Predicting Team MVPs in the OAA Blue

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The OAA Blue may be Michigan's most competitive league. Seriously, I could see anybody take the league title. Seaholm won the Blue last season, but they lose the bulk of their talent. Bloomfield Hills competed in the White, but have moved to the Blue after a disappointing season. North Farmington and Farmington seem to always be in contention, while Oak Park, Troy, and Athens could be sleeping giants. Today, I'll be predicting who I think will have the best season on each team. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Seaholm - SB [player_tooltip player_id='1298735' first='Will' last='Forberg'] </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's pretty rare that I'd say an incoming sophomore is going to be team MVP for a program that just went 9-2 last season. Though, Seaholm is in a rare situation where they're graduating nearly all of their top talent. Nearly all of their skill position players need to be replaced, and Will is the only one that I'm aware of that has significant varsity experience and success. He's utilized as the third read in Seaholm's Veer offense, and he's excellent in that role. Outside the tackles, Will has great vision and north-south running that allows him to make the most of every carry. He'll be ranked in the next 2027 rankings update, and I expect him to have a phenomenal sophomore season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Bloomfield Hills - ATH [player_tooltip player_id='1185143' first='Mason' last='Hitchcock']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Mason is my predicted MVP for Bloomfield Hills. Mainly, this is because I really like his upside, and I'm honestly not familiar with too many players from BH. Last season, BH stuggled mightily, going 1-8 in the difficult OAA White. Now that they're in the Blue, things should be easier. Mason will play a gigantic role in helping BH get back into the postseason. Still, he's just entering his sophomore season, so I hope Mason is hard at work in the coming months to prepare for a breakout sophomore season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Farmington - QB [player_tooltip player_id='1298738' first='Julian' last='Johnson']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Farmington leans on their QBs a bit more than most, and Julian will undoubtedly be the centerpiece in the Falcon offense. Unlike some QBs, I'm impressed with how fast Julian tries to get the ball out. He's taught well in playing within the structure of the offense, staying in the pocket, and throwing the ball once an open receiver becomes available. With the returning talent at Farmington plus a full season under his belt at QB, I think [player_tooltip player_id='1298738' first='Julian' last='Johnson'] will be a much-improved player and will lead his team to a winning season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>North Farmington - DB [player_tooltip player_id='1298623' first='Trae' last='Woods'] </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This program has a lot of talent and a lot of names I could have put here. Although I'm not convinced that Trae is the most skilled or best overall player on his team, I do have a lead on his leadership and poise. I've only seen him in-person once, but Trae's leadership at the MHSAA camp at The HAWK shined through. The most vocal and positive athlete at any camp I've ever been to, I could only imagine what that positivity could do for a locker room. I've seen first-hand what a great leader can do to a locker room, and I've seen what immense toxicity can do to a locker room. As long as Trae is the same person I saw at The Hawk, he'll have a sensationally positive effect on his team. (and his play could earn him offers in the next year!)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Oak Park - DB [player_tooltip player_id='1148702' first='Ron'Dre' last='Austion'] </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ron'Dre is someone I've seen a good few times over the past couple of months. At camps, it's obvious that he's a talented player, and he has truly rare speed. There are some fundamentals he needs to continue working on, but generally, he's a phenomenal athlete and will lock down the vast majority of WRs in the OAA Blue. On top of that, he seems like a hard worker who should have a positive effect on his team. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Troy - WR/DB [player_tooltip player_id='274668' first='Jaielen' last='Peacock']</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This was the easiest selection on the entire list. Over the past year, I've seen Jaielen at numerous events and he's always come out as one of my standouts. On both sides of the ball, Jaielen is versatile, athletic, and smart. He has sure hands as a receiver and knows how to use his body effectively to come down with contested catches. Defensively, he's a bigger than average DB who uses his skills as a receiver to force turnovers. I'm just scratching the surface in terms of what I know Jaielen is capable of, but just know that he's my #1 player in the OAA Blue. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Athens - RB/LB [player_tooltip player_id='1148733' first='Cainan' last='Hanbury'] </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After an impressive sophomore campaign, Cainan will look to take another leap forward for his Junior campaign. Last season, he experienced a lot of success as a running back in Adams's Wing-T offense. In addition, he has experience playing off-ball linebacker and has shown good play in that role. I fully expect Cainan to be a great two-way player next season and I'm looking forward to seeing how he performs. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->