Examining ’26 Breakout Candidates at Linebacker

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong><em>Get 30% off your first billing cycle with code:&nbsp;howe30&nbsp;in the coupon code area</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While we don't want to wish summer away too fast, it's easy to peak around the corner and see the Iowa high school football season quickly approaching. Friday night lights will be shining brightly before we know it.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>In preparation for the upcoming campaign, I thought it would be fun identifying five breakout candidates at each position.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Here's the group at the linebacker position:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2119954' first='Cael' last='Moore'], 2029, Lewis Central</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>It's a Lewis Central program with a roster so strong from top to bottom every year that just earning a spot on varsity stands as an accomplishment. Moore did just that in 2025, setting up what could very well be a breakout season for a Titan outfit looking to bounce back by its standards. Clips on his <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/19168579/Cael-Moore/highlights" id="https://www.hudl.com/profile/19168579/Cael-Moore/highlights">Hudl page</a> hint at it being a real possibility. He already embraces the game's physicality. It will be a matter of finding a positional home as he develops his game and projectable frame.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2119749' first='Kipton' last='Curless'], 2029, Ankeny Centennial</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Ankeny Centennial does a wonderful job of developing versatile athletes into college prospects. The Jaguars provide options to programs at the next level by offering up a roster with multi-positional guys waiting to be developed on the field and in the weight room. It's early but Curless has that look to him when we check out his <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/22952332/68e04ad8790a18a9da0701eb" id="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/22952332/68e04ad8790a18a9da0701eb">freshman highlight video</a> from 2025. A high-motor middle linebacker, he identifies the offense's intentions through key reads prior to the play getting underway. Curless is fast and physical, lowering the boom from sideline to sideline.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2119728' first='Gavyn' last='Gatewood'], 2029, Ankeny</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Like Moore at Lewis Central, Gatewood being on the Ankeny varsity roster as a freshman last fall could very well been a foreshadowing of a breakout season in 2026. It's not easy cracking the Ankeny lineup as an underclassman, but he's put himself in position to do so. We can see that while checking out his <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/26560078/69dd30fbd3794ccd028a8376" id="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/26560078/69dd30fbd3794ccd028a8376">ninth-grade clips on Hudl</a>. Gatewood is an active middle linebacker, seeing tendencies during pre-snap actions that put him in position to get downhill as soon as the play is underway. He uses his hands well in getting off of blocks, flows well to the football and delivers technically sound tackling.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1687021' first='Appley' last='Rees'], 2029, Bishop Heelan</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Like the other programs with athletes included in this rundown, Bishop Heelan's consistent success makes it challenging for underclassmen to break through. Rees learned that last season while developing on the non-varsity levels for a program that reached the state championship game in 2025. Only a freshman, he set himself up to impact proceedings this fall when we watch the progress and production on the <a href="https://x.com/reesappley2/status/1982582430155571308?s=20" id="https://x.com/reesappley2/status/1982582430155571308?s=20">ninth-grade highlight video</a>. Rees reported hauling in eight passes for 181 yards and four touchdowns, and collecting 41.0 tackles, nine tackles for loss and two sacks in seven games. He could end up tormenting opposing defenses as a dangerous, big-play threat on the outside. Rees also might evolve into an athletic defender at linebacker or in the secondary.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='2104867' first='Shonn' last='Bell'], 2028, Davenport West</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Bell provided hope for the future during a tough 2025 at Davenport West, registering 29.0 tackles, 11 of which were solo stops, a tackle for loss and a fumble recovery. We witness a mature game when watching his <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/23006805/68efc05f0c6acebc0ab909ca" id="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/23006805/68efc05f0c6acebc0ab909ca">10th-grade highlight video</a>. He's an athletic, long-limbed defender with a high football IQ. Bell is fast to the football, getting downhill in a hurry and operating effectively within the scheme. He's disciplined and a sure tackler. There's speed and quickness, which should hold as he fills out his projectable frame.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->