Washington Practice Report

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Get 25% Off Your Subscription By Entering Knight25 In The Coupon Code Area. Enjoy!</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In one of the best games of week one, we'll see 2A'1's top-ranked Washington hosting 3A's #4 Sulphur on Friday night. The Warriors come into this week in a tie for the state's longest active winning streak at 31 consecutive games. The Warriors are tied with Fairview for that lead and like the Yellowjackets, they come into this season after winning the last two state championships. And when we look at the 2024 season, the Warriors definitely have the ability to go ahead and win a third consecutive gold ball. But the calendar just turned to September so we still have a lot of time between now and December. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Despite losing a three-year starter at the quarterback position and multiple offensive linemen with years of experience, the Warriors look just fine on the offensive side of the ball. Washington is led by a strong running game, the top overall prospect in the state at tight end and a freshman at quarterback that simply doesn't look like a quarterback. The Warriors had no problems in their season opener in week zero. They beat Community Christian 46-3 to put another notch in that winning streak.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Defensively, the Warriors are not lacking talent and they kept Community Christian out of the end zone. That unit bounced back in a major way after the scrimmage the previous week against Tuttle. The Tigers were able to put points on the board with a high-powered passing attack. But to Washington's credit, when Tuttle got in the red zone and had to run the football, the Warriors stepped up in a major way. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Now, they focus on a Sulphur team that could end up being the toughest team on their schedule. First off, Sulphur is a legitimate threat to win the Class 3A state championship and they should make plenty of noise in that class. Washington will have a week seven showdown with Marlow and that will be challenging but as of right now, this week's game with the Bulldogs is the toughest test for Washington this season and it will act as the season opener for Sulphur. Below, we take a look at five players to watch for the Warriors this week and throughout the 2024 season. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>WASHINGTON'S PLAYERS TO WATCH</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='473879' first='Case' last='Alexander'] - 2027 Linebacker</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>You can't have a breakdown on the players to watch for Washington without mentioning sophomore [player_tooltip player_id='473879' first='Case' last='Alexander'] at the linebacker position. Simply put, Alexander loves to hit so the sophomore going up against a physical Sulphur offense is a dream match-up. Alexander had an excellent freshman season and he continues to get better and better every time we see him in person. It's no surprise that he's already on the radar of multiple power four programs and is still just scratching the surface on how dominant he can be. He has a nose for the football and always seems to be around the play. And don't overlook Alexander turning around and playing some offense. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='473891' first='Creed' last='Barrett'] - 2028 Quarterback</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After watching Washington freshman [player_tooltip player_id='473891' first='Creed' last='Barrett'] at our PRZ-Next camps while he was in middle school, it was obvious that he was going to be a name to watch once he got to high school. He dominated those camps but even we didn't expect him to come out and look as polished as he has during his freshman season. Barrett has established himself as QB1 of the Warriors and the transition to a new QB has been smooth. Barrett has looked the part every time we've seen him in person and he had a solid showing in their season opener. But the freshman will get his toughest test of the year against a Sulphur defense that brings back everyone from last year. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='311986' first='Hudson' last='Howard'] - 2025 Running Back</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Helping the freshman quarterback in the backfield is the return of senior running back [player_tooltip player_id='311986' first='Hudson' last='Howard'] and he got off to a great start in week zero. He only carried the ball eight times but he finished with 160 yards and three touchdowns. He had two touchdown runs of over 50 yards and he's picked up right where he left off after last season's breakout junior year. Now, Howard will need to be ready to go on Friday night because we have a feeling that he'll get more than just eight carries against a very physical and active Sulphur defense. There's no doubt that Howard was one of the top running backs in 2A football a year ago and he's looking to elevate his game in 2024. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='489454' first='Kane' last='Lampkin'] - 2025 Defensive Lineman</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It feels like Washington has had strong defensive linemen that terrorize the line of scrimmage every year no matter who they've lost to graduation. Senior [player_tooltip player_id='489454' first='Kane' last='Lampkin'] is that guy for the Warriors this season and he has the potential to emerge as one of the top guys at his position in Class 2A-1. And when we look at the match-up with Sulphur, the Warriors will need that physical play up front if they want to keep this winning streak in tact. Sulphur's strength comes on the line of scrimmage and it sets up everything they want to do offensively. Lampkin and the Washington defensive line against Sulphur's offensive line might be the top match-up to watch. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='353411' first='Nate' last='Roberts'] - 2025 Tight End</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After watching Washington in the scrimmage against Tuttle, we mentioned that senior tight end and Ohio State commit [player_tooltip player_id='353411' first='Nate' last='Roberts'] would be the ultimate safety net for Washington's young QB. It didn't take long for them to establish a very strong connection and that 1-2 punch was hard to stop in week zero. Against Community Christian, Roberts would finish the game with three touchdown catches and also did a really good job of getting down the field and acting as one of the lead blockers for Howard on his long touchdown runs. And as we've mentioned in the past, Roberts is the state's top college prospect. The high school senior already looks like he belongs at Ohio State right now. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->