2024 Preseason Preview: Roseville Raiders

While the Roseville Raiders haven't seen the level of team success they've desired, they have produced elite Division 1 athletes over the last few years. This year's roster is a little different, because of the sheer amount of talent they return for 2024. With high-level players on both sides of the ball, I think the Raiders could surprise a lot of people. Meet the 2024 Roseville Raiders!   LB: Cole Sobasky 5'11" 205 lbs 2025   A stout OLB who occasionally walks down onto the LOS, Sobasky is a versatile athlete who looks like he could make an immediate at MIAC and WIAC school's second defensive level. With a solid frame and keen awareness on the field, I expect we can only see Sobasky build on a solid junior season where he brought in 23 TTck. Sobasky is also good in nearly every situation. Despite being a big backer, his hip mobility is fluid, allowing him to keep up with smaller wideouts in man coverage. He gives excellent effort when pursuing ball carriers and I'm excited to see what he can do in 2024.   LB/DB: Dylan Hageman 6'4" 195 lbs 2025   I cannot properly begin to express how underrated I think Hageman is. He was consistently among the state leaders in total tackles throughout his junior year and finished with 128 TTck in only 9 games. Within seconds of watching his film, you get a sense of how incredibly athletic Hageman is. He's incredibly fluid in open space and moves flawlessly. With his giant frame, he's able to disrupt all sorts of passes, and he's football-smart which means he's very aware of everything happening during the play. He's able to be super physical without going over the line into dirty, and I would love to see his recruiting explode during what I anticipate to be a highly productive senior season. He has FBS upside but would be a steal for plenty of FCS Midwest programs.   RB/DB: [player_tooltip player_id='1581556' first='Javon' last='Minor'] 6' 195 lbs 2025   Minor has snagged a couple of NSIC offers over this offseason, and for good reason. He doesn't have the biggest or most recent body of film to review, but even with what he does have you can tell he boasts impressive open-field speed, and well above-average ball-carrier vision, which Minor utilizes to strike defenses both as an RB and a kick returner. As a DB he flows naturally to the ball carrier and has plenty of tape of him making drive-saving tackles. Minor is capable of using a hit stick in the open field, but he also can wrap up and roll if the opportunity presents itself. Many are excited to see how Minor performs during his senior season.   QB: Kellen Little 6'4" 180 lbs 2025   "Little" is a bit of a misnomer because the Roseville signal-caller is giant. But Little isn't the typical stand-and-strike pocket passer QB that we see out of taller prospects, he's an athlete who's going to make you pay with both his legs and his arm. Some of his best tapes are of him running speed option. When given the opportunity to cut upfield, Little jumps at the chance to gash unsuspecting defenses. As a passer, he prefers hitting quick routes inside of the hashes but has shown the ability to strike deep once he's able to set his feet. His arm strength is good enough for him to be able to hit intermediate-level routes on the run, and his speed when scrambling shocks me at times. Little doesn't get the attention he deserves as a football prospect.   DE: Marcell Cross 6'3" 210 lbs 2025   Cross had a phenomenal junior year where he tallied 64 TTck, 4 TFLs, 1.5 Sacks, and 1 FF. Coming off the edge in a 4-point stance, Cross wreaks havoc along the exterior of the LOS with his dominant physicality and imposing frame. He touts quick feet and a tendency to win kick-out blocks versus fullbacks. He rarely allows offensive linemen to lock onto him and even less frequently allows them to get their arms fully extended. Cross is a violent tackler with the ability to ragdoll ball carriers, and it wouldn't shock me if we see a similarly dominant season to what he produced in 2023.   LB: Qwinten Hood 5'10" 170 lbs 2025   Another returning defender who put up incredible numbers last season, Hood amassed 92 TTck, 8 TFLs, 1 FF, and 2 INTs as a junior. A stellar stat line that turned my head last November. He has a very thorough 8-minute highlight tape which shows off how much of a wrecking ball Hood is. As an outside backer, he's proven himself a dominant force when stopping the run game. He fights tooth and nail through both blockers at the LOS and through lead blockers coming down the line. He's incredibly quick to reach the top of his drop and proves on his tape that he's more than just a physical run-stopper. Keep a look out for Hood in 2024.   DB: Sam Vail 6' 130 lbs 2025   Returning for his senior year after a 2023 campaign that saw him earn All-District honors while bringing down 119 TTck, 2 FR, 2 INTs, and 2 PBUs, there are very few DBs who I'm excited to see play more in 2024 than Sam Vail. He may only be 130 lbs, but Vail flies around the field like a heat-seeking missile, ready to annihilate anyone with the ball. He's extremely physical and shows excellent open-field speed when pursuing ball carriers. He's a jackhammer who constantly puts himself in the position to make big-time plays. Vail remains massively underrated heading into his senior year and I hope he starts to get the love he deserves.   DL: Tommy Sobasky 6'1" 245 lbs 2025   Another uber-productive player who returns for his senior year, Sobasky brought down an impressive 53 TTck and 1 sack as a junior, stunning numbers for a defensive lineman. He's a run lane clogger, and if he isn't clogging up the interior LOS, he's either flowing down the line toward the ball carrier or emptying the tank to hawk him down. While he doesn't have an astounding sack total, Sobasky does manage to pressure the QB quickly, usually by utilizing a forceful bull rush, or by using a chop move to blow by the offensive lineman.

While the Roseville Raiders haven't seen the level of team success they've desired, they have produced elite Division 1 athletes over the last few years. This year's roster is a little different, because of the sheer amount of talent they return for 2024. With high-level players on both sides of the ball, I think the Raiders could surprise a lot of people. Meet the 2024 Roseville Raiders!