Kaukauna vs West De Pere Recap & Prospects of the Game

For our Week 2 live coverage we headed east to Kaukauna, WI to their beautiful stadium to take in their showdown with West De Pere High School. These two schools have played in some amazing battles recently, so hopes were high that we would see a great game. To say these two delivered would be an understatement. What ensued after the opening kickoff until the final whistle was possibly the best football game I have ever attended in person. Two teams loaded with talent gave each other their best shots right until the final whistle. Dive in to see how this unbelievable game played out. Enjoy!   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Game Recap</h2>   Things got started with fireworks on defense for the Kaukauna Galloping Ghosts thanks to CB [player_tooltip player_id='1363873' first='Reed' last='Wittman'] who baited two different West De Pere QBs into bad decisions, jumped the routes and intercepted the ball on the first two drives of the game for WDP. Kaukauna couldn't find their rhythm after the first Wittman pick, but after Reed returned the second one near the goal line the offense was able to start the scoring with a 2 yard carry from RB Aiden Reardon. West De Pere quickly answered. Led by QB [player_tooltip player_id='948097' first='Patrick' last='Greisen'], WDP drove down the field through the air and capped the drive off with a 14 yard pass from Greisen to senior WR Brock Story. The scoring continued int the second quarter. This time it was WDP RB Evan Ott who powered his way in for 6 and West De Pere's first lead of the game at 14-7. It looked like things may get out of hand early when just a few minutes later [player_tooltip player_id='948097' first='Patrick' last='Greisen'] found WR [player_tooltip player_id='942607' first='Ben' last='Lemirand'] streaking downfield for a 54 yard TD connection and a strong 21-7 lead halfway through the second quarter. This game was far from over through. As the first half neared it's end, Kaukauna RB Aiden Reardon caught a quick pass, broke a tackle, and got into the endzone to narrow the deficit to 21-14 at the half.   The second half didn't start off as electric on offense. The defenses looked like they were starting to figure things out, forcing punts consistently. That was until Kaukauna QB Bron Schaefer and the rushing attack of the Galloping Ghosts found sustained success and with 4:36 to go in quarter #3 Schaefer punched it in from 2 yards out to tie the game up and complete the 14 point comeback. That is where the fireworks really started. WDP didn't let the tie last long as they drove down the field and kicker Brandon Schaefer booted through a 38 yard field for the 24-21 lead to end the 3rd quarter. On the second or third play of the 4th quarter the speedy WR [player_tooltip player_id='773290' first='Parker' last='Schuh'] got loose behind the WDP defense for a 61 yard TD and the 28-24 lead with 11:04 to play in the 4th. [player_tooltip player_id='948097' first='Patrick' last='Greisen'] and a connection with Nicolaus Tischer flipped the lead again to the WDP Phantoms with 9:24 to play. From there, Kaukauna's rushing attack went to work. They drove down the field while also having a lot of time come off the clock. With :54 seconds left to go RB Kyle Kress punched into the endzone for the 35-31 lead. Then insanity ensued. West De Pere's QB [player_tooltip player_id='948097' first='Patrick' last='Greisen'] went deep downfield on a few final heaves towards the endzone and was able to connect with a receiver. As it looked like the receiver was going to get in for the game winning touchdown DB Will Clark chased down the WR and punched the ball out! The ball rolled out the back of the endzone and was ruled a touchback! That gave the ball to Kaukauna to kneel the clock and win the back and forth battle and instant classic of a game!   <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Prospects of the Game</h2>    Bron stepped up and delivered over and over in this game. The junior QB threw two TDs and ran in one of his own. His dual threat abilities were both needed to secure this win. His arm was able to supply some explosive plays that Kaukauna needed to stay in this game and his legs helped keep a lot of their sustained drives moving downfield. The junior QB also did a great job handling the ball, making fakes, and also made good decisions on read option type plays. The junior signal caller was key to the Kaukauna victory.     The junior RB was the engine behind the Kaukauna offensive success. He shared some carries with other RBs in the backfield throughout the game, but it was Aiden who handled the majority of the work. Aiden showed signs of being that workhorse back. Between the tackles he showed patience and vision with a burst to hit holes and a violent running style to create extra yards. Reardon also made a big play in the passing game near the end of the first half when he caught a short pass and again ran through a tackle attempt to score. The junior RB packed a punch last night and helped sustain a lot of drives and wear down the WDP defense.     We were already big fans of Luke's coming into this game, and the junior safety only made us bigger fans with his play in person. The 6'1" 195 lbs athlete perfectly embodies what a high quality safety prospect is. He has the range to allow you to line him up 15 yards deep and trust he can get to either sideline or the line of scrimmage to fill against the run. When the heat seeking missile reads run it was impressive watching him close on the ball, fly through the front seven without getting blocked and laying the wood on the ball carrier. Luke also made plays in coverage. Multiple times he flashed that range and would come flying in to bat the ball away out of nowhere. The junior safety also made his presence felt more and more as the game went on and in key moments. It was a great showing for one of the top safeties in WI.     