Happy Monday and welcome back to another edition of our prep quarterback report, highlighting the nation’s top 10 QBs in the 247Sports Composite and how their seasons are going.
It was a wild week of college football — looking at you, Miami! — and another entertaining week of high school football, too.
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Let’s dive in.
Dylan Raiola
School: Buford (Ga.) High
Committed to: Georgia
Ranking: No. 4 nationally, No. 1 QB
The nation’s top quarterback was off this week, which allowed 6-0 Buford to catch its breath before a big one Friday night. The Wolves are headed to Mill Creek, where the 6-0 Hawks await for a nationally televised showdown.
ESPN2 will carry the game that will feature eight of the top 100 prospects in the state in the Class of 2024. Raiola, five-star Florida State safety commit KJ Bolden, five-star Ohio State edge commit Eddrick Houston and four-star North Carolina running back commit Tyshun White headline Buford’s squad. Mill Creek is led by four-star edge KingJoseph Edwards, four-star Georgia Tech cornerback commit Trajen Greco, three-star Notre Dame edge commit Cole Mullins and three-star North Carolina safety commit Jaiden Patterson.
Mill Creek went 14-1 a season ago en route to winning Georgia’s Class 7A state title. The Hawks’ only loss of the season? To Buford, this week exactly a year ago.
Buckle up.
Julian Sayin
School: Carlsbad (Calif.) High
Committed to: Alabama
Ranking: No. 5 nationally, No. 2 QB
Sayin did not play Friday night when his 7-0 Carlsbad team took down 3-4 Poway 35-0. The future Alabama quarterback was dealing with a moderate ankle sprain, per head coach Thadd MacNeal, and the Lancers rested him.
“He will play this week,” MacNeal said in a text message.
That made way for MacNeal’s son, Eli, a sophomore, to take over and keep the Lancers undefeated with a comfortable win. Eli completed 14 of 16 passes for 196 yards and four touchdowns in his first start.
“I was more nervous than him,” his dad said.
Carlsbad travels to Torrey Pines this week to take on the 5-2 Falcons, who are on a five-game winning streak. For the year, Sayin is 94-of-118 passing for 1,246 yards and 15 touchdowns against zero interceptions.
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DJ Lagway
School: Willis (Texas) High
Committed to: Florida
Ranking: No. 20 nationally, No. 3 QB
Lagway might not be the highest-ranked quarterback in this class, but he has to be one of the nation’s most exciting prospects, and he dazzled once again.
Willis beat 3-3 College Park 56-17 on Thursday, with Lagway going 23-of-29 passing for 392 yards and five touchdowns. The Florida commit did throw his fourth interception of the season but has registered a whopping 36 touchdowns and 2,292 passing yards through just seven games. He is averaging 327.4 yards per game through the air and has thrown 19 touchdown passes in the last three weeks.
Not many in the country can air it out like DJ Lagway! He finds DeBraun Hampton for a touchdown and Willis rolls against College Park. Full highlights on the show tongiht at 11. @WillisWildkats1 @DerekLagway @debraun_hampton #txhsfb
— Houston Inside High School Sports (@ihss_houston) October 7, 2023
Willis has outscored its last four opponents 256-58, and only once all season has the Lagway-led offense put up fewer than 50 points. The Wildcats host Caney Creek this week, as Willis looks to continue its blazing-hot start. In the meantime, Lagway — who was in Gainesville over the weekend — is hoping to convince four-star offensive lineman Jordan Seaton, out of IMG (Fla.) Academy, to come block for him.
5-star OT Jordan Seaton checks in on his official visit to Florida with Gators 5-star QB commit DJ Lagway 🐊
— On3 Recruits (@On3Recruits) October 7, 2023
Air Noland
School: Fairburn (Ga.) Langston Hughes
Committed to: Ohio State
Ranking: No. 24 nationally, No. 4 QB
Noland and his Langston Hughes team improved to 5-2 on Friday night after crushing East Paulding 54-29.
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Noland, the lefty Ohio State commit, was 14-of-22 passing for 273 yards and three touchdowns. He also scored once on the ground for his first rushing touchdown of the year. Langston Hughes is off this week before traveling to Newnan on Oct. 20.
For the year, Noland has completed 84 of 131 attempts for 1,256 yards with 14 touchdowns and four interceptions.
CJ Carr
School: Saline (Mich.) High
Committed to: Notre Dame
Ranking: No. 46 nationally, No. 5 QB
Notre Dame struggled against Louisville on a night when Sam Hartman threw three interceptions and the Fighting Irish lost their second game of the season. But Carr’s team continues to cruise.
The Hornets had no issues with 1-6 Lincoln, beating the Railsplitters 31-0. Despite throwing an interception and completing just 17 of 36 attempts, per The Saline Post, Carr tossed two beautiful touchdown passes and finished with 185 yards.
He’ll need to be cleaner against tougher competition, but it’s worth noting that it rained Friday night in Michigan, and he still put the ball on the money in the red zone.
