Back 2 Ballin: Top Gunslingers, Part I

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>CEDAR FALLS, IA--</strong> Over the weekend we made our annual trip down to the UNI Dome to the Back 2 Ball 7v7 tournament hosted by Iowa 7v7 Football. This was year four of scouting talent on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa, as there were talent flying around the dome forcing you to keep your head on a swivel at all times to find it. We start it off with the Gunslingers, because in 7v7 football the quarterback is the bread and butter positionally, so as you can imagine this will be a multi-part series. As the host state, Iowa dominated in Part I, but you will find a sound mix of QB talent all over the Midwest on our upcoming lists. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Gage Burgess, QB, Epic 7/Liberty North (MO) 2026</strong> <a href="https://twitter.com/GageBurgess2_">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1248236,"width":"332px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/04/IMG_0500-rotated-crop-385x253-1713275212.jpg?w=384" alt="" class="wp-image-1248236" style="width:332px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Gage was a first look quarterback I watched on Saturday, and one that impressed me coming out of Epic 7 just outside of Kansas City. The 6'0 180 pound 2026 QB prospect showed off a rapid quick release and showed off great ball fits showing off constant precision with receiving core. His throws showed off a constantly tight spiral (see clip below) and I felt his outing this weekend showed off his poise more frequently and opened up his arm as a three-level passer. A state champion and a 3-sport athlete, I certainly like this young man's next-level upside. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/iowa7v7football/status/1779160894414446972","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/iowa7v7football/status/1779160894414446972 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1263883' first='Brody' last='Schafer'], QB, Sioux Falls Sharks/Sioux Falls Lincoln 2027</strong> <a href="https://twitter.com/Brody4Schafer">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1248238,"width":"320px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/04/IMG_0513-rotated-crop-385x253-1713275278.jpg?w=384" alt="" class="wp-image-1248238" style="width:320px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was the first live evaluation I got on Brody who is a QB prospect you will upcoming on our 2027 South Dakota rankings, and I came away impressed. I thought throughout the weekend, he grew his composure at a swift speed within the pocket. Not to mention, I was most impressed with his high football IQ for just wrapping up his freshmen year. I also loved how mechanically sound he was with his release. Brody showed off great efficiency on all three levels of the field as you can expect to be one of South Dakota's top quarterbacks when our initial 2027 rankings come up in the coming weeks.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='854786' first='Taylen' last='Alford'], QB, Carroll Chargers/Carroll (IA) 2028</strong> <a href="https://twitter.com/Taylen_Alford">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1248294,"width":"338px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/04/IMG_0547-rotated-crop-385x253-1713279547.jpg?w=384" alt="" class="wp-image-1248294" style="width:338px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of the top performing 2028 quarterbacks by far this weekend, was Carroll's [player_tooltip player_id='854786' first='Taylen' last='Alford']. It was clear that Taylen had an excellent understanding on how to utilize his arm strength for the multiple levels he threw on Saturday and Sunday which is a contribution to his early football IQ he has as an incoming 9th grader. Taylen also looked like a young man that was quite coachable for his age too as a gunslinger to know early out of NW Iowa as he comes out of a family with great college football pedigree.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1204446' first='Cael' last='Kongshaug'], QB, Rip City/Cedar Rapids Prairie (IA) 2027</strong> <a href="https://twitter.com/CaelKongshaug">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1248297,"width":"325px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2024/04/IMG_0553-rotated-crop-385x253-1713279612.jpg?w=384" alt="" class="wp-image-1248297" style="width:325px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cael is a young gunslinger that has been on my radar for a bit now, and I certainly watched his growing upside take shape this weekend at Back 2 Ballin. At 6'3 220 pounds, Cael will certainly pass the eye test this summer with college coaches. Watching him this weekend, I can see how much the game of football has slowed down for him, as I was quite impressed with his poise and watching his eyes never oversell where he was going to throw the football. He showed off too, development with his accuracy and precision especially on the 2nd and 3rd level of the fields. Cael is also a young man that I love his character as that will flourish in the coming years and into a college locker room very well. Cael in my eyes looks like an early offer QB target coming out of the state of Iowa.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='817300' first='Blaise' last='Showers'], QB, Midwest Miners/Sioux Falls Lincoln 2025</strong> <a href="https://twitter.com/BlaiseShowers">Twitter</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:image {"id":1248322,"width":"332px","height":"auto","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://prepredzone.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2023/05/IDF_1946-crop-3729x2448-1713281339.jpg?w=800" alt="" class="wp-image-1248322" style="width:332px;height:auto" /></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Blaise is another Midwest prospect from our Gunslingers list I have watched his development for a while now, and the dividends are starting to pay off. The composure he has in and outside of the pocket has engaged at a faster pace, but yet you can tell his football IQ has slowed down the game for him. The instinct that Blaise played with this weekend showed off excellent pinpointing arm accuracy especially on his intermediate routes as the development with his precision seemed to show off as well. Blaise has all the arm strength, measurables, you want at the next-level and has what will be a big next 6 months or so with his recruitment in my eyes with camp season and fall season as he takes over as QB1 for the 11AAA state champions in Sioux Falls Lincoln.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->