and heck, he looked good running the ball and blocking as well, so don’t count out TE either. That’s called dynamic folks, and it’s never a bad thing as a prospect.
Always a good thing to have a standout Becker Bulldog offensive lineman in the Top-100 of the rankings, which is also a statement that should get the ears of college coaches to perk up with interest. 6’4, 230 lb. Jackson Duncan manned the LT spot for the Bulldogs 9-1 2023 squad and displayed the size, athleticism, and potential to debut as a Top-100 prospect in the latest PRzMN rankings update.
Junior day invites from Winona State, Northern State, MSU-Moorhead, and camp invites from NDSU, North Dakota, and SDSU, Duncan looks (in a good way) and runs like a LB in an eye-catching first rep of his junior film where he’s lead blocking deep downfield on a screen and taking out multiple defenders along the way. the best part of his film is when he gets out in space and can show off his body control, he’s a fluid athlete with a ton of room to grow, as he possesses a lean frame with good height and a ton of room to fill in this offseason and at the college level. He shows off good leg drive, plays through the whistle, and shows a good motor, a strong, wide base at the point of attack, and some pass-pro experience. Duncan is strong enough to hold his own in the trenches, including against some massive 4A DL, but a big offseason can turn holding your own into dominating pancakes and big finishes at the point of attack. A productive offseason in the trenches and at the dinner table could really shoot his recruiting stock to another level. Good name to follow in the developing 2025 MN OL class.
Back to Apple Valley and Eastview High School, we go! The other half of the Lightning’s impressive 2025 duo of OL prospects to make the top half of the rankings update, 6’5, 270 lber. Andrew Kellington brings a notable hockey and lacrosse multi-sport background to the table that got onto people’s radars at the end of October when he made a gameday visit to the Gophers.
The junior tape shows an LT with a tall, lean build and room to fill in, noticeable bend for a big guy, and good lateral agility who looks smooth when passing off DL around the LOS, finding work at the second level. Kellington is experienced in pass pro against 6A Metro defensive linemen and can take advantage of opponents when they overextend, reach, or get off balance. I like how that hockey and LAX background show up as an OT, as he’s solid when changing direction for a big guy and has a lot of room left to fill in and develop. I’d like to see him add some strength and power and more reps against bigger opponents this offseason and into the fall to keep the stock rising. Mega camp, prospect camp, and junior day invites from DIII, DII, and D1 programs have all hit Kellington’s inbox this offseason.
The one-two punch from the Blaine Bengal’s 2025 defensive line class is poised for some legit disruption this upcoming fall, and the two standout trench warfare specialists made big debuts on the 2025 Big Board. Leading the way is 6’2, 225 lber. CJ Sanderson, who has set himself apart from a plethora of fellow rising senior DL with similar measurables coming out of Minnesota’s 2025 class.
A good offseason in the weight room helped Sanderson adjust to varsity action well, as 2023 was his first season on the Bengals varsity, and he totaled 34 tackles, 5 TFLs, and 2 sacks against some high-quality OL for his efforts. Primarily lining up as a 4i/5T defensive end, Sanderson won a lot of reps thanks to his quick get-off and first step, and he closes well, as well as showing that he can change direction at top speed, even smaller adjustments, that helped him run down QBs impressively out on the edge and outside of the pocket for big plays. I liked how the 225 lb. DE recognizes and sniffs out the ball well, especially in fast-developing runs and situations behind the LOS, is a good tackler who can tackle in space, keeps his hands active when working off blocks, and shows some twitch to beat blocks. I have a feeling that Sanderson is going to really put it all together as a senior. Keep an eye on Blaine in the 2023 6A season!
The second half of the standout defensive line duo to debut highly in the recent PRzMN 2025 Rankings Update, Evan Lowry-Simpson can play DE or DT and weighs in at a notable 6’2, 240 lbs. and is still only 16 years old. In his first year on varsity with Blaine, ELS recorded 27 tackles, 7 TFLs, 1.5 sacks, and a PBU against OGs and OTs alike. His best asset is his strength, which shows up on tape when he’s defeating blocks and laying the wood at the contact point. Besides the strength, ELS lined up all over the defensive line, displayed a good motor, balance, and some quickness, and he’s a violent tackler who gets the most out of every collision. I also liked how uses his hands to disengage from blocks and occasionally toss aside OL to shake free, and if he can combine that raw strength with some technique, he’s going to be a hard assignment to handle in the trenches for Anoka County and 6A competition to handle. St. Thomas and Concordia-St. Paul have gotten junior day visits from the 2025er so far.
