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Jacob Seliga's Audio Recap
Recap starts at the 6:35 mark
Impact Players
Paradise Honors 2023 RB Vance Cooper (5-10, 190)
Vance Cooper was a monster on Friday night. The Senior tailback racked up over 270 all-purpose yards and rushed for three touchdowns in the big win. Cooper showed off his toughness and hard-nosed style of running as he did a tremendous job of not stopping his feet through contact and bulldozing over would-be tacklers. What impressed me the most about Cooper's game was his vision and his ability to run routes and catch out of the backfield. Great showing from the senior.
Paradise Honors 2024 QB Gage Baker (6-1, 165)
Gage Baker put up video game-like numbers on Friday. The junior gun-slinger completed 22 of his 30 pass attempts for a whopping 402 yards and three touchdowns. Baker showed off accuracy in both intermediate and deep routes, as well as quick feet in the pocket when eluding pressure. Baker has the confidence and the weapons to light up any secondary in the 3A this season. He'll be a fun QB to watch play this fall.
Wickenburg 2024 ATH Klayton Smid
Smid did it all for the Wranglers on Friday night. The two-way athlete showed great vision on the defensive side by roaming in the middle of the field as a safety. He forced an interception that was called back and was involved in many tackles for Wickenburg. He also showcased his talents at running back bringing a power running style that forced multiple Panthers' players into missed tackles. Smid also returned kickoffs for the Wranglers and forced the Panthers to kick away from him after he almost returned a kick for a touchdown.
Wickenburg 2024 Trace Buchert (5-11, 195)
Trace started the night at quarterback for the Wranglers and finished the night at outside linebacker. The junior led an abbreviated version of the Wing-T offense and had some success running QB power out of the backfield. His biggest impact was felt on the defensive side as he was one of the players that was getting involved on every play. He showed good sideline to sideline tackling when plays would go along the boundary. One of the toughest players in the state, and would lower his shoulder and drive on every play.
Who to Watch
Paradise Honors WR Josh Morales (5-11, 145)
Morales absolutely shredded Wickenburg's secondary on Friday night. The Class of 2024 WR torched Wranglers' defensive backs consistently on deep post routes, as he showed off his quick burst of speed off the snap. Morales was explosive out of his breaks and showed tremendous athleticism snagging a goal-line fade, attacking the pass at it's highest point over the opposing DB. The junior WR finished the night with 9 catches for 175 yards and three touchdowns.
Up Next
(1-0) Chino Valley @ (0-1) Wickenburg
(1-0) Paradise Honors @ (1-0) Pusch Ridge
