Battle-Tested Underclassmen Shining in the Off-Season

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With the first wave of updates in the books and recruiting simmering on the back burner it almost feels like a lull in the off-season action. February is often referred to as the "<em>quiet period</em>", and will end early March.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>But, it is hardly quiet.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In early March the grind and the early gains will start getting tested by outside interruptions and noise, both real and imagined. Recruiting starts to ramp up again as players start swarming colleges for on-campus visits.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>From there we zoom down the backstretch of the off-season, with spring football game visits, followed closely with the camp and clinic circuit that gets going in early summer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Currently, the grinders are putting an exclamation point on their off-season training in order to be ready once they start dealing with commitments and facing looming distractions.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And believe me, there is endless rationale for not sticking to the grind, with some of it unfortunately very convincing. When you start thinking in terms of<em> "it's only skipping this one workout..."</em>, and <em>"besides, I can always make it up over the weekend..."</em> you know you are officially being tested.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Then the onslaught <em>really</em> hits. Winter sports start to peak, 7v7 ramps up, spring sport commitments come in hard and fast, then it's time for all-nighters getting ready for finals, then there is the travel and logistics of making school visits and hitting all the important camps and clinics. Who knows, maybe even shoe-horn in a family vacation or work a summer job.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The point being, obviously, that in this day and age it is too easy to allow the outside noise to overwhelm your best training intentions. We live in a do-it now culture, where the <em>urgent</em> always seems to take precedence over the <em>important</em>. That's why developing iron-clad habits at this stage of the off-season grind is so crucial.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Which brings us to the playmakers in today's report. These guys are battle-tested sophomore and junior warriors who have been through the off-season grind before and have learned and augmented their training approach on becoming an elite baller with bullet-proof drive and commitment.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>So without further adieu, let's take a look at the <em>Thursday Five</em>:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1403517' first='Haydon' last='Hull']</strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/haydon-hull/"></a>&nbsp;</strong>, 6'2, 180, QB,&nbsp;<em>Ottawa</em>, <strong>'26</strong>, he is a rising-star quarterback who has an athletic game and has been a lot of fun analyzing with his vaulted-ceiling potential. He is an established dual-threat playmaker who is just as dangerous throwing as running the football. Last fall he passed for just under 2,000 yards and 21 touchdowns. On the ground he ran for 360 yards and another six scores to give him 2,300+ total yards and 27 touchdowns on the year. I was impressed with his mechanics in the pocket and his ability to shift gears when the play breaks down and turn it into something big. He has good arm strength and ball placement moving either way and is deceptively fast and elusive once he breaks out of the pocket. He is getting ready to cook the competition in 2025.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1229095' first='Grady' last='Gebhardt']</strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/grady-gebhardt/"></a> </strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/grady-gebhardt/"></a> , 5'9, 180, ATH, <em>SE Saline</em> <strong>'26</strong>, he is coming off one of the top seasons in the state for any position and helped his team to an unbeaten, 13-0, State Championship. Along the way he was a two-way apex predator, as a versatile running back on offense and a ball-buster LB on defense. As an all-purpose running back he lined up all over to get him the ball in different ways. He is a combo speed-power back with a low-center of gravity and next-level burst, seamlessly plowing through arm tackles and taking off on long, game-breaking runs. On the year he gouged defenses every week, running and catching passes for 1,900 yards and 18 TD's. On defense he was a wrecking crew on his own with 80 tackles, four TFL and three sacks. His encore season this fall will be electric.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='944905' first='Drake' last='Blasi']<a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/drake-blasi/"></a>&nbsp;</strong>, 5'11, 195, LB,&nbsp;<em>Maize</em>, <strong>'27</strong>, he is another two-way standout coming off a good sophomore season when he was an All-Conference linebacker with 73 tackles and six tackles for loss. Last fall he was primarily a headhunting outside linebacker who was disruptive coming off the edge or shooting gaps. He is an athletic defender with a nose for the ball, great read-and-react skills, moves well laterally and hits the ball carrier in the mouth on arrival. This fall he is also going to play more running back, which will be a good fit. When spring hits he is a standout baseball player and will juggle off-season training while traveling for a national-level circuit baseball team based out of Kansas City. This guy is going to have a dominant junior year this fall.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1343607' first='Tyler' last='Brown']<a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/tyler-brown-3/"></a>&nbsp;</strong>, 6'4, 245, TE/NG,&nbsp;<em>Oxford</em>, <strong>'27</strong>, he is coming off a good sophomore season as an Honorable-Mention All-State performer and demonstrated that he is on the cusp of being a force on offense and defense. He is a multi-positional player on both sides of the ball and is versatile enough to be schemed in different ways. He has prototype size already, with a powerful frame and good reach. He can play anywhere along the defensive line, but is particularly effective as a force in the middle at nose guard or defensive tackle. On offense he is developing into a promising tight end who is a bulldozer of a blocker with a large catch radius and good hands. He is already busy in his off-season training plan and gearing up for a busy spring. This guy is ready for a breakout season in 2025.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1539784' first='Cooper' last='Harris']</strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/cooper-harris-2/"></a>&nbsp;</em></strong>, 5'9, 155, DB/ATH, <em>Hutchinson</em>, <strong>'27</strong> he is an up-and-coming two-way baller who can play multiple positions on offense, including quarterback, but really shines as an aggressive safety on defense. With good football instincts, he reads the quarterback's eyes quickly before sinking on the ball. With deceptively-fast closing speed and acceleration he makes plays at the line of scrimmage or floats in zone and breaks on the short pass. He plays with an edge and is always looking to make the jackhammer hit on open-field tackles. He is currently dominating in wrestling and is preparing to play with the loaded <em>Kansas Colts</em>&nbsp;in 7v7 this spring. A busy spring ahead but he appears focused on taking his game to the next level this fall.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In conclusion, get these guys on your watchlist as they are well on their way to starring on the gridiron next fall. And, as always, if you come across players or teams not getting any attention, give me a shout on X via DM. Keep grindin'…</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->