2025 Players Poised to Make a Leap
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Jackson Blanchard HEIGHT 6'4" WEIGHT 230 POS TE CLASS 2025 View Profile Jackson Blanchard Instagram Twitter State: Colorado School: Castle View Blanchard leads the list of players who are poised to make a leap. Blanchard had a nice junior season,…
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Continue ReadingBlanchard leads the list of players who are poised to make a leap. Blanchard had a nice junior season, accounting for 27 catches for 376 yards and 6 touchdowns. He has all the intangibles needed to excel at tight end. He has a big body at 6’4 225 pounds which he uses to overpower defenders. Blanchard has very good athletic ability due to elite acceleration, very good speed, jumping and change of direction. He demonstrates good mental processing by sitting in zone voids, or coming back to his QB in the scramble drill. He will also reach out and extend himself for extra yards. He has good release, and will fight through the press jam. Blanchard has good separation quickness, and uses his very good athletic ability to consistently out run defenders for the big gain. Good catching and very good ball tracking skills. He’ll use his lengthy arms to pluck the ball out of the air. Very good body control. He’s able to keep his feet in bounds at the side of the endzone for a touchdown while adjusting above to catch. Gains yards after the catch by being physical and or using his home run speed. As a blocker he excels. He has very good strength and throws the defensive lineman down with ease. He uses a low pad level in combination with good hand placement to out leverage and move his defender. Smooth transition from 1 block to the next. Blanchard is a name to watch out for, who deserves more recognition for his play.
Highlights
Jace Filleman
Jace Filleman
Another intriguing prospect on this list is Jace Filleman. Filleman had a good junior season, racking up 77 total tackles (38 solo, 39 assisted), 9.5 TFL, 8.5 sacks, 20 QB hurries, 2 FF, 2 FR, 1 blocked FG. Measuring in at 6’3 215 pounds, which is a good size for an edge rusher. He has very good athletic ability due to very good speed, acceleration, good change of direction, and footwork. Very good bend around the edge. Good mental processing as well. He can correctly read the read option, leading for a TFL. Very good quickness out of his stance, then goes into a low pad level to out leverage the offensive lineman. Good hand placement and hand strength to move the OL out of the way. He uses a powerful bull rush to knock the offensive linemen off their feet. Filleman prefers the bull rush over the spin move, and with good reason. He has very good strength and runs through the OL. He has good competitive toughness as well. Filleman was consistently playing after the whistle and giving it his all. When runs were designed to go the opposite direction of him, he would still end up tackling the ball carrier. Great tenacity and high motor. I’m excited to see how Filleman builds upon this season, and into the next.
Hansen is a primed candidate to break out in his senior year. This past season, the 5’10 195-pound junior carried the ball 150 times for 954 yards and 11 touchdowns, averaging 6.4 yards per carry. He had four 100 + games over the course of the season. Hansen is an elusive speedy back who isn’t afraid of contact. He has elite athletic ability due to elite speed, acceleration, and very good change of direction. Showed good mental processing by choosing the correct holes to run through. He hits the hole with a head of steam and ferocity. This kid can move. He is very shifty and has a very good juke move. Hansen uses his home run speed to run past the defenders and consistently reach the secondary. Even when Hansen is getting tackled, he keeps stays up and keeps his feet churning for extra yardage. His speed and elusiveness really stand out to me, as he deserves more eyes on him.
Highlights
Darrell Ishman
Darrell Ishman
Ishman caps off the list of players poised for a breakout. The 6’2 185 pound DB for Castle View had 32 total tackles (27 solo, 5 assisted), 4 INT, 4 PD, 1 FR, 2 pick 6s. He’s got very good size for a defensive back, allowing him to match up with taller receivers. Ishman has very good athletic ability due to very good speed, acceleration, change of direction, and jumping. He has a good backpedal and uses his athletic ability to stay stride for stride with wide receivers, not allowing separation. Ishman is physical at the line of scrimmage, excelling with the press jam. Ishman excels both in man and zone coverage. In man coverage, he is sticky like glue and stride for stride with the receiver. He has good zone coverage skills as well. He’ll lockdown his zone, and will leave it to gain an interception or tackle the ball carrier. Patient in his zone too. He has very good ball tracking skills, and will follow the QB’s eyes leading him to a tackle or interception. Ishman is a good tackler, and tackles towards the player’s center of gravity. An aspect of his game that stood out to me, was when the receiver catches a ball on him. He will hit the ball out of their hands to create an incompletion. I’m looking forward to seeing how he does in his senior year, with a breakout year looming.