Ballers Preparing For Breakout Seasons This Fall

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Halfway through April and the spring season is well underway. For the multi-sport ballers spring is an exceptionally busy time. Particularly for the seniors as they prepare for that all-important senior season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Most are playing baseball or running track for their respective schools and either getting in their off-season training in the morning before school or they carve out time to hit it hard on the weekends. Add in rapidly-approaching finals, school visits, all the extra-curricular activities associated with this time of year and just blocking off time to be a kid, and you have a jam-packed schedule to say the least.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>But, there really is no other way if you want to be elite. You either burn the candle from both ends in the off-season so you are prepared for any opportunity that arises, or you leave it to chance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And, as we all know, hope is not much of a strategy…</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In this report we are taking a close-up look at five ballers with busy off-seasons who have done a good job of juggling all the demands on their time as they prep for this fall. The first three are familiar names from three different classes, with the the last two being up-and-coming ballers currently unranked.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>So, without further adieu, let's take a closer look at the&nbsp;<em>Mid-Week Five</em>:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='933824' first='Coy' last='Barta']</strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/coy-barta/"></a>&nbsp;<a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/coy-barta/"></a>&nbsp;</strong>, 6'1, 160, WR/DB,&nbsp;<em>Topeka Seaman</em>, '27. It has been a frustrating timeframe for this talented athlete as he has been dealing with injuries that extended longer than anyone had hoped. However, he was able to grind through it and is rolling into spring feeling as healthy as he has in a long time. He wasn't able to play 7v7 with the Kansas Colts as intended, but is getting ready to make up for lost time this spring. In order to focus on his training, he skipped spring sports to make sure he was ready for football season. Right now he is lifting weights Monday, Tuesdays and Thursdays and then on the off days is conducting speedwork and agilities. He is also trying to decide which camps to hit this spring to optimize exposure and is leaning toward Kansas State and Iowa State and a handful of others locally. He has bulked up considerably and is looking to play at 180 pounds. Keep an eye on this guy, he is getting ready to burn it up this fall.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='586974' first='Rey'Zhian' last='Shears-Montgomery']</strong> , 6'0, 215, LB,&nbsp;<em>Wichita East</em>, '26. He is coming off a breakthrough season a year ago as a part of a standout linebacker crew for the Blue Aces. He began to set himself apart last year as a versatile headhunter who can play any of the LB spots or as a hybrid strong safety. On the year he piled up 70+ tackles, 16 tackles for loss, three sacks and added a defensive TD for good measure. He has been busy in the off-season as he was a state-champion powerlifter and just wrapped up a busy 7v7 schedule as a nickel back playing with the Wichita Wheat. He has also scheduled multiple school visits, including this weekend at Southern Illinois. Gearing up for camp season, he is narrowing his commitment down to three camps among numerous offers, including KU, K-State, Tulsa, North Dakota State, Florida State and many others. This guy is getting ready to bring the sledgehammer in 2025.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1307968' first='Damian' last='Nicholson']</strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/damian-nicholson/"></a>&nbsp;</strong>, 5'10, 160, DB/WR,&nbsp;<em>Mulvane</em>, '27. He is a two-way baller who has been busy in the off-season getting ready for a breakthrough year for the Wildcats. On offense he is a wideout who can also line up in the slot and on defense is a versatile defensive back who can play corner or drop back and play safety. He has been busy this off-season, training with Coach Rashad Daniels and also playing 7v7 with the Kansas Colts. His spring is going to be busy, as he identified a number of camps that are best suited for improving skills while at the same time getting as much exposure as possible. He ended up narrowing his list down to some big camps and a few closer to home, and will be headed to Kansas State, Kansas, Oklahoma State, Emporia State, Northwestern Oklahoma State and Southwestern Oklahoma State. Get this guy on your watchlist as he is getting ready to take it to another level this fall.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1657483' first='Gavin' last='Saner']<a href="https://prepredzone.com/player/gavin-saner/"></a> </strong>,5'11”, 190, LB, Valley Center, ‘26. He is coming off an excellent junior season as a pile-driving linebacker who got better with every game. On the year he stacked up 66 tackles and four tackles for loss, which included a game toward the end of the season when he made 15 tackles against Goddard. He is currently flying under the radar somewhat but that will change in a hurry this fall. He has had a busy off-season as he just wrapped up wrestling and is currently playing third base for the Hornets baseball team. He plans to try and go to both football and baseball camps this spring and has decided on Kansas and locally with Friends to begin with. So far he has a couple of college offers from Friends and Ottawa out of the KCAC. He also recently received an invitation to play in the Hawaii Tiki Bowl in December. With a lot of baseball and football ahead of him in the near future he is focused on a huge senior season in both.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1658349' first='Drayden' last='Camp']</strong>, 6'1, 230, OL/DL, <em>Arkansas City</em>, '28. He is another baller flying under the radar but that is going to change quickly once he gets rolling. As a two-way player he is a force in the trenches on both sides of the ball. He has a powerful frame and a strong base with room to grow. He also has excellent quickness with good lateral speed and footwork along the line of scrimmage. A multi-sport athlete, he is playing AAU basketball in addition to staying busy lifting, doing speedwork and agilities. He has had a number of camp invites that he is currently sorting through but has not decided which ones are going to offer the best combo of skill-set work and exposure. With his versatile game and ability to play numerous positions on both offense and defense, he is going to be an asset for the Bulldogs. This guy is going to terrorize the trenches this fall, so get out and see a rising star in the making.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In conclusion, get these guys on your watchlist as they are getting ready to roll this fall. Give me a shout via DM on X if you run across any guys flying under the radar.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And, as always:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>K</em></strong><em><strong>eep grindin</strong></em>‘…</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Note</em></strong>: as a friendly reminder, your profiles have been created on&nbsp;<em>Prep Redzone</em>. We encouraged you to claim your profiles by using the following link&nbsp;<a href="https://prepredzone.com/prospect-index/"><strong>https://prepredzone.com/prospect-index/</strong></a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->