Kenowa Hills Scouting Report (vs. Coopersville)

Throughout the season, Kenowa Hills quickly proved to be one of the most improved programs in Michigan. On Friday night, I saw why KH has improved so dramatically. New talent, great schemes, and, best of all, a TON of potential to be dramatically better next season. This is a program on the rise, and a program which features a ton of young talent. I had a lot of fun watching KH, and I'm excited to share my five evaluations from Friday's playoff game at Coopersville.    #10   I suspect that this wasn't Grayson's best game, but I still came away impressed with his abilities. He's in what I'd call a west-coast style offense, utilizing a ton of quick-game and well-timed deep shots.   With zero pressure, Grayson stands strong in the pocket while flashing his eyes between reads. Most of the time, Grayson was able to quickly find a receiver on a short slant/stick/etc.   With a little pressure, Grayson can usually step up in the pocket while still keeping his eyes downfield. There were a few times when I thought Grayson bailed the pocket a little early, but still, the VAST majority of QBs I watch have zero pocket presence- Grayson is definitely ahead of the curve there.   That said, Grayson is excellent when outside of the pocket. I didn't see his accuracy take a hit when on the run, and there were a couple of very impressive throws. A lot of it, again, comes with Grayson's ability to constantly read the field. I watch a lot of QBs who seem to lose focus when scrambling- either committing to the run or locking in on a single receiver. Not Grayson.   There was one instance in particular where Grayson threw an excellent ball down the right sideline, splitting a DB and incoming safety. Although that pass was incomplete, it proved to me that, at his best, Grayson can complete true D1 college-level throws.   There was one major inconsistency in Grayson's game- overthrows. Like a lot of QBs, Grayson struggles with overthrowing deep balls. However, a much larger issue is Grayson's overthrows on all routes. Touching on the deep balls specifically, most of the overthrows were very, very slight. Pretty fixable. Like I said, Grayson also overthrew a few shorter routes. In particular, he overthrew a stick route that ended up being picked off. I also understand a part of this could be due to receivers running undisciplined routes, stopping short of their intended distance. I would suspect these overthrows could be a result of mechanics/throwing motion, but I quite honestly don't know enough about QB mechanics to say for certain.   I currently view Grayson as a fringe D1 prospect. I actually think he's better than a few D1-offered QBs I've seen. I'm looking forward to seeing how colleges end up evaluating Grayson!     #17   I came into this article ready to talk about how Lachlin is a vastly underrated prospect, but I'm very happy to report he has offers from Wayne State, Davenport, and Hope.   Lachlin is a baller and a high-volume target. He ran a ton of short routes (lots of sticks) and earned great YAC on several occasions. When it comes to route running, Lachlin is fine. He isn't super twitchy, and his route breaks could use a bit of work. Still, Lachlin is an excellent short-yardage target with the toughness to run through arm tackles and lay down a shoulder to fall forward. I'm not quite sure of Lachlin's hands, catch radius, etc.   Defensively, Lachlin made a few great run stops from the backside. I didn't specifically watch Lachlin on many defensive reps, but still, I liked what I saw.   I agree with the low D2 evaluation. He definitely has the size and HS production needed to be a D2 prospect. Lachlin will likely need to bulk up and work his way up a depth chart to start at TE, but he definitely has the size and talent to do so.     #19   A shorter evaluation- but Riley did great on kickoffs.   On a few occasions, Riley was able to boot shorter "sky kicks" which had a ton of air time.   On top of that, Riley kicked a few excellent onside kicks. A ton of end-over-end motion with a very low arc, making for an unpredictable bouncing ball. Coopersville recovered those onside attempts, but Riley gave KH an excellent shot.   Riley could quickly grow into a college prospect. Keep repping kickoffs- find a way to consistently boot it into the back of the endzone. Work on being a consistent punter. Work on field goals. A lot can happen in one offseason, and Riley can grow a whole lot in the next year.     #6   Lundon is an excellent player and a high-volume contributor for Kenowa Hills.   Offensively, he mainly plays RB. He had quite a few between-the-tackles runs in addition to reverses. In short, when it comes to RB, Lundon is a good athlete but lacks polish in several areas. First, his vision and change of direction can be improved upon. There were times when Lundon struggled finding a hole, and other times when I think Lundon had the right idea, but didn't have the twitchiness (or contact balance) to get past a defender.   Defensively, Lundon was an on-ball OLB / EDGE rusher. Although I don't think he has the size to be recruited at EDGE, I was generally impressed with Lundon's bend and active hands.   Again, great athlete- just needs to focus on the little things this offseason!     Another Class of 2027 prospect, [player_tooltip player_id='1538594' first='Will' last='Fussman'] has an opportunity to have an incredible 2025 (Junior) season. Right now, he's an average outside receiver.   Will is able to run a good variety of routes and flashes good athleticism. He's a prime target or KH, has excellent size, and is utilized very effectively.   Though, as I said, I don't think Will is above average in many areas. But- he has the foundation to make very vast improvements this offseason. Next season, I'd love for Will to work on athleticism. More detailed routes, better change of direction, and better speed. On top of that, finding a way to sprint through his routes and make tough catches is a must. Plus, learning to be more physical is always helpful.   The main takeaway I want from this evaluation is upside. Will is far ahead of most 2027 prospects, and his significant sophomore role will undoubtedly serve him well in the future. IF Will has even a decent offseason with marginal improvements, I think he'll have the Junior year production to be a low D2 prospect. If he truly works his tail off and shows massive improvements, I'd expect high-tier GLIAC attention with the possibility of being a rare late-bloomer D1 prospect.

Throughout the season, Kenowa Hills quickly proved to be one of the most improved programs in Michigan. On Friday night, I saw why KH has improved so dramatically. New talent, great schemes, and, best of all, a TON of potential to be dramatically better next season. This is a program on the rise, and a program which features a ton of young talent. I had a lot of fun watching KH, and I'm excited to share my five evaluations from Friday's playoff game at Coopersville.