Hudl Discoveries #17 - Detroit Public Pt. 1

The Detroit Public School League is my deepest dive yet. Over the next several days, I'll be publishing my evaluations of 40 of the best new prospects from this league. Part 1 will focus on dominant linemen from Cass Tech and King, a hard-hitting linebacker from Renaissance, and a few other high-upside skill players.   '26 DT | [player_tooltip player_id='1158862' first='Gavin' last='Fernandez'] | Cass Tech | <a href="https://twitter.com/Gavinfernandez_">Twitter</a>   H: 5'11" W: 250   I'm very surprised to see that Gavin doesn't have any offers yet. His film is very similar to that of teammate [player_tooltip player_id='1290709' first='Logan' last='Howell'] (who is a D1 prospect), except Gavin demonstrates a bit more athleticism. Gavin is a tad undersized (5'11") for an interior D-Lineman, but I still strongly believe his film is on the higher-end of interior D-Linemen. He's a great pass rusher. A good, explosive getoff, in addition to a plethora of speed moves, makes for a hard-to-stop player, especially since most IDLs are on the slower side. His spin move at 2:05 demonstrates this very well. There are several other plays where Gavin uses his violent hands to penetrate the interior O-Line. Very excited to see what Gavin can do next season.    '27 OL | [player_tooltip player_id='547453' first='Trevor' last='Dhue-Reid'] | Detroit MLK | <a href="https://twitter.com/Trevordhuereid1">Twitter</a>   H: 6'3" W: 300   Although his highlights are few, I like what I see in the short tape. Trevor is a powerful lineman who usually lines up on the interior. He's able to anchor himself well and execute just about any block that's asked of him. He has incredible skill for a freshman lineman, and if he's able to string together a few good offseasons, he'll be a phenomenal prospect.    '26 ATH | Will Sykes Jr | Cass Tech | <a href="https://twitter.com/WillSykesjr13_">Twitter</a>   H: 5'9" W: 160   Will was able to grow into a full-time varsity contributor at the wide receiver position, which is no easy feat at Cass Tech. His biggest strength is his smooth, detailed route running. A lot of receivers do the bare minimum with their routes, but it's obvious that Will knows how to run the entire route tree with great detail. I could be wrong, but it also looks like he runs a few choice routes, which is rare at the high school level. Will is also very athletic and seems to have great change of direction. He should start getting college attention this offseason.    '26 SS | [player_tooltip player_id='1290688' first='Samarae' last='Stephens'] | Detroit MLK | <a href="https://twitter.com/SamareaStephens">Twitter</a>   H: 5'11" W: 175   Samarae has a few great highlights from the 7on7 season. Namely, a few excellent man coverage highlights. Those highlights show great reaction, hips, and excellent recovery when he does lose a step. The highlights are short, and this is 7on7, so I would absolutely love to see a full season highlight tape sometime. He's a very high-upside player and may break out next season.    '25 ATH | [player_tooltip player_id='1290692' first='Joshua' last='Green'] | Henry Ford | <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/17285782/Joshua-Green">Hudl</a>   H: 5'6" W: 175   Joshua has a few very good highlights playing for Henry Ford. Namely, the highlight at 1:51 shows great reaction and break on the football which nearly leads to an interception. He's also experienced playing on the offensive side of the ball, where he sports decent speed and is able to get the edge at times. With better IQ and speed, he'd be a college prospect.    '25 LB | [player_tooltip player_id='1290690' first='Julian' last='Nichols'] | Renaissance | <a href="https://twitter.com/JulianGNichols">Twitter</a>   H: 5'11" W: 190   I like Julian's film quite a bit. He's a reactive and hard-hitting linebacker who plays with zero fear. Julian's motor is great, as there are several plays where he can be seen running across the field or sideline to sideline to make a tackle. The play at 0:32 shows awesome effort, motor, and pursuit. He also has a few good catches on the offensive side of the ball. Julian needs to improve on his speed and overall linebacker IQ, but you can absolutely tell he gives it his all out there.

The Detroit Public School League is my deepest dive yet. Over the next several days, I'll be publishing my evaluations of 40 of the best new prospects from this league. Part 1 will focus on dominant linemen from Cass Tech and King, a hard-hitting linebacker from Renaissance, and a few other high-upside skill players.