Valley City State Prospect Camp: Offensive Standouts

For the first time, we got off our usual camp trail as last Monday was our first time at the Valley City State prospect camp in Valley City, ND. With nearly 80 athletes in attendance with the Vikings, we surely saw a lot of under the radar names that some we have seen before, but others more than some camps are getting their first look. From prospects all over North Dakota to as far as Honolulu, Hawaii we start off from our first time in Valley City with our offensive standouts   Quarterbacks   [player_tooltip player_id='1422613' first='Gabe' last='Whipple'], Kindred, ND 2026 <a href="https://x.com/gwhip22">Twitter</a>   Gabe is a 2026 quarterback prospect that has been on my radar for a while, that has all the athletic traits and measurables you could want at the quarterback position, as it paid off in Valley City last Monday, as he got on the board with his first offer. We've known from our PRZ Dakotas Showcase that Gabe is elusive out the pocket, but his testing numbers from Vikings country give off even more value. The nearly 6'3 180 pounder, went 7.09 at that size in the L-drill and and showed off great consistent numbers in the pro agility with a 4.38. Getting a chance to watch Gabe's 1v1 reps, even with the wind in Valley City, I could grasp all day that Gabe got better rep after rep showing off the smooth quick release he has at his disposal that can hit on all three levels. With Jake Starcevic headed to Army football, Gabe will have the full keys to the fueling powerhouse that is Kindred Vikings football, as they move up to 11AA for the 2025 season.   [player_tooltip player_id='1575880' first='Braylen' last='Bowsher'], Millbank, SD 2026 <a href="https://x.com/BrayBowsher">Twitter</a>   I' have gotten the chance to watch Braylon a handful of times now, and what I saw out of his QB outing in Valley City, was in my eyes his best reps of the summer as the 2026 quarterback from Milbank is peaking at the perfect time as we enter July. The 5'11 175 pounder was the best tester in the quarterback group in Valley City as another 2026 QB that walked out with his first offer from the Vikings. Braylen I felt grew in his live eval with his overall balance and poise at the quarterback position. It was especially noted watching his touch throws take flight in Valley City, as he continuously put a handful of them that I watched a dime showing off quick communicative chemistry with the WR core he matched up with. His testing numbers ran with a 4.74 40-yard dash, 4.36 in the pro agility, a 27.2 inch triple broad jump and back to back 7.31s in the L-drill tell me the Vikings are searching highly for that athlete that can get out of the pocket and throw which aligns well with their two offers that went out this week.   Running Backs   [player_tooltip player_id='1422837' first='McKade' last='Zink'], Carrington, ND 2027 <a href="https://x.com/MckadeZink7">Twitter</a>   The first underclassmen that caught my attention in the live eval in Valley City at the running back position was Carrington's [player_tooltip player_id='1422837' first='McKade' last='Zink'], which is a RB target we got our first camp eval on this summer. McKade popped out in the live eval was his noticable burst thru all the reps I watched, and even when he had to rebound with his footwork, he was proactive by re-releasing with his good lower body. The key numbers during testing for Mckade aligned with his pro agility which was a 4.59 and he was in the top two in the RB group for his explosive traits in the triple broad jump which came in over 27 feet. The 5'10 165 pounder also has grown with the speed of his vision while making his cuts was shown during the live reps in Valley. Sure another Carrington Cardinals prospect in the 2027 class picking up some steam during camp season.   Gunnar Halverson, Red Lake Central, MN 2026   The speedster in testing in the running back group hailed from Red Lake Central, as Gunnar Halvorson ran the fastest 40-yard dash and was in the top tier in a couple other testing categories. The 5'11 182 pounder also has ideal next-level size at the NAIA level as one of the bigger framed running backs in the group. He surely is a RB prospect that his tape didn't do the justice like I got on the live eval, as I thought Gunnar was much more elusive in the open field from the looks I got out of him in Valley City.   [player_tooltip player_id='1524638' first='Nash' last='Cooke'], West Fargo Horace, ND 2027 <a href="https://x.com/nash_cooke1">Twitter</a>   If I dished out an RB MVP from the Valley City State prospect camp, my vote would be going for West Fargo Horace 2027 [player_tooltip player_id='1524638' first='Nash' last='Cooke'] who is one I already have as a projected Stockriser with our upcoming 2027 ND rankings update. In my eyes during 1v1s, Nash was the best route-running I saw in the running back group out in Valley as the mix of twitchiness getting seperation to showing a quick process gathering the ball in with instinct with his soft hands, Nash has some excellent reps he showed off. If it means anything, Nash was the only offensive skill prospect that I had double the notes compared to the rest of the group. The 5'11 178 pounder is well put together from the eye test alone and the testing numbers he put up which was a 4.67 in the 40-yard dash (2nd best), 4.50 in the pro agility (top tier) show me quickly too why he's going to be a riser in this class.   