We’re rolling from one standout duo to another, both of whom hail from Anoka County and Minnesota’s big school ranks. The defending 6A champs Centennial have a massive pair of 2025 TEs, who both possess differing skillsets and bring a variety of good things to the table as prospects. The proverbial “lightning” in the Thunder & Lightning duo of Kellen Binder & Henrik Hiltner, 6’4, 225 lb. Binder is the pass-catching option of the two and brings good size and a dynamic ability to the TE position.
Possessing solid speed for his size, Binder does a good job of hiding where he’s breaking to at the top of the route and did a good job of getting open when his team needed it in 2023. A redzone threat with soft hands who made clutch catches in big-time situations throughout the season, Binder is a wiling and physical blocker who is strong enough to handle DL in the trenches 1v1 and running down LBs and DBs in space. He fires off the ball and into contact, demonstrated a good, low pad level, runs his feet like it’s a blocking sled, blocks through the whistle, and is looking to run you into the turf or deep into the sideline. The TE position group of the MN 2025 class is still developing and evolving, so Binder’s ranking is far from permanent and I could see him making a big jump in the big board depending on how the offseason and eventual early senior season film treats him. Definitely a scholarship kid right now with room to rise.
The “Thunder” to the aforementioned Binder’s “Lightning”, 6’4, 240 lb. junior TE Henrik Hiltner brings the physicality and brute force to the TE duo’s combined skillset and has the size to potentially slide inside and play some offensive line if he continues to grow and add weight. Centennial is going to have a heckuva fun time with these two TEs this fall, and Hiltner is going to be a road grader on the edge of the Cougars LOS and will competing for the honor of the state’s top run-blocking TE.
He may already be the state’s strongest TE and crushes opponents at the contact point thanks to his power and pop, which comes out of a four-point stance that allows him to come off the ball low, fast, and aggressive. He’s a 240 lb. big ball of rolling momentum that is hard to stop once he gets off the snap gets those legs powering into the turf, and uses good technique and that aforementioned strength to toss aside smaller competition with ease. Hiltner has reps of him running over and eliminating multiple defenders in a single play, and he’s able to finish opponents off all kinds of different blocks. Additionally, he did display some pass-catching capability and showed that he was a load and a half for defenders to try and bring down once he reeled in a catch. We’ll see how the offseason weight gain impacts Hiltner’s position and projection to the college level, and just like his 2025 TE partner, he’s easily a scholarship prospect with room to rise. In fact, he earned his first offer just yesterday from MSU-Mankato! If you need a TE this upcoming recruiting cycle, Centennial is a must-stop!
Highlights
5A powerhouse Elk River is also in contention for the state’s best 2025 graduating class, and their 2025 prospects represent a variety of different positions while possessing size, experience, consistent technique, playmaking ability, and production. One of the dark horses of the class is also a 2025 Rankings Update Top Newcomer, and we’re excited to introduce 6’3, 235 lb. DE Charlie Olson to the masses.
Good size, played both DE and TE for the Elks and has a lacrosse background as well, Olson brings a ton of speed and impressive physicality to whatever position he’s at, and his coaches noted he “brings the hit” and is “great in space”, and also mention he’s a playmaker from the DL who posted 7 TFLs after moving from TE to DE full-time as a junior. I can attest to the “great in space” note, as Olson showed good quickness and COD skills at December’s PRzMN Showcase. I agree with his coach’s notes, as the 235 lber. is a hammer of a blocker, and tackler, and when attacking blocks as well, and shocks and crumples opponents who dare to get in his way, especially off a full head of steam. He brings effective and noticeable speed to both sides of the ball, as he’ll pursue and run down ball carriers far downfield, is a lightning-quick puller from his TE spot, and generally flies around the gridiron like his life is depending on it. Additionally, I like how he’s super quick off the snap, absorbs contact well, and plays with great pad level no matter what position he lines up at, shows tons of fight in his game, and is an aggressive blocker who blows defenders back off the snap and continues to force and drive them backward thanks to his strength and power. Big kid who is only getting bigger too, Olson is fresh off a visit to Bemidji for the Beavers’ junior day and visited St. Paul and the Tommies in late January. I’d try to get this kid on campus soon if I was a college coach. Elk River is and always will be a must-stop on the recruiting trail.
