Scouting Top Prospects: Kissimmee Osceola at Winter Garden West Orange

The 8A Florida high school playoffs have a great contest between Osceola and West Orange Friday night, with several top college prospects go against one another.

Brian Smith | Nov 18, 2021

Winter Garden, Fla. - When players like Jayden Gibson, Asaad Waseem, John Walker, and Derrick LeBlanc are all on the field at the same time, it’s must-watch high school football.

Better yet, that’s only a few of the top players that will take their cleats to the turf field at West Orange High School. Look for a full post game story on Scorebook Live Florida, and you can also follow the updates via Twitter accounts: SBLiveFL and fbscout_florida.

Here are the items that will be scouted and most important to note from Friday’s contest, and will be discussed within the post game article.

D-Line Pride

There will be more playmakers in this game than just about any other in the state this weekend, but that does not necessarily mean offensive skill.

National recruits for Osceola, John Walker at defensive tackle and Derrick LeBlanc at defensive end, will not be consistently stopped with one-on-one blocks all that often. Now, can each of them not only create havoc in the backfield, but also help to create plays for their teammates?

John Walker, Defensive Tackle, Kissimmee (Fla.) Osceola — Big John Walker is one of the nation's most coveted 2023 defensive tackle recruits / Brian Smith, Inside The Knights

This means staying assignment correct and not freelancing, allowing other defensive players to get to the football and make plays. It does not stop there either.

When Walker and LeBlanc do gain a chance to make a play, it will be interesting to see how often they finish the job when a tackle for loss or sack comes available. These two talented defenders know what to do, and now it's a chance to showcase their skills, on the road in the playoffs, against a really good team. For West Orange, there’s a totally different scenario to follow.

Who Guards Gibson?

Who's sticking with Gibson, the Florida commitment? He is one of the nation’s most talented players regardless of position, and the senior wide receiver’s 6’6” length will be hard to handle for Osceola.

Will the Kowboys use two defenders against Gibson? Will they mix and match coverages?

It’s a chance for Osceola secondary players like cornerback Bo Mascoe and Syracuse-bound safety Jeremiah Wilson to show their skills. Like Walker and LeBlanc, they need to not only create big plays, but also stay within the system and help their teammates.

Osceola has plenty of defensive speed and athleticism, so if this unit sticks together it can compete with West Orange’s wide array of skill players, Gibson included.

Overall Talent

There will be over 10 FBS-level prospects on the field Friday night. Which player(s) step up and truly make the most impact?

It could be a defensive back like USF commitment Tony Newsome from West Orange, or it could be quarterback Chad Mascoe for Osceola (Bo’s older brother). This is why Florida high school football is so much fun to watch. There are a plethora of opportunities.

Let’s see how it all shakes out, and be sure to check out the live game updates and post game story.

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