You need to flashback to this SDSU Prospect Camp last summer to find my live eval on Ipswich’s Shay Knaust and evaluating the growth this time in Brookings, you’ll like what you see out of the 2028 defensive back. He went 4.67 in the 40-yard dash and 4.49 in the pro agility which although, I don’t have the numbers from last summer in front of me, I know surely that Shay has turned a corner in his development. What I saw from Shay during the live reps is a defensive back prospect that has improved a ton with his ball tracking ability and footwork that appered much more fluid than a full year ago. He’s a hidden gem out of Ipsiwch that’s our DB4 in the 2028 SD class, that surely will be a mover come rankings time.

Shay was a defensive back that I had on my DBs list at our last showcase and over the summer at the SDSU prospect camp and based on what I saw on Sunday, he’s kept progressing. In testing, he ran a 4.88 (2nd amongst DBs) in the 40-yard dash, 4.53 in the pro shuttle, and 7.43 in the L-drill which are all much improved from his last Prep Redzone Dakotas Showcase appearance in Aberdeen. A skillset that I saw that was much improved from last time was his ball-tracking ability as that can’t be much of a surprise, as he was near the top in stats for interceptions as a junior in the state. Overall, I thought Shay also attacked his reps with more pure instincts as his upside has grown into skill that is still being untapped. Certainly has a strong shot to play at the next-level out of this 2028 class.