Defensive Standouts: Charlotte Catholic vs. Grimsley

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Last Friday, the Grimsley Whirlies ended Charlotte Catholic's season with a 42-14 win over the Cougars. It was cold and windy, but I saw several standouts on both sides of the ball. If you missed the <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2024/12/offensive-standouts-charlotte-catholic-vs-grimsley/">offensive standouts</a>, check them out.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here we'll break down some of the defensive players I was impressed with, including a few guys who weren't on my radar and a couple who could make big leaps in our January rankings update.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Charlotte Catholic Defensive Standouts</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Despite some struggles to get off the field, Charlotte Catholic didn't look overmatched on defense. Rather, Grimsley made some incredible individual plays.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Linebacker <strong>Vincent Keller</strong> filled his run gaps well and was a sure tackler. On a cold night, he had the pads popping against Grimsley's run-heavy attack. He wasn't asked to do much as a pass defender, but he made a couple of nice tackles over the middle while playing zone coverage.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Likewise, linebacker Keanan Teeter has excellent size and was able to flex out into the slot or come inside and play as a traditional outside linebacker. He, too, made several sure tackles and was solid in the running game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Grimsley passing game was precise, but the Cougars gave up very little after the catch, something that impressed me, given the shiftiness and size of Grimsley's receivers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Defensive backs <strong>Jon Fijakowsi</strong> and <strong>Lukas Lapinski </strong>were solid in coverage and made several tackles on the outside. When a ball-carrier broke through, Fijakowski was there to make the stop from his free safety position.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Along the defensive line, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1368127' first='Dominic' last='Basrawala']</strong> flashed. Charlotte Catholic is often undersized on the lines, but Basrawala has great size and speed at the edge position.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Grimsley Defensive Standouts</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Charlotte Catholic had an excellent offensive game plan that prevented the Grimsley defense from taking over. I love the talent in this unit.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>I'll go back to front here. The trio of <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1661003' first='Kosci' last='Barnes']</strong>, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='836726' first='Ryan' last='Debow']</strong>, and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1332120' first='Alijah' last='Ingram'] </strong>played well on the back end. Charlotte Catholic runs unusual route combinations, with receivers coming from odd positions, and for the most part, the Grimsley defense did well to contain the passing game late. All three had great size and length.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Linebackers <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1751605' first='Drew' last='Searls'] </strong>and <strong>Chris Young </strong>were all over the place. Young had been hurt and didn't have elite size but was sideline-to-sideline and covered the wingbacks well. Searls is a bit bigger and delivered a few massive hits.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The defensive line is what makes it all happen for the Grimsley defense. Senior superstar <strong>[player_tooltip player_id='620146' first='Bryce' last='Davis']</strong> was quiet early in the game as the Charlotte Catholic offense did a nice job of making him set the edge and read the option rather than simply being able to beat his man one-on-one. Later in the game, when the Cougars had to pass, he went on a tear. Davis had a sequence of three straight pressures in the fourth quarter, the second a strip-sack. His get off and bend are elite.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Sophomore <strong>Jaiden Wardlaw</strong> also impressed me. He's not the tallest guy, but he held his own in the running game against Charlotte Catholic's well-oiled Wing T offense. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The last guy I'll highlight on the defensive line is my defensive player of the game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Offensive Player of the Game</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='422071' first='Andre' last='Hill Jr.']</strong> was a rock on the inside all night. Charlotte Catholic had to start pushing laterally in the second quarter when the offense couldn't run up the middle effectively. Once Grimsley's coaching staff saw that Hill could two-gap and still hold up at the point of attack, they began to bring blitzers off the edge to completely disrupt the option game.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>That doesn't happen without Hill. He's one of the stronger defensive linemen in the state and is likely going to make a massive leap in next month's rankings update.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>He's just as gifted in the classroom and has multiple Ivy League offers. He'll likely commit soon, perhaps even next week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><em>Thoughts or comments? Let me know on Twitter (@whelms21). Want to make sure we see you compete in person? Register for our <a href="https://events.prepredzone.com/e/1324/register/carolinas-stock-up-showcase">Stock Up Showcase</a> on Dec. 15. Use discount code HelmsPRZ2024 at checkout for $10 off your registration.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->