The Kaukauna backfield had their hands full against a talented, and deep WDP receiving corps. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='1363873' first='Reed' last='Wittman'] was up to the task though and looks like a big time hidden gem here in WI. The senior started the game with back to back INTs jumping routes after he baited QBs into bad decisions. The change of direction and burst to close really stood out on those plays and the senior knew what to do with the ball when he caught it, nearly housing the second INT. Reed played with the confidence you need out on your own island and did his part to help secure a big win.     The Duluth WR commit played both ways for Kaukauna last night. His biggest plays came on offense, though, of course. I came into the night expecting to see him use that unfair speed to flip the field and he did more than that on his 60+ yard TD reception. A play where the nearest DB wasn't within 10 yards when he ran underneath the pass. Duluth has a good one on the way because you don't see kids with Parker's speed also have his soft hands and 6'2" 190 lbs frame. It's an impressive all around package.    <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Kaukauna Offensive Line</h2>   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/MJ_NFLDraft/status/1829319089942126725 </div></figure>   I couldn't identify just one member of the Kaukauna offensive line as a standout because it was the entire unit that was key to this team's offensive success. The first takeaway is this unit is absolutely massive. They rotated some kids in and out but from what I could see, the main unit is what I tweeted up above. Having an OL that is 270+ across the board is such a rare advantage to have in HS sports. This unit controlled the line of scrimmage, sprung free some big plays, and sustained so many long, time consuming drives that ended in scores. A team can go a long ways with an OL like this. Also very noteworthy, college coaches, only the LT [player_tooltip player_id='685837' first='Braeden' last='Jansen'] is committed. Check those other four kids out.    Patrick and the West De Pere offense did everything they could to come away with a win this week. It just wasn't in the cards this time around. The junior QB definitely lived up to the QB1 ranking that we saw on film. He has the size of a high level QB. The mental side of his game is very advanced. The junior QB is the best I have seen at consistently going through progressions and finding the open man and not just forcing it. Greisen also showed impressive poise in the pocket, trusting his OL, moving when he had to buy time, yet always keeping his eyes downfield. Then the raw arm talent leaves you no doubt that Patrick is a D1 talent. From the quick snap mechanics and release to the ability to drive the ball 40 yards downfield on a rope when needed, to being able to fit the ball into tight windows or drop it in a basket with touch. Greisen showed it all at a high level Thursday night in a game where he needed to. He left no doubt that he is the top QB in the Class of 2026.     This was a great game to see some of the best WR talent in WI. Ben is another athlete with that unfair speed out wide. He really let us see it on his 50+ yard TD catch where he won off the line and pulled away on his way to the catch and after it. Ben also has the quick twitch agility and lateral movement that had you thinking any of his catches could result in him shaking the defense and breaking free for a big score. He is one of the top uncommitted mismatches out wide that WI has to offer. Ben played like it Thursday night too.     Brock first put himself on our radars after a strong Week 1 performance, so I was excited to see the senior WR in person. Brock delivered with another good performance. The first takeaway of his game is the senior plays way bigger than that listed size. He was a tough runner after the catch and could create separation against physical DBs with his own physicality. Brock also impressed me with his short area agility and route running. He was tough to stick to, and the separation he created helped his QB have easier targets. Don't miss this hidden gem in the Class of 2025.     Easton sure looked the part of a recruit that the surrounding D2/D3 programs will want to check out. The senior has a legit 6'4" 240 lbs frame that stood out from the crowd on the field. He set a strong edge, taking on blocks, forcing runners inside, and also shedding blocks with quick hands then making the tackle himself. Deschane was a high motor athlete that was always battling to get to the ball. He has size, length, strength, and showed some effective hand fighting technique. He needs more eyes on him.     An underclassman who had my attention since I saw him in warm-up was Sam Schmidt, the WDP starting LT. The sophomore checks in at 6'5" 250 lbs and his frame looks like it is just starting to fill out and will be able to easily hold 280+ at the next level. Sam has a ton of length and demonstrated how well he could use it over and over in the pass heavy WDP offense. Schmidt is still developing and growing into that big frame, but even now he is light on his feet and showing the anchor strength to stuff bull rushers. The raw tools are exciting with this OT, and his best football is still to come. Get this kid on your radars early.

For our Week 2 live coverage we headed east to Kaukauna, WI to their beautiful stadium to take in their showdown with West De Pere High School. These two schools have played in some amazing battles recently, so hopes were high that we would see a great game. To say these two delivered would be an understatement. What ensued after the opening kickoff until the final whistle was possibly the best football game I have ever attended in person. Two teams loaded with talent gave each other their best shots right until the final whistle. Dive in to see how this unbelievable game played out. Enjoy!