Southwest Missouri's "Underrated" Offensive Players of 2026

There is such an abundance of talented football players in Southwest Missouri that some players just don't get the attention they rightfully deserve. In this article let's dive into six high school football players of class 2026 that needs to be talked about more.   These six players need to be in the same conversation as some of the top-rated players in the entire state of Missouri, I believe after this upcoming season the label of "underrated" should be replaced with the phrase "one of the top".    Hayden Mays is a physical opposing offensive lineman.   The Nixa eagles in 2024 assembled one of the best offensive lines in the entire nation. [player_tooltip player_id='392779' first='Jackson' last='Cantwell'] gets a lot of attention as he should being the #1 recruit in the nation, but as a unit this line was a well-oiled machine. Mays was definitely one of the reasons why this offense had so much success. He is a road grading right tackle that thrives in the run game, he has the nastiest demeanor in the 2026 class of offensive lineman. I know that's a bold statement, but I truly believe he does. He plays to the final whistle every single play and finishes his blocks as you should. He's also really sound in his pass sets, he has a silky-smooth kick step and explodes out of his three-point stance, any college in the nation would be lucky to have him.   in 2026 expect Hayes to continue to be the "Enforcer" for this offense.      An absolute nightmare in open space is Mr. Christian.   Brayden Christian is electric with the ball in his hands and the Lebanon yellow jackets tried to get the ball in his hands as much as they could. The yellow jackets ran a "veer" type offense and Christian lined up in various spots in the offense. He has a short, stocky build with great contact balance. He keeps his shoulders square to the line while showcasing great ball-carrier vision. They also love to get him involved in the passing game; he runs a really good wheel route out of the backfield that usually gets him in the endzone. If Christian gets in the open field, he is a very hard man to track down he has great speed with also being able to start and stop on a dime.   Brayden Christian will have an even better 2025 season carrying the football.      Aden Estep is a super athletic passer from Mountain Grove, MO.   One of the purest athletes I have had the pleasure of watching is young Aden Estep. A true dual threat Quarterback Estep could hurt you by using design runs and also when the pocket is collapsing, or no receivers are open, he can take off and hurt you that way. He ran for a whopping 1033 yards and 20 total touchdowns last year at quarterback. Don't let that fool you though Estep can also sling the football he has a great arm and loves to push the ball downfield at will. He seems so comfortable and confident on the football field it gives you a sense that he knows himself he's about to make a big play.   Estep put up almost video game numbers last year expect the same results in 2025.          Wilson is one of the most complete Tight ends in the Southwest.   [player_tooltip player_id='1585614' first='Brody' last='Wilson'] out of Kickapoo high school is just a flat-out good football player. He's a tough, super competitive just gritty tight end that does whatever you ask him to do. Wilson is a great blocker; he shows a good pop with his hands, and he sets the edge extremely well in the run game. In the passing game he has showed the ability to have extremely soft hands he plucks the ball out of the air away from his body and is an absolute load to stop when he gets a full head of steam. Just a complete football player through and through, but to add to the resume he's also one of the area's top baseball players.   Everyone should keep an eye on Wilson in 2025.     Tall, Strong, Savvy is just some of the words that describes Jacob Moore of West Plains.   Moore is a really big target out there at wide receiver he stands a towering 6'3 185 so he isn't hard to find. He is a quarterback's best friend because of his sure hands and towering frame. Although being a bigger receiver he is surprisingly pretty nimble and runs nice crisp routes. The Zizzers likes to line him up at outside receiver a lot and throw a quick screen to get him out of space, he showcased the ability to get up field in a hurry and break open field tackles. He also lines up almost like a tight end and runs a lot of crossing routes to force man to man coverages, he is a matchup nightmare because of his length and his ability to high point the football.   A major contributor for the southwest7 7v7 football team this year, be on the lookout for Moore to have a great senior season.      J.J. Huskinson should not be an "underrated" prospect in Missouri.   A very underrated football player out of Willard, MO is Mr. J.J Huskinson. In 2024 the Tigers didn't have the best of year's going 2-8 but Huskinson was terrific last football season. The offensive gameplan was pretty simple, it was to try to get the ball into his hands as much as possible. Jet sweeps, in the backfield, screens, reverses anyway you can get him the ball is always a good idea. Huskinson plays on both sides of the ball; while also returning punts and kicks he was rarely off the field last year. Sometimes you can tell that a football player just has a nose for the endzone that is Huskinson in a nutshell.   Huskinson is currently playing great football for the southwest7 7v7 football team, but his senior year look for the Willard Tigers to have a bounce back year with J.J. being the focal point.

There is such an abundance of talented football players in Southwest Missouri that some players just don't get the attention they rightfully deserve. In this article let's dive into six high school football players of class 2026 that needs to be talked about more.