Small School, Big Impact: Underclassmen

The small schools across WI have been rich with talent over the years. We have seen athletes from the smallest division commit to FBS and FCS schools just in the past 3 years alone. In Wisconsin you truly can't leave any stone unturned because you might miss out on an absolute steal. Here at PRZ WI we want to help in avoiding that potential scenario so we are going to help search those small schools and talk about the underclassmen who could have an impactful role for themselves this fall. We will consider D5 and lower to be small school for the sake of this article. Get these kids on your boards today, so it isn't an issue down the road.    When it comes to small school athletes, Bode is the cream of the crop in the current 2028 rankings. The Mondovi QB1 will be back at the helm after earning a ton of playing time as a freshman. He checks in at 6' 185 lbs, is strong as you could hope for a QB to be, and dominates with his legs. Bode can hit a seam and take it 50+ yards to the house on any given play. This fall will be an exciting one as he not only runs through defenses, but also continues to establish and develop his passing abilities. This is a must watch kid because the breakout potential is massive this fall.     When it comes to physicality, power, and mental tenacity in the Class of 2028 my mind goes to Kewaunee's [player_tooltip player_id='1709717' first='Dane' last='Harrell']. Dane was a varsity OL and edge defender. That isn't a wild occurrence, but it becomes much more impressive when you see that he was bullying DL as a 205 lbs OL. Dane shows up and does his job and he does it to the best of his abilities. Abilities amplified by outstanding length, and an initial get-off at the snap that allowed him to get hands on first, create separation as a pass rusher/edge setter, and then shed the block and attack the ball. This fall I'm excited to see where his frame is at and watch him continue to develop the finer parts of hand use and block shedding overall.     I'm a big fan of Peyton. The incoming sophomore has been dedicating a lot of time to the weight room this offseason. I'm excited to see the force that his 305 lbs frame is able to generate in the trenches this fall. The big man is a violent athlete that was already moving kids around as a freshman. This fall coaches and I will be looking for that next leap in his power and development in his mobility and flexibility so that he can win with leverage on top of that raw power.     We recently wrote about Toay when talking about the new additions to the 2028 rankings. I came away very impressed by the LB/QB during that time. Ragatz has the frame to continue to build himself into a standout recruit. As an LB he flies around the field relentlessly, closes quick, and runs his feet through his tackles. Lancaster loves to get their QBs involved on the ground and this kid has the skill set to do that often on Friday nights. He runs the ball with the same aggressiveness as when he is hunting it down on defense. Get ready for this dude to prove himself even more impactful than he did as a freshman.     The time is about here to watch Jayson take over at the helm for what has been one of the most productive offenses in WI. MAS piles up the yardage and that is in big part because of the past QB. That massive workload looks like it will be turned over to Jayson. The 2028 has the tools with accuracy that has been flashing all over this summer 7v7 games. As has his ability to fire the ball into tight spots in the short to intermediate levels of the field. But Friday nights are different, so I'm excited to see Jayson step up to this challenge.     An under the radar kid that could really pop this fall is Johnrell out of Dodgeville. The 6' 170 lbs RB is a one cut and go type of runner. You won't see much wasted movement on this kid's tape. He is always trying to move downfield. He has already shown he can tote the rock inside and outside plus Johnrell is a reliable receiving threat. With the ball in his hands, Rickard is a hard running athlete who will punish his opponents and break through arm tackles. I'll be keeping an eye out for this dude.     Julian is undersized for the DL position, but that didn't stop him from being an impact player in the trenches on varsity as a freshman. The 2028 is explosive off the line and that quickness puts him in so many advantageous situations. Whether it be winning with leverage or getting a step on an IOL, if Julian gets off the snap with that usuallyg great timing then big things usually follow for him and the defense. He is turning into a tough matchup already. I can't wait to see the weekly numbers and tape from this kid.

The small schools across WI have been rich with talent over the years. We have seen athletes from the smallest division commit to FBS and FCS schools just in the past 3 years alone. In Wisconsin you truly can't leave any stone unturned because you might miss out on an absolute steal. Here at PRZ WI we want to help in avoiding that potential scenario so we are going to help search those small schools and talk about the underclassmen who could have an impactful role for themselves this fall. We will consider D5 and lower to be small school for the sake of this article. Get these kids on your boards today, so it isn't an issue down the road.