Detroit Lions: Michigan Prospects with the most GRIT

There are a small handful of players I watch in person, and their stock instantly rises. A lot of the time, that's because of amazing toughness or leadership. All of these players are extremely tough players, and I have a story to go along with most. By proxy, these are all players who are undoubtedly looked up to by their peers. Great players, great toughness, and a few D1 prospects.    I watched Darryl in two games last year: Week 1 and the State Championship.   Especially during Week 1, I saw a ton of grit from the then-QB. Darryl had moments where he was pressured, flushed out of the pocket, and a couple of big hits. There was a momnet where I thought Darryl was shaken up, but he came right back up and continued playing at a high level.   Next season, Darryl is expected to transition to WR/DB. I am confident that he not only has the athletic ability to play both positions, but the grit to play all four quarters, even when banged up.     Lukas is one of many Clarkston players who fought tooth and nail to nearly bring down Belleville during week 1 of last year.   Specifically, Lukas fought extremely hard on both sides of the ball. I'll admit, he (and everyone else) slowed down a little bit in the 4th quarter, but he just kept fighting. It was a hot day, week 1, against the most physically dominant team in the state. If you've ever gone through a season, you'll know that the vast majority of players aren't fully conditioned until a few weeks into the season.   Hats off to Lukas and many others on Clarkston for taking a ton of hits, playing both sides of the ball, and fighting until the final whistle.     Someone who I kind-of wrote off until recently. But you turn on his tape (and I don't just mean highlights) and you'll see a very tough, reactive linebacker.   Utica's 2024 schedule was no joke. Carter faced off against teams like Dakota (x2), Grosse Pointe South, Roseville, and Warren Cousino (a team with a good rushing offense)   In all of those games, Carter proved his worth. I especially like Carter's play as a Mike linebacker. Plus, he played quite a bit of offense, and I liked his physicality there.     The leader of the Grand Rapids Catholic Central defense.   I've been a tad critical of Brayden in the past, but one thing I absolutely won't question is his toughness. Coming out of the gate, Brayden was a very vocal leader and made a few early plays against ND Prep. I especially liked his ability to play sideline-to-sideline as an off-ball mike. This is also a very well-built football player. Strong, quick, and build to withstand consistent contact.     I gained a ton of respect for [player_tooltip player_id='1529458' first='Dominic' last='Piggue'] after I watched his regular-season matchup against Byron Center.   Dominic played a large part of this game while hurt (looked like a rib/abdominal injury). Like Lukas, I saw Dominic slow down a little bit in between plays. But, once the ball was snapped, he remained locked in and fast. There was one good tackle late in the game where Dominic probably could have softly wrapped up and hip-dropped, but instead, Dominic runs through the ballcarrier- I knew that hurt for both of them.   I love Dominic as a slot DB at the next level. Looking forward to seeing how colleges view him in the coming months.

There are a small handful of players I watch in person, and their stock instantly rises. A lot of the time, that's because of amazing toughness or leadership. All of these players are extremely tough players, and I have a story to go along with most. By proxy, these are all players who are undoubtedly looked up to by their peers. Great players, great toughness, and a few D1 prospects.