It was a brisk, windy morning on Sunday for the final Elite 11 regional in State College, PA. But by the time the QBs took the field at 11:30 am, the weather had warmed up and the 15mph blasts of wind had died down to a few light gusts here and there. This regional mostly lacked high-end star power. There were a few 4-star participants, with the 2 Penn State commits, Composite QB18 Peyton Falzone of Nazareth, PA, and Composite QB20 Troy Huhn of Mission Hills, CA, headlining the event.
Troy Huhn was the most consistent QB on the day, which was not necessarily surprising given his skillset. Huhn is a smart, safe passer who is at his best inside structure. He showed off his polish at the regional, with arguably the cleanest mechanics and footwork at the event. Huhn’s accuracy was on display as well, routinely hitting the mark on his passes in every drill. Huhn isn’t the most mobile QB, but he threw well on the move for the most part. The exception was when he was asked to layer passes over defenders in the corner of the end zone. Rumblings from the event peg Huhn as the most likely candidate to receive an invite to the Elite 11 Finals out of those who didn’t receive an invite at the event.
There was only 1 QB who received an immediate invitation to the Elite 11 Finals at this regional: Derek Zammit. The composite QB27 and Washington commit was by far the best QB on the day. He routinely earned praise from the coaches and other participants. Zammit is smaller in stature, but has a sturdy frame. His size doesn’t hold him back in terms of arm strength, however, as he showed arguably the strongest arm amongst the top group at the event. Zammit nailed throw after throw, whether it was downfield, along the sidelines, or especially on the move. He showed off his natural mobility and athleticism, throwing accurately on the move and from a variety of arm angles. After the performance Zammit put on display, I would expect him to rise up the rankings at least a few spots in the coming weeks, and possibly even higher as the summer continues.
The top-ranked QB at the event was Penn State commit Peyton Falzone. However, Falzone did not look the part. Falzone’s backyard play style doesn’t necessarily translate well at an event like the Elite 11. This rang particularly true amidst Falzone’s attempt to rework his mechanics and throwing motion with new QB coach Brad Maendler, the same QB Coach current Penn State QB Drew Allar has worked with for years. Sunday’s event showed he still has plenty of work to do in this area, however. Falzone’s footwork and lower half mechanics were still inconsistent, which led to inconsistencies in his accuracy all day. He flashed some of the tantalizing athleticism and zip on his passes that have evaluators intrigued by his potential. But as the top-ranked QB at this event, Falzone failed to impress.
While Huhn seems to be the most likely to be the next player to earn an invite to the finals from the State College regional, if anyone does, I felt Ohio’s Mr. Football and Gatorade Player of the Year, Matt Ponatoski, was the second-best QB at the event behind Zammit. Ponatoski certainly wasn’t perfect and had some inconsistent moments at the event. However, he moved very well during the drills and flashed a live arm. Ponatoski threw well on the move and from a variety of arm angles, showing touch on passes to the corner of the end zone and driving passes along the sideline. His mechanics looked clean, and he showed very good footwork in the drills. Ponatoski is currently uncommitted with a litany of P4 offers including Kentucky, Alabama, Michigan, and Oregon. His status as a high-end baseball prospect who’s expected to be drafted in the MLB Draft when he’s eligible is what is likely holding back his football recruitment at the moment.
Aside from the top names at the event, one player who caught my eye was unranked Coastal Carolina commit Osiris Lopez. I was unfamiliar with Lopez entering the event, but he certainly put those in attendance on notice. Lopez showcased his mobility and ability to throw on the move during the drills. His arm looked plenty strong enough on throws to the sideline. But it was his touch passes over defenders in the corner of the end zone that caught my eye initially. After looking into Lopez more post-event, he’s a 2-sport athlete (basketball) who rushed for 1,100 yards in his junior year. We don’t currently have a STAR index rating for Lopez, but I would venture a guess that it would be upward of 0.60 (60th percentile). While Lopez committed to the Chanticleers last week, it wouldn’t surprise me if Lopez is ranked by the services later this summer and starts to receive additional P4 interest.
The next time we see any of these recruits will be Derek Zammit, and possibly Huhn or a surprise invitee, at the Elite 11 Finals June 17-19 in LA. I wouldn’t expect the winner to come from this regional, but Zammit and the other players mentioned above are definitely players to watch as potential risers during their senior season.
