UWEC Big Man Camp: Best of the '26 DL

It was great to hear the pads popping for the first time this offseason at the UWEC Big Man Camp late last week. 140+ of the Midwest's best OL & DL came to town ready to show off their talents in front of college coaches across almost every level of competition. Dozens of the athletes put on a show when the pads went on following the combine and among them were several 2026 DL who caught my eyes on multiple reps. Today we dive into that group of soon-to-be seniors and talk about how they performed. Let's get it started!    One 2026 DL/LB who caught my eyes with his dominant 1 v 1 reps was Bay Port's London Cornell. The 5'9" 200 lbs athlete is undersized for the position, but he was a nightmare of OL all night long. London's ability to win, especially in the pass rush sessions, was versatile. As you might suspect from an undersized kid, London could pile up wins with his quick twitch athleticism while on his path to the QB. His body control and quick feet to make a move that left OTs punching at the air caught my eyes and the eyes of coaches over and over. What was surprising from the highly successful '26 was his ability to also win with power. London was able to explode off the line, get underneath the OT, and drive them off the ball and quickly get them off balance. Every time London caught his opponent off balance he made them pay with his ability to quickly disengage and get around them. London was a nightmare for the OL, and it already is paying off as he has earned an offer from the host school, UW- Eau Claire.     Checking in at 6'1" 255 lbs with a 6'5" wingspan was '26 DE [player_tooltip player_id='1544220' first='Theo' last='Cunningham'] out of Franklin HS. The incoming senior flashed inside/outside versatility with his success across the DL. Theo did really well using his length and the power he brings to the field to quickly create separation and also collapse the pocket. His flexibility allowed him to gain the leverage advantage and also allowed him to play very quickly in tight quarters. That opened up his ability to execute pass rush moves and utilize seams of space to get to the heels of the OL. Theo is another standout in this article who has seen his performance pay off with an offer from UW- Eau Claire.     I was very excited to see Nick in person at UWEC for the camp. I have quickly become a fan of his game following his 7 sack, 10 TFL junior season where he was a menace off the edge. On top of the solid frame, Nick checked in with just shy of a 6'6" wingspan, ran a 1.18 flying 10, and broad jumped 8'1.5". So we saw the production and the number verification. All that was left was to watch him put on the pads and battle live for us and the coaching staffs.   Nick once again delivered. His first step burst off the line almost gave him a head start. The '26 used that advantage to position himself to only have to beat half a man as he quickly would swat the hands down on his way to the QB. Nick's athleticism also shined in his lateral agility. Agility that had OL whiffing on their punches, giving Nick easy wins with speed. Nick also won with power when asked to show that by the coaches. It was a great day showing off the explosive athleticism, length, and power that the Monona Grove athlete possesses.     Muskego has been pumping out the DL talent, especially in recent years. A member of the next wave is [player_tooltip player_id='1801611' first='Caleb' last='Hein']. Caleb made the trek up to UW- Eau Claire and made the trip well worth it, earning an offer from the Blugolds after his camp performance. Caleb played with a very effective blend of power and twitchy short area agility. Hein was able to fly off the line and bull rush OTs off the line and also show off the strong upper body to shed them aside. The big man also demonstrated that he could make moves off that initial surge of power. Caleb was able to show off some quick feet and hips to get to the heels of OL once he got them walking backwards with that initial bull rush. I loved the variety in his attack.     Checking in at 6'1" 207 lbs, the versatile athlete out of Lodi put up a strong performance that garnered him a roster offer from the Blugolds. Kyle possesses almost a 6'4" wingspan on top of the frame, and the rest of his combine numbers were some of the best as well. That includes a 1.16 flying 10, and an 8'10" broad jump. Those numbers came to life in 1v1s. Kyle was a rough matchup because of his speed. He quickly could get the edge, show off his ability to bend and dip, and then race past OL. His length was a major advantage for him as well as he was able to keep himself relatively clean while executing pass rush moves and winning with his lateral athleticism as well. Kyle also brings value on offense too with his receiving talents. It was a strong showing for the standout Lodi athlete.     One of our top DL here at Prep Redzone WI since the Class of 2026 debuted years ago is [player_tooltip player_id='533193' first='Quinn' last='Koepnick']. He has impressed up for years now, and continued that in Eau Claire. The 6'1" 270 lbs 2026 has nearly a 6'5" wingspan to go with the thick, powerful frame. Quinn is a weight room warrior and that showed up on the field helping him win in a variety of ways. Quinn's ability to collapse the pocket from inside or outside is a major advantage for the defense. His explosive first step and upper body strength quickly get OL off balance and falling backwards. That same powerful burst shows up when Quinn looks to make a pass rush move. However it is in his lateral movement that we see the burst in those scenarios. It seems like every movement the incoming senior makes is loaded up with violent power. Easy to see why UWEC joined other D2 and D3 programs in offering the Union Grove standout.     