Five weeks from Friday night officially marks the start of the high school football season. We continue our march to Week 1 this week with a look at 20 defensive playmakers who might be flying under the radar in Central Indiana:
Ife Adeoba, Pike
The 6-2, 220-pound senior defensive end/outside linebacker broke the school single-season sack record last year with 14 and scored three touchdowns on defense and special teams. Adeoba finished the season with 60 tackles, including 19 for a loss, with two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. Adeoba is a big-time athlete who produces.
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Jordyn Barlow, Warren Central
The 6-1, 215-pound senior linebacker totaled 39 tackles, including six for a loss, with four sacks and three interceptions as a junior. Barlow and fellow senior linebackers Donovan Dungy and DaVonte Dungy are playmakers that might get overshadowed by the stars on the defensive line for Warren Central but will be key to the Warriors’ success this season.
Luke Barrett, Center Grove
The senior safety was the man on the spot for the Trojans’ defense last season as he finished with six interceptions, including two (and a touchdown) in Center Grove’s 40-14 win over Franklin Central in the sectional. Barrett also had 34 tackles for the 11-2 regional champion Trojans.
Frank Bertram, Ben Davis
The 6-2, 225-pound senior edge rusher is one of the most experienced players on the defense for the defending Class 6A state champions. Bertram had 39 tackles and 6 ½ sacks as a junior (two coming in the Giants’ 28-25 sectional win over Brownsburg). Over the past two seasons, Bertram has 63 tackles, eight tackles for loss, and 9 ½ sacks.
Gian Carter, Lawrence Central
The 6-3, 212-pound senior defensive end finished last season with 29 tackles, 6 ½ for a loss, and 3 ½ sacks. Those numbers don’t tell the full story of Carter’s promise, however. Western Michigan offered him in the winter and Carter committed to the Broncos in late June over a number of other Mid-American Conference offers.
Malcolm Houze, Guerin Catholic
The 6-1, 180-pound Houze is a senior and two-year starter for Guerin Catholic in the secondary. Houze had 31 tackles and three interceptions last season and was also a playmaker on offense for the 8-3 Golden Eagles. He caught 27 passes for 349 yards and four TDs and also rushed for 56 yards and a score.
Jev Hutton, Fishers
The 6-2, 225-pound senior defensive end is one of the top defensive players returning for the Tigers off last year’s 7-4 season. Hutton finished last year with 34 solo tackles and 21 assisted tackles, including eight for a loss, two sacks and two forced fumbles. Hutton has offers from Air Force, Army, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Grand Valley State, Harvard, Kent State, Navy, Penn, Princeton, Southern Illinois and Yale.
Jrue Kante, Noblesville
The 6-1, 315-pound senior defensive lineman, who has offers from Cornell, Dartmouth and Eastern Kentucky, is coming off a season that saw him make 41 tackles, two tackles for loss, 1 ½ sacks and one caused fumbles. Kante will anchor a defense that also brings back senior and Boston College commit Israel Oladipupo and Corbin Hornickel, among others.
Levi Poland, Lebanon
The 5-10, 205-pound senior middle linebacker has rolled up 149 tackles, including 10 for a loss, and seven sacks in his high school career, including 91 tackles and five sacks last season as a junior. Poland also ran for two touchdowns last season. Poland leads a defense that returns almost in its entirety from a 5-6 season.
Jack Lockhart, Cathedral
The 6-foot, 210-pound safety/outside linebacker finished his junior season with 53 tackles, one caused fumble, one blocked punt and one blocked field goal as a junior for an 8-4 sectional championship team. Over two seasons, Lockhart has 93 tackles, 5 ½ tackles for loss and two blocked punts. He has offers from Army, Charlotte, Cornell, Eastern Kentucky, Georgia State, Lindenwood and Michigan State.
Anthony Ludington, Lawrence North
The 6-4, 230-pound defensive end and Miami (Ohio) commit made the most of his 56 tackles as a junior with 14 of those coming behind the line of scrimmage, including 10 sacks. In his two seasons, Ludington has 118 tackles, including 20 for a loss, with 13 sacks, four fumble recoveries, two caused fumbles, one blocked punt and one interception.
Daione Lunsford, Lawrence North
The 6-foot, 175-pound senior put up big-time numbers last season as he finished with 123 tackles, including 13 for a loss, along with three interceptions and a blocked punt. Lunsford will be a playmaker again in the secondary for the Wildcats, who are coming off a 7-4 season.
Parker Maiers, Brebeuf Jesuit
The 6-1, 215-pound junior was a standout on defense for a team that put up a lot of points on the other side of the ball. Maiers finished the season with 152 tackles from his linebacker spot, including 7 ½ for a loss and 2 ½ sacks. He also caused one fumble and had a blocked field goal.
Fawzy Omotoso, Avon
The defensive end positions should be an area of strength for the Orioles with Minnesota commit Enoch Atewogbola on one side and the 6-4, 245-pound Omotoso, a senior, on the other. The Northern Illinois commit finished his junior season with 27 tackles, five sacks and one fumble recovery.
Jordan Palmer, Whiteland
The 6-foot, 210-pound junior linebacker finished last season with 106 tackles, including 11 for a loss, four caused fumbles, three interceptions and two sacks. As a freshman and sophomore, Palmer totaled 191 tackles and four interceptions. He also carried the ball a bit on offense last season, rushing for 174 yards and a touchdown.
Garrett Ranes, New Palestine
The 6-2, 220-pound outside linebacker was one of the team’s defensive leaders as a sophomore as he rolled up 113 tackles and four sacks, making 16 ½ tackles for a loss. Ranes also intercepted one pass and caused a fumble.
Gunner Ruppert, Greenwood
The 6-2, 180-pound junior safety led the Woodmen with 106 tackles as a sophomore. He also caused two fumbles, made one interception and had a fumble recovery. Ruppert also ran for two touchdowns. Look for Ruppert to be an impact player at safety and running back for Greenwood as the Woodmen look to build off a 6-6 record in Justin Boser’s second season as coach.
Andy Warren, Perry Meridian
The 6-foot, 200-pound senior linebacker finished last season with 118 tackles, two tackles for loss, one sack and one fumble recovery. In three seasons, Warren has an eye-popping 325 tackles, four tackles for loss and two fumble recoveries. He was also one of the Falcons’ top offensive players last year with 507 rushing yards and 10 rushing TDs. He has 1,111 career rushing yards and 18 TDs.
Lennox Williams, Westfield
The 5-11, 200-pound senior linebacker had a monster sophomore year with 90 tackles, 7 ½ tackles for loss, 4 ½ sacks and three forced fumbles. He suffered a season-ending knee injury last season but has been fully cleared for his senior year and should be a key part of the Shamrocks defense. He has offers from Eastern Michigan and Western Illinois.
Daijon Willis, Cardinal Ritter
The senior safety led the Raiders last season with 127 tackles, eight sacks and three caused fumbles last season. Willis posted double-digit tackles in seven games, including a season-high 21 tackles in a loss to Scecina. He also blocked two punts and ran for 44 yards on offense.
Call Star reporter Kyle Neddenriep at (317) 444-6649.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA football 2024: Under-the-radar defensive playmakers from Central Indiana
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