Olympic at Palisades - Defensive Standouts

The Palisades Pumas won a big game with a strong effort on both sides of the ball over their neighborhood rival, the Olympic Trojans, in the Battle Of Steele Creek. The final score was 27-14, and the Pumas made some timely plays with some special players rising to the occasion. The win gave the Pumas sole possession of first place in the So Meck Conference, as they stand 3-0 in conference play and 6-2 overall. We will profile some players on defense from both teams here.    Kendric was the best player on the field on Thursday night. He had 2 interceptions, including a Pick 6 that essentially sealed the game in the 4th quarter. On both of his interceptions, Kendric did an excellent job of playing his zone, reading the quarterback's eyes, and making a quick play on the football. Kendric also was a sideline to sideline player in the run game, helping keep the Trojans run game in check. I spoke with Kendric after the game.   <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/pepman704/status/1844564599175086448?t=pFaLRC_chngTlB5gpHNpdQ&s=19 </div></figure>     Jasha defines the role of an under the radar player. He was an All-Conference selection last season at Berry High School last season, and multiple people on Thursday night thought he looked just as good as East Carolina commit [player_tooltip player_id='851805' first='Kendric' last='Davis']. Jasha flew around the field, making big tackles in the run game and in passing coverage. He also did a great job blitzing from depth and applying pressure on the quarterback. As long as his GPA is in a good place, I think a college will be getting a steal with him, because he plays the right way and he has the internal drive to be a great player.     William is a big and strong nose tackle whose presence in the middle of the Palisades defense is a big reason why they are having a breakout season this year. William simply does not get moved off of his spot, requiring double teams which allows his talented linebackers behind him to play free and make tackles all over the field. William has an offer from Emory & Henry and should have more local recruiting attention in my honest opinion.     I didn't know a lot about Caleb before this game, but he was a pleasant surprise in this one. With his frame, he would be a prospect college coaches would definitely take a 2nd look at. He used his frame to knockdown a pass, as well as rush the passer off the edge. Caleb showed some good tackling skills and set the edge consistently well in the run game.     The big defensive tackle for the Trojans clogged things up on early downs against the Pumas on a regular basis. Palisades made some plays off tackle and outside away from where Stone was in the middle of the defense. Stone is a team captain and showed some pass rush using a bullrush against the Palisades offensive line as well.     This was my 2nd time seeing Kenyan live this season, and for a young player he displays some traits I love. First off he really gets to the ball well in the run game. 2nd he tackles very well in space, he is always making a hit on a player that gets your attention. As he continues to grow physically, I think he will be someone that becomes an essential piece of the Trojans defense even more so in the near future.

The Palisades Pumas won a big game with a strong effort on both sides of the ball over their neighborhood rival, the Olympic Trojans, in the Battle Of Steele Creek. The final score was 27-14, and the Pumas made some timely plays with some special players rising to the occasion. The win gave the Pumas sole possession of first place in the So Meck Conference, as they stand 3-0 in conference play and 6-2 overall. We will profile some players on defense from both teams here.