The 2013 WashingtonPreps.com Top Offensive Recruits list is out and being distributed to collegiate programs around the Nation. Two guys making that list as we closed out the Tight Ends were Peninsula HS two way stud Kyle Self and O'Dea High Schools equally talented Bryan Carter. Both posses the skill set and ability to help their teams succeed this Fall and both have the potential to move on the to the collegiate ranks. Something they both wish to do.
Kyle is 6'4", and 210 pouds right now and is every bit the athlete. This kid can move and has terrific hands. As he looks to improve we caught up to him for a nice pre-season snap shot of where he is and where he is trying to get to as a player.
After all life at Peninsula High will be quite a bit different after Danny Welstad has moved on; the terrific big back who cranked the ground game up for almost 2300 yards this past season leading the Team.
"This year is going to be great. We only lost like 5 starters on both sides of the ball so all of us coming back are feeling good about our prospects," said an upbeat Self who is weight training and getting ready for track season.
"I am going to sprint the 100 Meter, throw the discus, and the shot. All of that is designed to help me on the football field. Explosiveness is the thing I am working on."
We asked him what his best skill as a player is and he feels it is his hands, The one thing he is focused on improving is blocking. Something the strong and growing two way stud is confident he is going to be much better at.
He is also a fine outslde linebacker and like a few of the other two way kids that made our lists he may be a better fit at that position. Kyle should start both ways this season for Peninsula and will no doubt be a leader on and off the field.
He lives with his family in Gig Harbor. His Mom was actually a graduate of Peninsula. His father is a career fire fighter; a career that Kyle thinks he may love to follow as well.
"I think that I really do want to be a fire-fighter. After college that is a career I could see myself pursuing."
He is hearing from a number of Big Sky schools and some Pac 12 schools too and is wide open to the opportunitties that may come his way after this season. He will hit WSU with a host of others for Junior Day this weekend!
Catch Kyle's Film Right Here: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/734837/kyle-self
Further North in Seattle is another 2013 prospect who will be a difference maker for his team.
Bryan Carter is a fast rising Junior who made some waves last season for the O'Dea Fighting Irish on Defense as a powerhouse defensive end. This season he is going to bigger, faster, and stronger and will see some serious time at Tight End too potentially.
"He is very coachable, very physical, and will make adjustments quickly at defensive end. A terrific athlete who has a very high ceiling," said one local coach who has worked with Carter over the years.
It appears he either tied or broke the record for sacks at O'Dea with 18 or 19 last season. Wow. That was something Bryan did not bother to mention to us. Humble kid all the way this guy is!
Carter is playing Basketball right now and helping the fighting Irish as they move ahead into the brackets this week. After that is track where he will throw the shot looking to bust 50 Feet early in the season. But his heart and his skill are best put to work on the football field.
"I love it. There is not doubt that football is where I want to be at the next level. That is why this Summer I will not play AAU basketball, " said Bryan. "This is the year I get a chance to give 100% to my football training."
If genetics are any part of his future he will have an edge there as his whole family have been top athletes from the Seattle region for two generations plus.
"My Grandfather Joe was a very well known multi-sport athlete from Garfield HS back in the day. My Dad Bryan played football and my uncle played at Portland State as a QB back in the early 90's too. They all did all the sports. So this is in our blood. It is something we enjoy," said Bryan who spends time mentoring and in the community helping with public service on a regular basis. Bryan is also heading to WSU for Junior day and may bump into Kyle while he is up there!
Catch Bryan here in some great footage from 2012: http://www.hudl.com/athlete/482342/bryan-carter
Kyle Self and Bryan Carter are great examples of the type of talent that exists around the Pacific Northwest as we take a look deeper into the Class of 2013 for the State of Washington.
Click Here for a Complete Look at the Best of Washington Class of 2013 as we move on the Defensive Linemen tomorrow.
