The Beginning: Week 0 Standouts

The start of the high school season is always special. We get renewed rivalries, exciting new freshmen and sophomore taking up the ranks. As well as the established juniors and seniors making the final push for offers. Today we will be discussing a handful of players that stood out in week 0. Even though it's the beginning, these players started out with statement games to put opposing teams on notice.    Ashford has a phenomenal game for the Chaparral Wolverines. The junior had 22 carries for 151 yards on the ground and 1 touchdown, with 42 yards being his longest. Ashford was also productive on special teams with 31 KR yards. He has very good athletic ability due to very good speed, acceleration, and change of direction. He showed good vision to choose the correct holes, and burst through for a big gain. An aspect of his game that might be overlooked is his pass protection. He picked up the blitz allowing his QB [player_tooltip player_id='477847' first='Tevin' last='Stokes'] to throw it downfield. Ashford is a must know name going forward.     Booth was another game changer for the Wolverines. He racked up a total of 152 yards through special teams and the air. Booth returned a kick for a TD, and had 4 receptions for 60 yards. Charlie has very good athletic ability due to very good speed, acceleration, jumping, and change of direction. He has a good release, and uses his athletic ability to create separation. Booth has very good ball tracking and uses his lengthy arms to go up for the contested catch. Booth has good body control, and tucks the ball into his torso when going down. I'm very excited to see more of Booth this season.     Banks had a nose for the endzone, stacking up a hat trick against the Fruita Monument Wildcats. He had 8 carries for 47 yards and 3 touchdowns, with 1 reception for 13 yards. Banks is another standout with very good athletic ability due to very good change of direction, speed, good acceleration, and balance. Banks has very smooth cuts, and looks like is gliding across the field. He has a mixture of speed and power to run through defenses. His playstyle is a perfect complement to [player_tooltip player_id='475378' first='Jaden' last='Lawrence'] with them being a powerful thunder and lighting duo. Watch out for this fantastic running back, as he makes his mark on the Legend backfield.     Spence is a phenomenal receiver coming out of Valor. He had a MASSIVE game against Pine Creek. Spence had a total of 242 yards with 3 carries for 8 yards, 7 receptions for 189 yards and 2 touchdowns, with 45 yards on special teams. Spence has very good athletic ability due to elite change of direction, very good speed, acceleration, and balance. Spence uses very dynamic cuts and fluid hips to juke out defenders and create space. He has very good separation quickness due to him identifying the defense, and out running the defender. Spence is very good at adjusting and controlling his body. He'll catch balls thrown behind him, and keep both feet in bounds on sidelines. Spence is game-breaker, and defenses need to watch out for an upcoming breakout season.       The 6'6 defensive end for Chaparral had an impressive performance against Highlands Ranch. He had 7 total tackles (5 solo, 2 assisted) with 5 TFL. Lee has very good strength and was pushing the OL with ease. He was consistently in the backfield creating plays. Lee has good acceleration and initial quickness out of his stance. He uses a low pad level to out leverage the OL. Then uses a powerful bull rush to knock the offensive line around allowing plays for other defenders to create a play. Offenses will need to plan around for Lee.

The start of the high school season is always special. We get renewed rivalries, exciting new freshmen and sophomore taking up the ranks. As well as the established juniors and seniors making the final push for offers. Today we will be discussing a handful of players that stood out in week 0. Even though it's the beginning, these players started out with statement games to put opposing teams on notice.