Football guru DC Hendrix is back with his look at some of the top players from each position heading into the season.
The wide receiver position has become northeast Indiana’s most impressive position across the board in high school football. From a talent standpoint, every year there are several wideouts across the area being recruited to play at the next level. Several, if not all, of these 10 names will be playing on Saturdays once their respective high school careers are over.
He has tackled quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and offensive linemen over the last few weeks. Today, he breaks down his top 10 offensive linemen.
NOTE: All of these rankings will be updated weekly once the season begins, with the possibility of new names joining the list and names moving up and down.
1. Ifeanyi Emedobi, senior, Northrop
The Michigan Wolverines commit is ready to show everyone that he’s much more than just potential now. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound edge is going to be a huge problem for opposing offensive tackles this season. With his recruitment over, he can focus on just helping his program win and showing why he’s a top overall player in the state and why he’s a four-star recruit. He’s been putting in the work all offseason at camps and there is no question the best we’ve got on the D-line. In his first season of ever playing football last fall, he finished with 59 total tackles, 21 tackles for loss and 6.5 sacks. He is only getting started. A Second Team All-SAC selection in his first year of playing football last season wasn’t too bad of a start to his career.
2. Javontae Eldridge, junior, Wayne
At 6-5 and 240 pounds, Eldridge has already made a name for himself as a top edge in the state for the Class of 2028. He finished with 31 total tackles, seven TFL and three sacks as a sophomore. He’s another kid that has climbed prospect rankings over the past year due to his work at showcases and camps. After receiving his first offer from Florida Atlantic last August, he now has 16 offers and counting, including recent offers from Virginia Tech, Tennessee, Toledo and Nebraska in the last month. Coming off his sophomore season, Eldridge has had a crazy past year as offers and notoriety have rolled in simultanousely. He has been working on his technique a lot this offseason and that should translate into more sacks, TFL and total tackles.
3. Omarion Waites, senior, North Side
The Eastern Michigan Eagles commit finished last season with 98 total tackles, including 16 for a loss and four sacks. He averaged 8.9 tackles per game. The best part is that most of this production came against double-teams from opposing offensive lines, with offensive schemes designed to stop him from getting through the line. Waites has been working on getting faster and staying low, as well as his first step. Waites is in for another monster year for the Legends. A First Team All-SAC returning from last season.
4. Camden Day, senior, Northrop
Although he will still be playing some offensive line for the Bruins, Day will primarily be on the defensive line this fall. For a young man who hasn’t played a lot of defensive line, he worked his tail off this offseason at camps, enough to earn an offer from Kent State, where he promptly committed. That shows the promise he has on the defensive line. He has been continuously working on getting stronger and improving his technique on defense. With both him and Emedobi on defense, the Bruins’ defensive line will cause many frustrating nights for opposing offenses.
5. Leslie Woodson, senior, North Side
Woodson is an edge rusher who is always in attack mode and has a tremendous work ethic to improve. The 6-4, 228-pound edge finished with 60 tackles, 18 tackles for loss and eight sacks last season for the Legends. If that isn’t impressive enough, he also had three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. As he continues to get even better every day, we could be having some different conversations regarding his college future as the season progresses. He is another kid who hasn’t come close to reaching his potential.
6. Luke Hayworth, junior, Concordia
After initially transferring to Carroll, Hayworth is back at Concordia, where he looks to help lead the struggling program to better results in 2026. The ’28 edge led the team with 50 tackles last season, to go with 5.5 tackles for loss and three sacks. At 6-2, 215, Hayworth added 15 pounds of muscle, went to several camps this spring, and worked on getting faster and quicker off the edge. As a junior, Hayworth will be a leader on defense for a young Cadets team and comes in as one of the top defensive linemen in the entire area. One of the biggest snubs from any All-SAC recognition has a lot to prove this year.
7. Tayden Getts, senior, East Noble
As a returning First Team All-NE8 selection from last season, Getts is looking to have an even better campaign in his final fall of high school football. Being named a co-captain and co-MVP in the Knights’ intersquad scrimmage is a great way to start your senior season. A season ago, Getts finished with 69 tackles, eight tackles for loss, a sack and 16 hurries. With so much talent at D-tackle in the area, Getts is amongst the best we have in northeast Indiana.
8. John O’Leary-Freeman, junior, Bluffton
O’Leary-Freeman is entering his junior season fresh off a First Team All-ACAC selection with the Tigers last season. He’s around the same size as Getts (6-foot, 205), and has impressive hands and strength that help him get an advantage with his first-step quickness and low pad level. He finished last year with 39 tackles, 12 tackles for loss and six sacks. As a key returning piece for a talented Bluffton squad, he is ready to take it a step further in 2026.
9. Koen Quake, senior, East Noble
Speaking of snubs, Koen Quake is another kid that deserved way more recognition than he got last season. At 6-2, 218 pounds, he is a little bigger and taller than his teammate Getts, who got the First Team All-NE8 nod. Quake finished with 65 tackles, 16.5 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and seven QB hurries for the Knights last season. Not getting recognized for his contributions as a junior will likely put a chip on his shoulder entering 2026.
10. Jaxton Litchfield, junior, Heritage
Much like O’Leary-Freeman, Litchfield also returns coming off a First Team All-ACAC season. His seven sacks in 2025, to go with 13 TFL and 43 tackles, were a super-impressive output for a sophomore. Now as junior, he is looking to help lead the Patriots back to a winning record after they finished 5-5 last season. After a busy winter on the wrestling mat, Litchfield has been putting in the work to return stronger and quicker. He adds to a quality junior class of top talents in northeast Indiana, and has to be included in the discussion for top defensive linemen in the area.
These opinions represent those of DC Hendrix and Outside the Huddle. No opinions expressed on Outside the Huddle represent those of any of our advertisers. Follow DC Hendrix on X at dchendrix.
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