2028 SD Rankings: Breaking Down the Top Five Defensive Linemen

We stayed in the 2028 class, and broke down the five best defensive linemen South Dakota has to offer in this class. I'll tell you what I see, there is going to be some movement in this group by next update, I can almost guarantee it.    In my eyes, Mason has the best position flexibility on both sides of the trenches within this top five. The 6'0 240 pounder from TImber Lake, has great short-area vision for his age and wastes no time identifying the point of attack with his instincts as a run-stopper. You don't see too many 2028 targets that are comfortable enough to play on both sides at our combines but Mason was one of one that I recall doing so has that should be a contribution of how well-versed this young man's football IQ really is. Some of the best character I have seen early too in this 2028 class which will never go unnoticed     Jason has been a 2028 target that has been on my radar since he was a 7th grader as our DL4 in this 2028 class out of Sioux Falls O'Gorman. He has all the physical traits to be a significant stockriser in this class, as during the live eval at our Prep Redzone Dakotas Combine last spring as an 8th grader, I was impressed with how well-versed he was with his strength, hands, and footwork against bigger and older competition as he fit in nicely as I felt playing up helped his case to reach into this top five. Hopefully more tape in the coming months or a live eval at camps can rise Jason's stock as a defensive linemen that has a lot of wiggle room to grow out that frame too which intrigues me.     The size already of this 2028 defensive line group in South Dakota continues to intrigue me as we dive into our DL3 with [player_tooltip player_id='1597618' first='Shep' last='Wachal'] of Sioux Falls Jefferson. The nearly 6'4 215 pounder has been a powerhouse in the weight room this Spring, raising his stock on the squat rack almost 85 pounds since our last eval which shows to me not only is the motivation to get better already brewing, but I would be remissed that there will be great translation with Shep's twitch off the snap once the pads start popping this summer at camps into practices before the fall season. Fired up to see what happens over the next 4-5 months for this young man. <a href="https://x.com/SheperdWachal">Twitter</a>     This is the first time we have seen twins ranked back to back on our 2028 rankings especially at the same position, as we meet our DL2 which is [player_tooltip player_id='1597617' first='Dax' last='Wachal']. Dax is another one you can see the motivation firing away in the weight room this spring, as another Wachal brother I have constantly seen on the Jefferson big board this winter and spring and has sprouted out his frame this spring. It's evident to me that there is a friendly competition of who comes into that DL2 spot by next update as hopefully we get the live evals we need to firm up who gets which spot at college camps this summer as Dax and Shep are very close in competition as we've ever seen on tape, etc.     Checking in as our DL1 in the 2028 South Dakota class, is Tea Area's [player_tooltip player_id='1601729' first='Thiik' last='Lual'] who surely impresses with his upside that is coming to fruition. Thiik was a late bloomer that I am glad we caught on our last 2028 update, as one that has fluidity that shows up almost out of nowhere and appears to be sudden based on when he releases it showing off that his game-speed is intriguing. He is one of the best in class at the moment with the versatility of his pass-rush moves and showed one of the highest difficulty rates with some of the blocks he was able to get off on tape which is why he is best in class, as the difficult plays always take the cake on an eval. Thiik is one I am fired up to see in Aberdeen on May 10th at our Prep Redzone Dakotas Combine.

We stayed in the 2028 class, and broke down the five best defensive linemen South Dakota has to offer in this class. I'll tell you what I see, there is going to be some movement in this group by next update, I can almost guarantee it.