Mason Rist, Des Lacs-Burlington, ND 2029   The youngest prospect we had on our radar in the offensive skill group that caught my attention was Des Lacs-Burlington running back Mason Rist in the 2029 class. I'll admit, being in the Dakotas for over five years now I'll say I feel "old", this will be the third Rist brother I have scouted from the Lakers program. He surely is still a work in progress with his skillsets, but the positives I took from Mason's live eval were the fluidity he constantly showed off on every rep and the quickness of his first step with the ball in his hands surely show off a higher game-time speed than the testing numbers might show. We got to get this young man on Twitter!   Wide Receivers/Tight Ends   Jaedon Pablo, James Campbell, HI 2026 <a href="https://x.com/JaedonPablo">Twitter</a>   The farthest travelled prospect I have scouted all summer long made his way to Valley City from Honolulu, which was 2026 wide receiver Jaeden Pablo out of James Campbell HS. Jaedon ran the fastest 40-yard dash time in the group with a 4.72 and also was the best in the pro agility with a 4.40 flat. He had a very quick first step off the top of his route and had the great hands base to make some key receptions on throws that were off line. Another position group that Jaedon I thought blossomed was at cornerback. He was persistent with his physicality early and often against the wide receiver group as I even felt that the DB reps I watched soared over his WR reps, which showed this young man has great position flexibility at the next-level He wasn't the biggest kid out there in the WR/DB groups, but surely was a difference maker on both sides of the ball.   [player_tooltip player_id='1717833' first='Zayer' last='Grant'], Dunseith, ND 2027 <a href="https://x.com/GrantZayer30714">Twitter</a>   A total new name to my radar out of North Dakota, that you can only get from a live eval camp eval was 2027 wide receiver [player_tooltip player_id='1717833' first='Zayer' last='Grant']. I came away quite impressed with how well-versed Zayer was with his hands as he caught anything and everything that came his way regardless if off-line or not. the nearly 6'3 170 pounder from Dunseith also knew how to utilize his 76 inch wingspan to his advantage on a couple reps I watched. I love a young man with a quick growth as most of you know, as that was evident watching Zayer's reps all day in Valley City, as every rep looked more smooth, had better technique than the last.   Offensive Linemen   [player_tooltip player_id='1590557' first='Landon' last='Ralph'], Wapheton, ND 2026 <a href="https://x.com/landonralph42">Twitter</a>   Another offer-worthy offensive linemen that the Vikings pulled the trigger on after the Valley City State prospect camp, came from the live eval I got on [player_tooltip player_id='1590557' first='Landon' last='Ralph'] out of Wapheton. I have seen Landon at some camps this summer, but this live eval was surely his best one from my eyes. The nearly 6'2 now 260 pounder, also came in with a more eye-catching frame than I recall which also caught our attention in Valley City. Landon showed off the wide base that won plenty of reps during the 1v1 sesion and that wasn't the only skillets that drew my attention. I loved how coachable this young man appeared to be, as it was evident he was relishing every detail he could to develop his craft further from the Vikings coaching staff. He also boosted more strength than I expected to see during the live eval which was enlightening to get out of Landon's eval. Surely a young man that also has great character that I could gauge from watching him all afternoon in Valley City as a 2026er on the rise. Surely one of the top-tier OL that was in attendance.   [player_tooltip player_id='1590721' first='Thaydan' last='Arnold'], Watford City, ND 2026   Thaydan has had a hot summer thru our live evals, as just about every camp I have seen him in attendance at in the Dakotas, he's caught my radar. What more could he do to show off his skillsets in Valley City? It's clear as day that Thaydan has plenty of great strength at the point of attack as his disposal, but I noticed an even deeper growth with his football IQ thru the coaching he received from the Valley City staff. During 1v1s, he was the most immovable offensive linemen overall in attendance as I don't recall him losing hardly any 1v1s. He shows off the great pad-level, quick growth with his foot speed, and very quick generation of power. Did I mention too that Thaydan also boosts a 78 inch wingspan? Thaydan is another one you won't find on Twitter but the Watford City product, as shown me a hole lot of growth this summer as one that's a camp stockriser in the Roughrider State as I would assume without the use of Twtter Thaydan has at least a couple offers I would assume.   Andres Good, Minot North, ND 2026   Some of the softest footwork I saw in this offensive line group in Valley City, came out of Minot North 2026 offensive linemen Andres Good. Not only were his feet light in his steps, you could tell quickly that Andres is a 2026 offensive linement that possessed the fluid foot speed that could be solid in a run-blocking scheme when you need a pull-blocker in space. The 6'0 230 pounder still has plenty of frame to grow out in the coming years, but my eyes told me a few times during his live eval, that he could be a good small school target here in the Dakotas.

For the first time, we got off our usual camp trail as last Monday was our first time at the Valley City State prospect camp in Valley City, ND. With nearly 80 athletes in attendance with the Vikings, we surely saw a lot of under the radar names that some we have seen before, but others more than some camps are getting their first look. From prospects all over North Dakota to as far as Honolulu, Hawaii we start off from our first time in Valley City with our offensive standouts