All-State Championship Teams: Small School Defense

<!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size">Earlier this week a took a look at the big school (Divisions 1-3) and small school (Divisions 4-7) all championship teams for offense and defense. In this article I'll be breaking down the small school all-defensive team.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">Defensive Line</span></strong><br><strong>2027 [player_tooltip player_id='632828' first='Kaylon' last='Bailey'] (Glenville) 6'1 230-</strong> 5 Tackles, 3 Sacks, .5 TFL's, 4 QB Hits. Bailey was pretty much unblockable all day long. He has a great burst to get to the edge and bends well.<br><br><strong>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1353218' first='Aiden' last='Ewald'] (Hopewell-Loudon) 6'2 255- 13 Tackles and 1 TFL.</strong> Ewald showed good strength, and a strong anchor. He also has the ability to shoot gaps to make plays.<br><br><strong>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1412485' first='Carter' last='Kessler'] (Shelby) 6'3 235-</strong> 6 Tackles and 1.5 TFL's. Kessler did a great job setting the edge and being a physical presence in the run game.<br><br><strong>2027 Nick Lefeld (St. Henry) 6'3 240-</strong> 4 Tackles, 1 TFL, 2 QB Hits. Lefeld gets off the ball well and plays with good pad level. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">Linebacker</span></strong><br><strong>2027 Jaxton Lawniczak (Liberty Center) 6'1 205-</strong> 5 Tackles 1.5 TFL's, and 3 QB Hits. Lawniczak is a twitchy backer with great closing speed. He's also strong in coverage.<br><br><strong>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1591653' first='Sam' last='Gwirtz'] (Shelby) 6'1 180-</strong> 14 Tackles, 1.5 TFL's. Gwirtz was playing sidelines to sidelines. He also played downhill and physical between the tackles.<br><br><strong>2026 Jake LaVerde (Kirtland) 6'2 210-</strong> 10 Tackles .5 TFL's, 1 PBU. While Laverde is known for his QB play, he also holds it down on the defensive side of the ball. LaVerde does a great job coming up in the run game. He's also solid in the coverage.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"fontSize":"medium"} --> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><br><br><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline">Defensive Back</span></strong><br>2028 [player_tooltip player_id='1167344' first='Jaylen' last='Edwards'] (Glenville) 1 Tackle, 1 INT, 3 PBU's. The super sophomore was roaming all over the secondary and making his presence felt. He has high end athleticism and ball skills. He also is looking to a lay a lick on receivers when he gets a chance.<br><br>2026 Ryan Caimi (Kirtland) 5'9 160- 7 Tackles, 1 INT, and 2 PBU's. Caimi was sticky in coverage as he was stick in the hip pocket of the opposing receivers. He does a great job of being in position and making plays on the ball.<br><br>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='970982' first='Brayden' last='DeVito'] (Shelby) 3 Tackles, 2 PBU's- Devito showed off his athleticism and ball skills at corner. He nearly came up with an interception.<br><br>2026 [player_tooltip player_id='1709912' first='Aaron' last='Scales'] (Glenville) 5'9 170- 2 Tackles, and 2 PBU's. Scales was strong in coverage. He's athletic and has loose hips. He's patient in coverage.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->