The 10 Top Tacklers in the LA City Section (Part 1)

The LA City Section has a complicated reputation because it features a generally small amount of schools in a large region. For example, the City Section only has four divisions. The Southern Section, which consists of LA, Riverside and Orange Counties, has 14 divisions (which for the record, I think is too many). City Section teams sometimes don't fare well against Southern Section teams in State Regional playoffs, but some of them can hang. Last season, Reseda, which won the CIF City Section Division 1 championship, dominated Esperanza, who was a lower level champion in the Southern Section. Former City Section powerhouse Narbonne has been known to beat some good teams from the Southern and San Diego Sections in Regional playoffs before. Although there isn't the depth in the City Section that the Southern Section has, there are very talented players in the City Section. In September, I <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2020/09/top-la-city-section-running-backs-6-10/">highlighted the top</a> 10 running backs <a href="https://prepredzone.com/2020/09/top-la-city-section-running-backs-1-5/">in the City Section</a>. This month, I am highlighting the top returning tacklers in the City Section. This time, I am not ranking the players. They will be listed alphabetically by last name. Raejion Baker, Venice, Outside Linebacker, 2021 Height: 6'0" Weight: 215 pounds GPA: 2.75 Analysis: Baker is the perfect combination of aggressive and thoughtful as a linebacker. He often lines up within two or three yards from the line of scrimmage, manages to avoid guards at the second level and makes tackles in the backfield. Baker frequently is playing spy against running quarterbacks and brings them down in the backfield before they can make a big play with their legs. He is effective in pass coverage, particularly in the flat in cover three, but his real strength is the way he hits and makes tackles. He has the second most tackles of any returning player in the City Section (134) with 15 tackles for a loss and 6.5 sacks. Baker was First Team All-Western League and Second Team All-City Division 1. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/10945107/Raejion-Baker">Hudl link</a> Delamonte Barnes, Birmingham, Linebacker/Safety, 2022 Height: 5'8" Weight: 190 pounds. Analysis: It's a cliche in the football scouting world but it applies here: Barnes has a "nose for the football." He is always in on or near the play no matter how far the play is from where he originally lined up. There is a beautiful play on his highlight film where the opposing team is running a zone read and Barnes' responsibility was the quarterback. Barnes looks like he is taking a bad angle toward the running back, the quarterback makes the correct read and pulls the ball, and Barnes changes course and makes a great tackle on the quarterback for a five yard loss. He is an effective special teams player as well and does a good job in zone pass coverage. Barnes had 83 tackles, a sack and an interception as a sophomore for the City Section Open Division champions last season and earned First Team All-City Section honors. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11882718/Delamonte-Barnes">Hudl link</a> Jorge Duenas, San Fernando, Linebacker, 2021 Height: 6'2" Weight: 175 pounds Analysis: Duenas is a versatile defender who is most effective as an outside backer against the run. San Fernando had a defense last season that had 93 tackles for a loss and 30 sacks which is among the top defenses in the City Section. Duenas was a big part of that success, tallying 17 tackles for a loss and six sacks. Much like Baker above he is aggressive but also mindful and makes the correct reads on almost every play. Teams avoid running options and read plays to his side and for good reason. He covers a large chunk of the field and makes great form tackles from various spots on the field. <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/11962781/Jorge-Duenas">Hudl link</a> Jorge Hernandez, Canoga Park, Linebacker, 2021 Height: 5'10" Weight: 200 pounds Analysis: Hernandez was someone I wrote about as one of the top running backs in the City Section, but he is also effective as a linebacker. He plays outside backer in Canoga Park's 4-3 defense and moves so well laterally that he blows up any tunnel screen or sweep play to his side. He also isn't afraid to hit the B or C gap hard and disrupt the offensive linemen's plans to double team and bounce to him. Hernandez can lay a big hit and also wraps up well and doesn't make many mistakes. He had 135 tackles, four forced fumbles and an interception return for a touchdown for Canoga Park, the City Section Division II champion. He will be one of the top overall players in the City Section this season. https://twitter.com/mikehuntley63/status/1305995367025049600?s=20 <a href="https://www.hudl.com/profile/13688216/Jorge-Hernandez">Hudl link</a> Isaiah Howard, San Pedro, Defensive End, 2021 Height: 6'0" Weight: 210 pounds GPA: 3.5 Analysis: Howard jumps off the screen when you watch his film and is the one of the most dominant defensive linemen in the Section. He is listed as a defensive end, will probably be recruited as a linebacker at the college level, but lines up as a 3-technique on most of his snaps. He is too fast and has too quick of hands for most guards and tackles to block in the passing game and he can split double teams. A rare trait of his is that he is a lineman but is also the first player down the field on kickoff coverage. Howard had 66 tackles and 11 sacks for San Pedro last season and was named First Team All-City Section for the Open Division. He has an offer from Pacific University and Fordham has heavily been recruiting him as well. https://twitter.com/Bigtanktv/status/1298368003822821376?s=20 <a href="https://www.hudl.com/video/3/10026959/5d6dd57c8cde480e9c10b50f">Hudl link</a>