D
Derek Young
Guest
Was at the Rose Hill vs McPherson game on Friday night. Here's some observations.
1) Cody Stufflebean didn't play, which we expected. He's still nursing an injury. He could come back next week but probably will wait a little longer so he's going to be fine.
2) Bolticoff is a 2021 offensive lineman out of Rose Hill. He was a transfer for them. I know he had been doing missions in Brazil but not sure if that is where he was immediately before. Has offers from KU and K-State and I bet he gets more.
3) This kid is going to get a lot bigger. He's 6-foot-4 or so and maybe a hair more than that, good length, but he is exceptionally lean and is not wide around the waist and has skinny ankles. That typically means a kid that will grow into his body a ton more and be able to hold it very well. I bet he plays at 310-315 in college.
4) Is he a tackle or a guard? 6-4 with good length means that the best-case scenario is probably guard. But with his footwork and length, he could also play some right tackle, I bet. We're not saying he's going to be as good as this guy, but in a lot of ways Bolticoff made myself and @Chris_Nelson think a lot about Dalton Risner. If I had seen Dalton Risner as a junior, I'd bet he looked a lot like that.
5) As mentioned earlier, he's got great footwork. For an offensive lineman in Kansas, he was pretty good in the few pass sets that he had to do as well. I was surprised by that. Real good bend, too, which allows him to build a powerful base and stone defenders.
6) Bolticoff finishes plays. McPherson is the best defense and best group of athletes he'll play against all year and he threw a couple around and I can't remember but maybe one play where he was kind of beat.
7) He can down-block like crazy. That's probably where his most devastating blocks came from. Of course a few times he down-blocked so much and the RB didn't get behind his back hip so he ended up down-blocking so far that he took the defender right to the ball.
8) My only concerns would be stuff that he can work on and may very well be a product of him only being a high school junior, still raw and still a work in progress. There were multiple times where the play could go farther if he had a better ability to stay engaged on his block. Some of it was due to the QB leaking out of the pocket and giving the defender the angle, but some of it was Bolticoff not getting up into a guy tight enough inside their shoulder pads. He needs to get into their body, manhandle them and really dig in between their pads.
9) He's a similar prospect to Hayden Pauls. I'd have him as a slightly better, though Pauls is the better player now because he's a year older. The differences would be that Bolticoff is longer and probably has more of a chance at playing tackle in a pinch. Pauls is definitely nastier. A meaner attitude on the field would benefit Bolticoff and just be more aggressive with how he attacks his opponents. They are both very good athletes and lean and move similarly.
1) Cody Stufflebean didn't play, which we expected. He's still nursing an injury. He could come back next week but probably will wait a little longer so he's going to be fine.
2) Bolticoff is a 2021 offensive lineman out of Rose Hill. He was a transfer for them. I know he had been doing missions in Brazil but not sure if that is where he was immediately before. Has offers from KU and K-State and I bet he gets more.
3) This kid is going to get a lot bigger. He's 6-foot-4 or so and maybe a hair more than that, good length, but he is exceptionally lean and is not wide around the waist and has skinny ankles. That typically means a kid that will grow into his body a ton more and be able to hold it very well. I bet he plays at 310-315 in college.
4) Is he a tackle or a guard? 6-4 with good length means that the best-case scenario is probably guard. But with his footwork and length, he could also play some right tackle, I bet. We're not saying he's going to be as good as this guy, but in a lot of ways Bolticoff made myself and @Chris_Nelson think a lot about Dalton Risner. If I had seen Dalton Risner as a junior, I'd bet he looked a lot like that.
5) As mentioned earlier, he's got great footwork. For an offensive lineman in Kansas, he was pretty good in the few pass sets that he had to do as well. I was surprised by that. Real good bend, too, which allows him to build a powerful base and stone defenders.
6) Bolticoff finishes plays. McPherson is the best defense and best group of athletes he'll play against all year and he threw a couple around and I can't remember but maybe one play where he was kind of beat.
7) He can down-block like crazy. That's probably where his most devastating blocks came from. Of course a few times he down-blocked so much and the RB didn't get behind his back hip so he ended up down-blocking so far that he took the defender right to the ball.
8) My only concerns would be stuff that he can work on and may very well be a product of him only being a high school junior, still raw and still a work in progress. There were multiple times where the play could go farther if he had a better ability to stay engaged on his block. Some of it was due to the QB leaking out of the pocket and giving the defender the angle, but some of it was Bolticoff not getting up into a guy tight enough inside their shoulder pads. He needs to get into their body, manhandle them and really dig in between their pads.
9) He's a similar prospect to Hayden Pauls. I'd have him as a slightly better, though Pauls is the better player now because he's a year older. The differences would be that Bolticoff is longer and probably has more of a chance at playing tackle in a pinch. Pauls is definitely nastier. A meaner attitude on the field would benefit Bolticoff and just be more aggressive with how he attacks his opponents. They are both very good athletes and lean and move similarly.
