Uncovered Gems: KLAA East Offense #1

The KLAA continues to go largely overlooked in a lot of areas. Of course, everyone's eyes are on Belleville these days, but teams like Fordson, Dearborn, and Stevenson still have some legit talent. Today, I'll be evaluating five players from those three schools.    Ali is one of the many reasons why I think Fordson could be in for a resurgence. These are some good freshman season highlights!   His tape kicks off with a big 58-yard touchdown- his first on Varsity. I really like the vision then explosiveness on that run. There are a ton of very similar highlights on his tape. Time after time, Ali took the handoff, made a move (usually to the inside), and then exploded upfield. Plus, there's a few times (like 1:34) where Ali shows a bit of contact balance.   Love the explosiveness, he looks to have good size (no h/w listed), and Ali should be a full-time Varsity player next season. Expect Ali to be on the Rankings Watch List and someone I'll have an eye on next season.      Taking another look at Nayef- someone I've watched a couple of times in the past.   A solid highlight tape on both sides of the ball. His tape begins with a good hit and quick reaction to the WR screen. Second, another great, quick reaction to an attempted screen. Throughout his defensive tape, I'm generally impressed with Nayef's play speed. He should be ranked as a linebacker come next month!   Offensively, he has a few solid highlights. At 0:51, he follows his blocks and fights through a few weak tackles for the near-score. Still, it looks like he's primarily an outside linebacker.      By all accounts, Quincy is a massive part of Dearborn Football's future. Take a look at the play at 0:14- Quincy spins out of a sack, finds a hole in the defense, and scrambles for what presumably was a TD. I've only seen a select few QBs with that kind of highlight showcasing pocket presence and speed. Then, at 0:39, we see another tremendous run.   1:22 and 1:29 showcases a few good throws. 1:29, in particular, was a very impressive throw to the back of the endzone, zipping it right by the DB. Quincy needs to get better at reading defenses while polishing his mechanics, but still, some great stuff shown during his sophomore season. Can't wait to see what's next!      Going from one Dearborn quarterback to another!   Scott looks like a more consistent pocket passer. His tape kicks off with a very accurate go ball to the back of the endzone- good timing as well there. Second, another nicely-timed deep ball to the slot fade. Third, the same exact thing- hitting his slot receiver in stride downfield. Then, 0:40 shows off a little bit of dual-threat ability.   Not much else to say about Scott. A good, albeit short highlight tape. A solid passer, but I'd love to see a larger variety of throws in the future. Also, a solid athlete, but I don't think he's quick enough to be a true dual-threat in college.      I like what I see from [player_tooltip player_id='1613917' first='Luke' last='Beri']! His tape features a decent variety of routes and catches. 0:17 showcases a decent curl route- I like the change of direction at the top of the route, and a great job breaking a tackle + earning some YAC. Then, at 1:01, Luke lays a phenomenal block.   It's only a few minutes of highlights, but I think Luke could be a college prospect this Spring. I see enough explosiveness plus attention to detail on his routes to potentially impress D3 schools enough to offer. With exceptional performances, D2 isn't out of the question.

The KLAA continues to go largely overlooked in a lot of areas. Of course, everyone's eyes are on Belleville these days, but teams like Fordson, Dearborn, and Stevenson still have some legit talent. Today, I'll be evaluating five players from those three schools.