Forest Hills Central Scouting Report vs. Byron Center
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Last night featured a phenomenal OK White matchup between 4-0 Forest Hills Central and 4-0 Byron Center. This was a high-level game featuring many notable athletes on both teams. Down the stretch, FHC made some great plays offensively and defensively…
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Continue ReadingLast night featured a phenomenal OK White matchup between 4-0 Forest Hills Central and 4-0 Byron Center. This was a high-level game featuring many notable athletes on both teams. Down the stretch, FHC made some great plays offensively and defensively that gave them the chance to win this game. Even though the Rangers couldn’t get it done in the end, there were multiple players who I thought played well. This article will feature the five players I watched most closely for FHC!
DB/WR | Ty Hudkins Ty Hudkins 6'0" | 190 lbs | DB Forest Hills Central | 2024 State MI | Hudl
Ty was the most impressive player I watched for FHC. No surprise here, as Ty recently committed to Purdue and has demonstrated his elite DB abilities time and time again. Though, I actually saw a lot of growth in multiple areas compared to years prior. First, Ty was a very vocal leader on defense. You could see Ty on critical downs hyping up his teammates, talking about assignments, and overall being extremely locked in. Next, I’ve seen big improvements in his run defense. Coming in from his safety position, he was oftentimes the furthest away from the ball on run plays. I can’t tell you how many times I saw Ty sprint from safety to the ballcarrier where he laid down a big hit near the line of scrimmage. In other words, he wasn’t making tackles 5+ yards downfield like you often see with safeties. Ty had the athleticism and reaction time to attack the run like a linebacker. He even had a touchdown-saving tackle where he sprinted to the sideline to deliver a hard hit at the 1-yard line. This tackle led to a goalline stand.
Next, Ty had a few good plays on passing downs. His speed and IQ served him well once again most of the time. It is notable that he did give up the game-ending 2-pt conversation. My video on it is pretty poor, but it does look like Ty should have made a play. Lastly, Ty was used a fair amount on offense and did well. Nothing that will blow you away, but he had a few catches.
RB | JT Hartman JT Hartman 5'9" | 190 lbs | RB Forest Hills Central | 2024 State MI | Hudl
JT had himself a good game both on offense and defense. First off, JT looks noticeably bigger and more built than in years past. He looks more like a well-rounded running back who can demonstrate some power, not just athleticism. In the run game, JT made a few critical plays on outside runs and speed-in-space type plays. He broke a few bigger plays that were paramount to FHC’s scoring drives. I was also slightly surprised to see him playing both sides of the ball, and he made a few tackles. I’m still unsure of JTs true ceiling. I expect him to have a good season, but this offseason will be the make or break for his college recruitment if that’s the route he’s pursuing.
QB | Mason McDonald | Hudl
Mason struggled for much of the evening, but that’s not to say he didn’t make good plays. Now, this is an honest scouting report and evaluation, so I’ll be pointing out some negatives. Mason had a few impressive runs as well as boutes of extending the play and making things happen. Though he generally looked uncomfortable out there. The defensive pressure was in his face often, and he was taken down for a sack/TFL multiple times. As for passing, Mason was on-par with what I saw of him last season. Mason demonstrated some amazing poise in the 2022 postseason and State Championship, and I hope to see more of those highs and confidence moving forward.
ATH | Maxwell Richardson Maxwell Richardson 6'3" | 215 lbs | ATH Forest Hills Central | 2025 MI | Hudl
I didn’t specifically watch Max too closely, but his name was still being called quite a bit, and he was difficult to ignore. One play in particular comes to mind from last night (view tweet below). Max showed great instincts as he moved from his assignment to another receiver as the ball was in the air, coming inches away from an interception. He also made several other plays both on offense and defense.
DL | Quinlen Sutherland | Hudl
Out of all FHC defensive linemen, Quinlen stood out to me the most. Most notably, he consistently fired off the ball quicker than any of his teammates, oftentimes giving him a big advantage with his quickness. He made a few great plays in the run game, and many times out-physicalled his opposing lineman. I need to watch the film to see other good things he did, but there’s not doubt that Quinlen made a big difference in this one.