Saline Scouting Report (vs. Dexter)

Yesterday, Saline beat the brakes off of Dexter. It was true dominance as both sides of the ball found plenty of success. Now, I'll share my notes on the six Saline players I watched most.    Tommy has 1000% earned a rankings boost after his performance against Dexter. I'm telling you right now, Tommy will very likely move up to the #1 or #2 QB in the class of 2026.   I don't currently have stats, but it seems like Tommy completed 70%+ of his passes. When the offense was humming, Tommy was throwing on schedule and with great accuracy. There was a lot of quick game built into the Saline offense, and Tommy did a great job of quickly making reads and taking care of the football. In addition, Tommy did an excellent job of escaping the pocket and making plays off-schedule. He was also given several RPOs where he did a great job at reading and making the correct decision.   I could write several pages about my thoughts. I just know that Tommy blew me away, and I can't believe he isn't a Power 4 prospect.     I had a lot of questions about Lincoln going into this one. Mainly, I was curious to see how polished of a blocker he was, and how much he's utilized in the offense.   For the first point, Lincoln is an OK blocker. I didn't dislike what I saw, but it's apparent that Lincoln needs to bulk up and get all-around more aggressive for times when he needs to block. Still, I watched Lincoln do just enough on several blocks to provide a lane for the running back.   Note- most blocks were reach blocks on either a DE or linebacker while lining up on the line of scrimmage.   As for the pass game, Lincoln had a handful of receptions. He was mostly used in the quick game. When he did haul in receptions, Lincoln did his best to fall forward, but he did not break many tackles. I will say, there were a couple of redzone plays where Lincoln seemed to be the first read, but Dexter made sure to cover him up quite well.   I can definitely see the athleticism and overall upside. Lincoln is every bit of 6'6", has long limbs, and he moves extremely well. At least for right now, he's not highly polished.     Abbate is another guy who has earned a rankings boost. Yes, he's another sub-6ft receiver, and I know there are a lot of those out there. Though Austin has earned the right to be called WR1 on a pass-heavy offense with a very crowded receiver room. With that, you better bet that him and Tommy have incredible chemistry.   Route-running is Austin's greatest strength. I was consistently impressed with Austin's footwork on several comeback (and other) routes.   I was also highly impressed with his off-schedule playmaking. When the play broke down, Austin had a knack for finding open space, and Tommy did a great job at finding him. I remember one 3rd-down in particular where the play broke down, the pocket collapsed, then Austin found an opening at the sideline and made a sensational toe-tap catch.   Austin is also solid after the catch, and he rarely came off the field. Great football player who should be a GLIAC prospect at the very least.     [player_tooltip player_id='563429' first='James' last='Rush'] had a very productive day. I really liked how he ran between the tackles. He's a patient, smart running back who seems to always know how to maximize his carry. There were a few instances where the blocking didn't quite play out how it should. In those instances, James was usually able to find an alternative route to explode forward and gain a few yards. In addition, James had a few TDs and showed very good contact balance once he reached the second level.   All in all, James performed perfectly on par with my expectations!     I thought Isaiah had an up-and-down first half, but really turned it around during the second half.   Isaiah is a pure speed rusher. He won't out-muscle many elite linemen, but he's got the speed and the bend to consistently fly past people. That's precisely what I saw yesterday. Against two of the best offensive tackles in the state, Isaiah quickly won many of his reps due to his athleticism. On the flip side, Isiaiah had himself planted into the turf on a few occasions.   So, Isaiah is one of the best speed rushers in Michigan. His upside is obvious, but in order to grow at the college level, he'll probably need to bulk up quite a bit.     Allen, like Isaiah, was very up-and-down. The early game saw Allen make a few mental mistakes (encroachment penalties). On the flip side, Allen had a very impressive interception that ended up being called back. Later on in the game, Allen won a few blocks and make a good number of plays. I admittedly didn't watch him as much as some others, but just enough to confidently say that he's an impact player.

Yesterday, Saline beat the brakes off of Dexter. It was true dominance as both sides of the ball found plenty of success. Now, I'll share my notes on the six Saline players I watched most.