VIDEO: https://wisconsin.rivals.com/news/week-5-in-state-blitz-wisconsin-commit-jack-sanborn
Strengths:
Wisconsin commit Jack Sanborn had a relatively quiet game Friday evening - only a handful of tackles and no real "explosive" or "game changing" plays. But two things really stood out to me Friday evening: his closing speed and ability to go sideline to sideline, along with a knack for not getting caught up or engaged with blockers. Rarely did I see the four-star prospect get tangled up with an offensive lineman or blocker from his linebacker position.
Listed at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, Sanborn is also a physical player who is put together really well. He doesn't carry any bad weight and probably can play in the 230 to 235 range at Wisconsin.
I sat in Lake Zurich stands and was able to speak with a few people who follow the program pretty closely. They described Sanborn as a quiet kid who leads by example. One father whose son plays for the program told me I could talk to anyone in the school or community and he guaranteed they would also speak glowing of Sanborn. He told me a story about last season's father's night where Sanborn, whose dad passed away, was walked out onto the field by 10 or so police officers and other community members. He described it as a very powerful moment for the school. There's also a huge buzz around his younger brother, who is a freshman at the high school. The consensus is that he has a chance to be better than his older brother. Jack talks about that a bit at the end of the video.
Areas of improvement:
Open-field tackling was something Sanborn struggled with Friday. There were two or three plays where Sanborn missed a tackle against Zion Benton's quarterback when he scrambled out of the pocket. Once he learns to breakdown properly, I think this can be cleaned up.
Zion Benton didn't run a ton Friday, so I didn't get to see Sanborn too much in the tackling department against a more traditional running attack. Much of the action was over his head, as ZB tried to beat Lake Zurich vertically for much of the evening. They had spurts of success but Lake Zurich won, 36-6.
Outlook:
As I stated above, this wasn't Sanborn's most productive game, but a lot of that likely had to do with Zion Benton's offensive design. I think he's a kid that - because of where he's at physically - could be in the conversation for playing time as a true freshman on special teams. I don't think he's someone whose body is going to transform after a redshirt season because it's already pretty advanced at this stage in his career.
Wisconsin comparison on current roster:
This one was a bit of a challenge for me. I'm not sure if Sanborn will ever be a real thick run-stopper in the mold of TJ Edwards or Chris Orr. I think he's more similar to what we've seen from Ryan Connelly the last few years in terms of closing speed and sure tackling ability. Connelly is probably longer (wing span, height) in comparison to Sanborn, but I think he's similar in terms of skill-set.
Let me know what your thoughts are.
Strengths:
Wisconsin commit Jack Sanborn had a relatively quiet game Friday evening - only a handful of tackles and no real "explosive" or "game changing" plays. But two things really stood out to me Friday evening: his closing speed and ability to go sideline to sideline, along with a knack for not getting caught up or engaged with blockers. Rarely did I see the four-star prospect get tangled up with an offensive lineman or blocker from his linebacker position.
Listed at 6-foot-2 and 220 pounds, Sanborn is also a physical player who is put together really well. He doesn't carry any bad weight and probably can play in the 230 to 235 range at Wisconsin.
I sat in Lake Zurich stands and was able to speak with a few people who follow the program pretty closely. They described Sanborn as a quiet kid who leads by example. One father whose son plays for the program told me I could talk to anyone in the school or community and he guaranteed they would also speak glowing of Sanborn. He told me a story about last season's father's night where Sanborn, whose dad passed away, was walked out onto the field by 10 or so police officers and other community members. He described it as a very powerful moment for the school. There's also a huge buzz around his younger brother, who is a freshman at the high school. The consensus is that he has a chance to be better than his older brother. Jack talks about that a bit at the end of the video.
Areas of improvement:
Open-field tackling was something Sanborn struggled with Friday. There were two or three plays where Sanborn missed a tackle against Zion Benton's quarterback when he scrambled out of the pocket. Once he learns to breakdown properly, I think this can be cleaned up.
Zion Benton didn't run a ton Friday, so I didn't get to see Sanborn too much in the tackling department against a more traditional running attack. Much of the action was over his head, as ZB tried to beat Lake Zurich vertically for much of the evening. They had spurts of success but Lake Zurich won, 36-6.
Outlook:
As I stated above, this wasn't Sanborn's most productive game, but a lot of that likely had to do with Zion Benton's offensive design. I think he's a kid that - because of where he's at physically - could be in the conversation for playing time as a true freshman on special teams. I don't think he's someone whose body is going to transform after a redshirt season because it's already pretty advanced at this stage in his career.
Wisconsin comparison on current roster:
This one was a bit of a challenge for me. I'm not sure if Sanborn will ever be a real thick run-stopper in the mold of TJ Edwards or Chris Orr. I think he's more similar to what we've seen from Ryan Connelly the last few years in terms of closing speed and sure tackling ability. Connelly is probably longer (wing span, height) in comparison to Sanborn, but I think he's similar in terms of skill-set.
Let me know what your thoughts are.
Last edited:
