Northwest Ohio Week 2 Defensive Standouts

The offense was humming last week, but there were also players on defense who made their presence known. We’re highlighting some of those players from last week. [player_tooltip player_id="126545" first="A.J." last="Schuller"] - St. Johns - DE/DT - 6’2" 240 lbs Schuller was great on Friday. He was able to continuously get pressure and be in the quarterback’s face. He was stuffing his run blocks and helping keep that defense stay upright. His biggest play of the day finally paid off. He kept throwing his hands up and tipping balls. He finally got one and it landed right into his arms. He raced down the field and was able to score a touchdown and return it to the house. Schuller was nonstop on Friday and he stood out in the best way possible. Alijah Beverly - Perrysburg - DE/TE - 6’3" 210 lbs Beverly just blatantly stands out in these local high school fields. He just towers over the opposing offensive linemen and blows them back with one hit. He was forcing pressure on Friday regularly and finally got himself a sack when it mattered most. He shot off the ball, threw his guy back, and laid out the quarterback for a huge sack. Beverly was the juice for Perrysburg on Friday and he came through in a big way. Michael Tolles - Lake - LB - 5’9" 155 lbs Lake was all over Northwood on Friday and it started with Tolles on defense. Tolles helped suffocate the offensive line and always pressure the quarterback while eliminating running lanes. The one time Northwood got close to the endzone Lake tightened up with a great goal-line stand. Tolles split his double team and hit the running back in the backfield for a tackle for loss and to kill the drive. Lake didn’t let Northwood breathe on offense Friday and Tolles led the charge. Alex Talbert - Anthony Wayne - DB - 6’1" 170 lbs Talbert is a consistent and reliable player. He shows up and just plays football. Friday was no different for Talbert. He was all over the field, lining up in different positions, and making plays when they needed it. Talbert broke up a handful of plays while making tackles to stop the offense short of the line to gain a few times. Talbert is a decent athlete and is well-coached for the most part. His impact was felt on Friday and with a few more performances like that he could land some college offers in the very near future. [player_tooltip player_id="91597" first="Jayden" last="Gibson"] - Whitmer - OLB - 6’2" 200 lbs The Panthers like to use Gibson all over the field and in different positions. They use his size to their advantage. They will have him rush the quarterback and drop back into coverage. Gibson was making play after play on Friday. He had a ton of tackles but most importantly he dropped into coverage and read the quarterback’s eyes and picked the ball off. Gibson is the Energizer bunny for that defense and he came through big on Friday. He’s a big athlete and he should continue to make plays.