Top players from each team Good Counsel will face in 2026

Good Counsel has some out-of-state flavor in the first few games in its schedule with teams from Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey in the mix. Right in the middle of that is a matchup with MIAA powerhouse Archbishop Spalding.   Note: For the purposes of this article, I'll pick one player from both the 2027 and 2028 classes. I'll be using the current rankings for each class to identify the top player on that team.   8/28: BIshop McDevitt (PA)   Top 2027 prospect: Zayden Smith | 6-5 | 205 | Ath - PRZ ranking No. 7 (PA)   Smith transferred to Bishop McDevitt during the off-season from Cumberland Valley. It'll give the Crusaders another offensive option.   Top 2028 prospect: Howard Holton Jr. | 5-9 | 188 | WR - PRZ ranking No. 14 (PA)   9/4: Bergen Catholic (NJ)   Top 2027 prospect: Austin Busso | 6-0 | 180 | WR - PRZ ranking No. 38 (NJ)   Busso caught 40 passes for 881 yards and 11 touchdowns last season (yes, that's 22 yards per catch). He has an official visit set up for South Florida from May 29th-31st. He has received offers from Ohio, Miami (OH), Tennessee, and Ole Miss this month.   Top 2028 prospect: Jackson Vaughn | 6-3 | 220 | DL - PRZ ranking No. 3 (NJ)   Vaughn took a spring visit to Notre Dame on March 22nd.   9/11: Archbishop Spalding   Top 2027 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='734850' first='Myles' last='McAfee'] | 6-0 | 165 | WR - PRZ ranking No. 9   McAfee's latest offer came from Notre Dame back in late February.   Top 2028 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='1644118' first='Bryce' last='Smalls'] | 6-5 | 285 | OL - PRZ ranking No. 1   Hard to believe he's been playing football for only two years. One of the top offensive linemen in the nation. Smalls took a spring visit to Virginia Tech last Saturday.   9/18: Middletown (DE)   Top 2027 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='934039' first='DJ' last='Davis'] | 6-2 | 175 | Ath - PRZ ranking No. 12   Davis will be checking out a spring football practice at Penn State on Friday. He took a spring visit to South Carolina on March 21st. Davis has an official visit set for West Virginia from May 29th - May 31st.   Top 2028 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='1239199' first='Tysir' last='Young'] | 6-3 | 220 | Edge - PRZ ranking No. 2   Young has been one of the hottest recruits for a good while now. Notre Dame gave him his 27th scholarship offer on March 25th. Earlier this month, both Alabama and Georgia offered him. He had a monster sophomore-year season, finishing with 85.5 tackles, 14.5 sacks, and 13 tackles for loss.   9/25: Malvern Prep (PA)   Top 2027 prospect: Cade Cooper | 6-3 | 190 | WR - PRZ ranking No. 9 (PA)   Georgia and Georgia Tech both offered Cooper earlier this month.   Top 2028 prospect: George Parkinson IV | 6-4 | 230 - Edge - PRZ ranking No. 2   According to his X account, Parkinson is at Ohio State today for a spring practice visit. He recently took a spring practice visit to Tennessee on March 22nd. He finished the 2025 season with 53 tackles, eight sacks, 23 quarterback hurries, and 11 tackles for a loss.   10/2: St. Mary's Ryken   Top 2027 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='1496535' first='Malachi' last='Milburn'] | 5-8 | 180 | RB - DB - PRZ ranking No. 70   Mulburn took in a Junior Day visit at Cornell on March 8th.   Top 2028 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='1708160' first='Tyler' last='Holmes'] | 6-2 | 180 | DB - PRZ ranking No. 101   Holmes finished with 20 tackles, 13 pass breakups, and two interceptions during the 2025 season.   10/9: DeMatha Catholic   Top 2027 Player : [player_tooltip player_id='505244' first='James' last='Pace III'] | 6-4 | 235 | Edge - PRZ ranking: No. 1   I didn't even have to look up the rankings to know this answer. There's no question that the Cavaliers will be spending a lot of time gameplanning for one of the top defensive linemen in the country.   Top 2028 Player: [player_tooltip player_id='1078829' first='Nikolas' last='Stevens'] | 6-5 | 265 | OL - DL - PRZ ranking No. 18   Offers have been trickling in for Stevens since the start of the new year. His latest offer from UConn came on March 24th.   10/16: St. John's College   Top 2027 Player: [player_tooltip player_id='734810' first='Da'Jon' last='Talley-Rhodes'] | 6-1 | 215 | RB - PRZ ranking No. 16   Rhodes will be taking spring visits to Penn State, Boston College, Indiana, and Wisconsin.   Top 2028 Player: [player_tooltip player_id='1166085' first='William' last='Crawford'] | 6-5 | 300 | OL - PRZ ranking No. 11   Crawford has over 10 offers, with Virginia Tech being his latest (March 24th).   10/23: Gonzaga   Top 2027 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='1631716' first='Tyler' last='Frederick'] | 6-3 | 262 | DL - PRZ ranking No. 77   The month of March saw Frederick's recruitment start to heat up. Toledo, Navy, Dartmouth, and Army all offered Frederick in the first couple of weeks. His offer from Wisconsin on March 21st should turn things up another notch for him.   Top 2028 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='2070999' first='Patrick' last='Shime'] | 6-8 | 220 | Edge/WR - PRZ ranking No. 38   Shime is a dual-sport athlete (also a baller). His recent football offer came from LSU on January 22nd.   11/7: Bishop McNamara   Top 2027 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='1536998' first='Cain' last='Van Norden'] | 6-7 | 265 | TE/DL - PRZ ranking No. 22   When I had a chance to watch him in person during the season, my thoughts were along the lines of "he's going to blow up this offseason". Sure enough, he's racked up a good number of Power 4 offers. Virginia Tech (17th), Rutgers (18th), and Florida (19th) are his latest.   Top 2028 prospect: [player_tooltip player_id='1645095' first='Lawrence' last='Diggs'] | 6-2 | 170 | DB - PRZ ranking No. 25   Diggs was at Virginia Tech for spring Practice on March 21st.

Good Counsel has some out-of-state flavor in the first few games in its schedule with teams from Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey in the mix. Right in the middle of that is a matchup with MIAA powerhouse Archbishop Spalding.