Highlights
In the words of the rapper Big Sean: “Look, all I gotta say is what a year, what a year.” Minneapolis North’s stud DE Anaise Dotson produced one of the top 2023 individual campaigns of anyone in the state, regardless of class, position, or competition level. The 6’2, 225 lber. recorded an eye-catching 62 tackles, 21 TFLs, 17 sacks (!), and 2 FFs in 11 games of action as a junior and returns one of the best lists of accolades of any prospect in MN, including a vaunted All-Metro honor from the StarTribune and an All-State Second Team nod by the Associated Press.
The decorated pass rusher’s great get-off and closing speed pop off the tape first, and he shows twitch to shoot through unsuspecting gaps off the snap, bend at the top of the arch, and a bit of ability to go speed to power. If you leave him unblocked, even from the backside of a play, he’s going to make you pay, and I like how Dotson comes tight off blockers’ backsides and down the LOS. The 225 lber. can split double team attempts with ease, tackle in space well, and is a lethal combination of speed and power. More than anything, the production doesn’t lie. Dotson is a natural playmaker and disruptor and is poised to best those stats next season as a senior. The DL tradition coming out of Minneapolis North is continuing to impress and make waves in both the MN prep scene as well as on the recruiting trail.
I’m getting quite used to well-built prospects coming out of the halls of the Two Rivers program in Mendota Heights and 6’2.5, 245 lb. OL/DL Carter Garland is keeping the momentum going as a returning All-District standout with some good size behind him. The new(ish) coaching staff at Two Rivers has really done a good job of coaching up, developing, and producing large, experienced, and college-ready prospects who have been recently making waves at the college level, particularly the MIAC, and 2x Two Rivers captain Garland is a Top Newcomer of the latest 2025 PRzMN Rankings Update set to continue that trend once he joins the college ranks.
Usually, I’m significantly higher on a two-way lineman on one side of the ball or the other, but in Garland’s case, I’m much more torn than usual. He was doing some good things on either side of the ball in 2023, and as a LG, Garland is a strong kid who can finish blocks against big competition, sends defenders flying when he locks out his arms, and is effective and comfortable as a puller who does a good job of identifying and eliminating the most dangerous threat to his RB. Mobility is definitely one of his strengths as an iOL prospect. Defensively, as a DE, Garland displays a good get off, visible motor, solid bend and speed off the edge, and physicality when taking on blockers. I could see him playing on either side of the ball in college, and he’s one of the biggest pieces of Two Rivers’ potential 2024 success. Concordia-Moorhead, Jamestown, and MSU-Moorhead have sent junior day invites and Garland also made a stop in nearby St. Paul for UST’s junior day at the end of January.
Highlights
In my mind, championships begin and end in the trenches, and with the talent and experience the Centennial Cougars are returning in 2024, they have what it takes upfront to go back to back. Right behind his esteemed TEs on the 2025 PRzMN Recruiting Big Board comes 6’3, 310 lb. mauler of an offensive lineman Alex Johnson, who is set to be one of the best linemen in the Metro this coming fall. Manning the RT spot for the defending 6A champs in 2023, Johnson demonstrated that strength and physicality are the name of his game, and he also displays good bend and pad level for a OL of his size. In Centennial’s offense, you need to be able to get in a four-point stance and fire off the ball low and laterally, and Johnson can do just that, although his butt is occasionally sticking straight up in the air. He does a good job of staying engaged with an opponent once he gets hands-on and is always working to finish, can cover ground laterally off the snap and post-snap, and crushes opponents with his sheer size, big, wide base, powerful hands, and leg drive, and generally wins with his combination of strength and pad level. A dark horse in the still-evolving 2025 MN OL class, Johnson is going to be a focal point in Centennial’s 2024 season and is poised for All-Metro and All-State recognition if he plays like he did as a junior.
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