CJ Carr to Fox touchdown! Saline 14 Lincoln 0
— TheSalinePost (@TheSalinePost) October 6, 2023
CJ Carr to Keyes touchdown! Saline 6 Lincoln Consolidated 0
— TheSalinePost (@TheSalinePost) October 6, 2023
Saline travels to 1-6 Skyline this week in what figures to be another lopsided outcome.
Luke Kromenhoek
School: Savannah (Ga.) Benedictine Military School
Committed to: Florida State
Ranking: No. 49 nationally, No. 6 QB
Another week, another close victory for Kromenhoek and Benedictine.
The Cadets improved to 7-0 with a 38-0 win over Burke County to hand the Bears their first loss of the season.
Kromenhoek finished 11-of-20 passing for 237 yards, per the Savannah Morning News, with two touchdown passes to senior wide receiver La’Don Bryant, who is committed to Northern Illinois. One went for 69 yards, the other for 43.
Week 7 highlights against Burke Co. @RecruitGeorgia @On3Recruits @CoachHawk__ @BC_Football1902
— La’Don (@Theladonbraynt) October 8, 2023
Kromenhoek then headed to Tallahassee for Florida State’s game against Virginia Tech on Saturday. Benedictine travels to 4-3 Southeast Bulloch this week.
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Jadyn Davis
School: Charlotte (N.C.) Providence Day School
Committed to: Michigan
Ranking: No. 68 nationally, No. 7 QB
Providence Day rolled past Charlotte Country Day 49-13 to improve to 7-0. Along with Lagway, Davis has been one of the most impressive quarterbacks in this cycle and certainly one of the most efficient.
The Michigan commit was 12-of-14 for 298 yards with five touchdowns and his first interception of the season, meaning he averaged one touchdown every 2.8 throws against the 2-5 Buccaneers.
For the season, Davis is 110-of-139 passing for 1,972 yards and 26 touchdowns against just the one interception.
Providence Day travels to Charlotte Christian on Friday.
Jake Merklinger
School: Savannah (Ga.) Calvary Day School
Committed to: Tennessee
Ranking: No. 99 nationally, No. 8 QB
OK then, Calvary Day. The Cavaliers stomped 1-6 Groves 60-0 on Friday night, with Merklinger wasting no time in making the most of his limited reps. The Tennessee commit attempted just seven passes but completed six of them for five touchdowns and 175 yards. He also rushed once for a 5-yard score.
Calvary Day has outscored its last two opponents 116-0, and Merklinger has thrown seven touchdowns with no interceptions. The competition level won’t always be this uneven, but it’s encouraging to see Merklinger play with consistency and precision. He is 71-of-106 passing on the season for 1,404 yards, 20 touchdowns and one interception.
Calvary Day is off this week before traveling to Savannah Country Day next week.
Ryan Puglisi
School: Avon Old Farms (Conn.)
Committed to: Georgia
Ranking: No. 131 nationally, No. 9 QB
Avon Old Farms got the best of Brunswick School on a rainy Saturday night at home. The Winged Beavers won 31-21, with Puglisi unafraid to throw the ball despite the weather.
Your fav duo back at it. #TheStandard #WINgedBeavers
— AOF Football (@AOF_Football) October 8, 2023
Puglisi tossed two touchdown passes and ran for one more, according to the Connecticut Post, including a 30-yard touchdown run that put the finishing touches on the win.
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Avon Old Farms is 3-1 and travels to play Hotchkiss this week.
Elijah Brown
School: Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei
Committed to: Stanford
Ranking: No. 142 nationally, No. 10 QB
Mater Dei played its second league game of the season and had no issues with JSerra Catholic, recording a 42-0 win to improve to 7-0.
Brown went 20-of-22 passing for 312 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions as he eclipsed the 300-yard mark for the first time since Week 3. He is 114-of-156 on the season for 1,674 yards, 25 touchdowns and four picks.
This week is a huge matchup for the Monarchs, who travel to St. John Bosco on Friday night for a showdown featuring two of California’s top programs.
Bonus: Ethan Grunkemeyer
The Penn State commit has jumped 101 spots since July in the 247Sports Composite and is now the nation’s No. 153 prospect and No. 12 quarterback. The 6-foot-2, 190-pound Ohio native has led Olentangy High to a 7-1 record and is one of the more intriguing prospects in the class.
He’s not afraid to air it out and in part got on college coaches’ radar when they came to check out his tight end, Cincinnati commit Gavin Grover.
Olentangy QB Ethan Grunkmeyer to WR Jackson Wiley Touchdown
Olentangy 39
Medina 20
11:30
4th Quarter @medinaathletics @OHSathletics @NoahJacobson12 @FOX8FNTD— Sports On Tap (@SOTPodcast) August 26, 2023
Grunkemeyer is far from the flashiest quarterback in this cycle but is potentially the type of late bloomer we could be talking about for years to come.
(Photo of Jake Merklinger: Manny Navarro / The Athletic)