It was a great showing for the West Salem DE right from the start. He checked in at 6'4" 230 lbs with a 6'8" wingspan. No question, Landon looks the part of a collegiate defensive end with all that length. It didn't take long for him to show that he plays the part as well. In the run game reps Landon showed off how useful that length can be when you also utilize leverage. He was able to stand up much bigger OL in their tracks and control the line of scrimmage, giving a glimpse into his potential to be a three down DE recruit. Landon was at the top of his game when we got to the pass rush reps. The '26 won with quick hands that kept himself clean. He won with sudden lateral agility that teleported him behind the OL. The long, lean DE also showed he could bull rush and then make a second move off the initial contact. Michlig is a need to know DE recruit in this Class.     The big winner of the day was Rhineland's Caden Sieker. Caden had the scouts and coaches in attendance absolutely buzzing. Multiple of each came up to me personally talking about his performance throughout the evening. A performance that included a 6'2" 240 lbs weigh in, 1.2 flying 10, 4.57 pro agility, and an outstanding 9'4" broad jump. Turns out that was just the start to a great day.   Caden solidified his dominant day in 1v1s. He proved to be a legitimate DE/Edge prospect with the ways he was able to find success. Caden is very heavy handed and has built a strong lower body. Those two pair together to allow him to bull rush his foe into the QB without losing much momentum. Then the next rep the electric DE could set up an OT one way and quickly burst back inside. He also did well with his overall hand fighting and pass rush moves. It seemed like Sieker was able to win in every way possible in a performance that had to be close to perfect in terms of record vs the OL he faced. It was a great day for the Rhinelander standout athlete.     It was great watching Sincere when the pads went on and we started going through live battles. The 2026 DL checked in just shy of 6' and 260 lbs. That thick, compact frame brought power to the field all night long. Sincere did so well getting underneath OL on a rep to rep basis and once there he quickly found success with his bull rush. Sincere was one of the best at controlling the line of scrimmage in run game drills as well. His shining moment for me was his wins vs double team battles. The '26 did a great job taking on the double team with leverage and showed a strong anchor to not give up any ground. While the lower body was holding his ground the upper body did so well fighting off each block until he was able to split the two. Sincere was able to earn an offer from the Blugolds following his great day.     Alex was another 2026 who caught my eyes and the eyes of college coaches. He was able to earn an offer from UWEC following the camp because of the dominance he displayed. While he checked in at 5'8" 255 lbs, that didn't stop the athlete from winning every rep I watched him in. The kid won with active, strong hands that tossed OL around. His nearly 6'1" wingspan allowed him to play bigger than that check-in size. Over and over we watched him get hands on quickly and rag doll OL. The incoming senior also flashed very quick, nimble feet that capitalized on the unbalanced OL. Once he got a sliver of room he could accelerate quickly to get through into the backfield. I really like what I saw from the DL out of SJCA.     Hamza was an intriguing prospect. He quickly grabbed my attention with his 6' 254 lbs frame that also has an elite 6'6" wingspan. That length stood out from the crowd and it shined during run game battles where coaches wanted to see the OL and DL go head to head. Hamza was able to get hands on quickly and also reset where his hands were effectively so that he always had the leverage to hold his ground. That length and power were the keys to his success as he would rely on both to win his reps.     Teigan has quickly become a regular on our camp coverage. He was a standout at the PRZ WI Spring Showcase and now he is back after a great day at the UWEC Big Man Camp. The 6'2" 209 lbs 2026 has a 6'3" wingspan and a lot of athletic tools that made him very difficult to block. Teigan's first step was both quick and violent as he was able to turn that quickness into power on contact. He did so well using leverage and that long, lean frame to drive back OL or hold the line in run game reps. It was great to see his power to pair with the quickness we have quickly come to be big fans of. That quickness again was on display as he could run the loop or suddenly cut or counter onto a new pass rush path mid-rep. I'm a big fan of this kid.

It was great to hear the pads popping for the first time this offseason at the UWEC Big Man Camp late last week. 140+ of the Midwest's best OL & DL came to town ready to show off their talents in front of college coaches across almost every level of competition. Dozens of the athletes put on a show when the pads went on following the combine and among them were several 2026 DL who caught my eyes on multiple reps. Today we dive into that group of soon-to-be seniors and talk about how they performed. Let's get it started!