Six 2027 Baton Rouge prospects to watch this season

Louisiana high schools are fast approaching fall football camp and, in just over a month, the 2026 season.   A strong wave of talent coming through the state means plenty of notable players to watch — as usual for the typically rich recruiting ground — including many for the final go-round in their respective high school seasons.   Heading into August, Prep Redzone Louisiana will take a look around the state region-by-region at some of the most promising student-athletes to take a Friday night to see while they're close before heading off to college opportunities around the country.   Here are half a dozen seniors from Baton Rouge and the capital area to watch this fall.   [player_tooltip player_id='642719' first='Elijah' last='Haven'] — 6-4, 220 QB — Dunham   Alphabetical order works out fittingly here, because there's no other place to start this list than the Tigers' quarterback. The Alabama commit is one of the nation's top prospects and faces of Louisiana's special class of quarterbacks overall. He compiled a record-breaking and decorated junior season to help lead his program to its first state title in more than two decades and has remained hungry as ever this offseason to make a run at a repeat with his team this fall before heading to Tuscaloosa. Dunham will face a beefed-up non-district slate this fall and an increasingly challenging Division-III Select bracket in the postseason, but should again be a top contender with its highly productive, highly experienced and high-character leader at the helm.   [player_tooltip player_id='739753' first='Landon' last='Johnson'] — 6-1, 175 DB/ATH — Madison Prep   "Manu" joins Haven in building what will becoming a recurring theme on the Baton Rouge list of highly ranked prospects who have been leaders for their respective programs from extremely early in their high school careers. Johnson is also arguably the most versatile player on this list with not only his ability to play all over the secondary — where he's slated to play free safety for TCU at the next level — but a résumé thus far that has included being a top receiver, dual-threat quarterback and game-changing return weapon for the Chargers the past few years.   [player_tooltip player_id='1356113' first='Marvin' last='Joseph'] Jr. — 6-0, 170 DB/ATH — Central   The recent Houston commit was a breakout star as a sophomore whose performance in all three phases was critical to Central's historic state-title run. Now as he and his strong senior class have the Wildcats with similar aspirations, Joseph is not only a top playmaker and highly ranked prospect, but a clear leader with his mentality and work ethic. He has always been one of the most instinctive players in the state who is always around the ball with a knack for takeaways, jarring hits and other high-impact plays, and he's now bigger, stronger and more experienced. Baton Rouge is loaded with highly ranked prospects this season, so we've tried to spread the list around and avoid doubling up for schools, but the Wildcats' senior class features several of note, including fellow safety [player_tooltip player_id='942208' first='Mason' last='Moore'] and fellow Houston commit [player_tooltip player_id='2227401' first='Marcus' last='Watson Jr.']   [player_tooltip player_id='1610147' first='Ethan' last='Kimmie'] — 6-4, 190 WR — Zachary   The big target on the outside is one of the state's top remaining uncommitted prospects as he continues his development from an intriguing, but raw underclassman when he first received his first college offer to now a stronger, more well-rounded weapon with a clear vision of how his game translates to the next level at whichever of his long list of Power-Four suitors he ultimately chooses. The multisport standout's tall, long frame is immediately eye-catching, and his ball skills and body control enable him to routinely make highlight-reel plays beating defenders at the catch-point or adjusting for acrobatic catches in the air, against tight coverage or along the sideline.   [player_tooltip player_id='739720' first='Jayden' last='Miles'] — 6-2, 205 RB — Catholic-Baton Rouge   Time has flown by for the Bears' big, physical running back from his time as the young players about whom his older teammates raved to now being a senior leader. Catholic is another program with several notable prospects to watch, including fellow highly, ranked FBS-bound players in tight end [player_tooltip player_id='1610241' first='Jude' last='Chamberlain'] (Stanford), offensive tackle [player_tooltip player_id='1801742' first='Jackson' last='Shaw'] (Tulane) and defensive end [player_tooltip player_id='1356164' first='Jayden' last='Vessell']. But, focusing on one here to spread the wealth around the area, the Florida State-committed Miles has been a top running back prospect in the class his entire career and a face of a loaded backfield rotation for the Bears that should loom large as ever this fall with turnover at quarterback.   [player_tooltip player_id='485983' first='Emmanuel' last='Moses'] — 5-11, 180 DB — University Lab   Another longtime highly ranked prospect in the class preparing for his final prep campaign after a decorated career, "ManMan" will also wrap up an era of three talented Moses brothers making their mark on the U-High program and will try to help lead his increasingly talented Cubs team back to the state-title mountain top. The senior safety is another of the smartest players in the state whose feel for the game and anticipation allow him to play even faster than his natural speed, which has tested well in its own right on the camp circuit. And whether the ball is in the air or in an opponents' hands, Moses arrives as a ballhawk or hard-hitting enforcer with his combination of ball skills and physicality.

Louisiana high schools are fast approaching fall football camp and, in just over a month, the 2026 season.