Sophomore’s Making a Splash This Season

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The 2023 season has already passed the halfway mark and players are gaining valuable minutes of experience as the playoffs near. These sophomores have provided their programs with a "right now" impact instead of waiting for years to come to provide their teams with production.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>Cole Bentz | Quarterback | Batesville</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Cole Bentz took over the quarterback position two weeks ago and the Pioneer offense has found life under the strong arm of the sophomore. Since Bentz had been named the starter the 'Neers have gone 2-0 in 5A East competition and are playing in what might be a play-in game for the 5A playoffs against Wynne at home this Friday night. Coach Ryan Morrow has showered praise on the quarterback's work ethic and the determination to study film to find areas to improve. Bentz is great at progressively reading defenses, staying cool under pressure by creating yardage with his legs and throwing with great consistency on the run. His speed doesn't stand out but his elusiveness and IQ to understand when to tuck the ball is key.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='424578' first='Creed' last='Brown'] | Offensive Lineman | Clinton</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>This guy must be serving breakfast because all you see on film is pancakes. The quickness off the snap is blatant and the ability to gain leverage quickly after snapping the ball is a quality to take note of. [player_tooltip player_id='424578' first='Creed' last='Brown'] (6-0, 310) gives the Clinton Yellowjackets a force in the middle of the line that can handle solo defensive alignments with his quickness and brute strength.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1415587' first='Deandre' last='Blair'] | Wide Receiver | Texarkana</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another prospective high-end talent to come out of the state, [player_tooltip player_id='1415587' first='Deandre' last='Blair'] is a go-to player for the Arkansas High Razorbacks. With a skillset that resembles former Hog Treylon Burks, Blair has the frame to match the physicality he plays with his traffic and his 50/50 scenarios. A "get it to him and get out of the way" type of player, Blair calls for double teams no matter when he lines up on the field. Blair's concentration catch skills in traffic are impressive for such a young player. Watch for this potential breakout candidate as he progresses in his craft.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='1152116' first='Owen' last='McLaughlin'] | Running Back | Batesville</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>With two players on this list, the youth movement in Batesville is in full effect. A sophomore-led backfield with his signal caller listed above, [player_tooltip player_id='1152116' first='Owen' last='McLaughlin'] has performed just as his coach had predicted he would in the preseason Coach Morrow had told Prep Redzone the excitement he had for the young ball carrier. At 5-7, 170 pounds the sophomore has toted the ball a whopping 78 times in just 6 games while averaging 6.7 yards per carry. Since taking over the RB1 spot for the run-heavy program, McLaughlin has run for 181, 140, and 186 with 6 scores. Forget the sky as a ceiling for this player...TO THE MOON.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>[player_tooltip player_id='419938' first='Ty' last='McCormick'] | Quarterback | Beebe</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The quarterback for the Beebe Badgers, [player_tooltip player_id='419938' first='Ty' last='McCormick'], is tough as nails. Shown below, the hurler doesn't go down as easy as some defensive backs might assume. He has also shown the ability to put the pigskin on a dime in thick coverage intermediate throws and the touch passes in the deeper parts of the field. For a sophomore, McCormick shows compusure as an upperclassmen by creating time with his legs while peppering darts to receivers dashing across the field.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:embed {"url":"https://twitter.com/TyMcCormick06/status/1708172295095603419","type":"rich","providerNameSlug":"twitter","responsive":true} --> <figure class="wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter"><div class="wp-block-embed__wrapper"> https://twitter.com/TyMcCormick06/status/1708172295095603419 </div></figure> <!-- /wp:embed -->