Well I had been slacking a little bit on watching a full game and studying Blake Hebert, but tonight’s news has made me kick it into gear. I’m coming in without a ton of context on Massachusetts high school football, so most of my thoughts are stemming from this game on quality of competition and the strength of Blake’s team.
Central Catholic runs a pretty common high school variation of the college spread. They sprinkle in a bit of no-huddle, but most of their passing looks coming out of spread formation 3x1 or 2x2. Lots of screens and short game work based off of a read option heavy run game.
What Hebert does well:
Mechanics: Hebert has the best footwork out of the three quarterbacks I’ve now watched in the ‘25 class. Solid 3 and 5 step drops, sets himself well in his base and gives himself a platform to rotate through to create velocity. Props to him and whoever he’s working with because it was a very clean game from his lower body, a rarity at that level and age. His throwing motion is quick and efficient. Impressed with the power and velocity he creates.
Hebert has a lot of juice as a runner. Absolutely offers a second dimension in that aspect. The opposing defense stayed him on a lot of the read options out of respect for his ground game. He breaks a long TD run late as well. I’d bet he’s running in the 4.6-4.7s.
He is willing to stay in the pocket and take a shot if he’s got a route coming open. Looks very comfortable maneuvering in there and has the guts to stick in. To note, good footwork leads to good pocket presence. It all ties together, and he is well put together in that way.
I thought outside of one throw, Hebert displayed good accuracy and ball placement at all three levels. He’s especially comfortable on out routes within 10 yards, slants and in routes. On those, I thought he put the ball in a place where only his guys could get it. With that, he had great timing. I was really impressed with him hitting guys just out of their breaks and right when they cleared defenders. Shows an awareness and understanding of the offense and his progressions.
His deep ball placement is solid. I didn’t see him really chucking it like some other guys, but his ball is flat and gets to the receiver quickly and usually in stride. Something that needs to continue to develop consistency, but there’s enough here to point as a likely plus trait down the road.
Where Hebert needs to grow:
The first thing is almost an unfair criticism. The guys he’s playing aren’t very good. In his defense, neither are his receivers (5+ drops in this game), but he wasn't asked to think a ton since there was so much time and so many windows. That’s something to monitor in his transition. When there are 4 Florida State defensive linemen in your face and your primary is covered, can you check to your secondary and make it happen? Not saying he can’t, just posing that as something to acknowledge about his film.
Very small technical thing. He burps the baby about every other throw. Gets away with it in Massachusetts; he won’t down here. Slows down timing and when the window is smaller, it matters.
While his deep ball is very sharp, I don't think he has the cannon of an arm that some other prospects do. He's a lot more precise and quick with the deep ball, but he doesn't boom it quite as deep. Is that a huge deal? I don't really think so, but it's worth noting for a point of comparison.
Overall:
I thought Hebert was pretty good. When watching MacIntyre and Hill, I was impressed by their big play ability but frustrated at times by their small errors (moreso Hill than Mac). With Hebert, it’s the opposite. I didn’t see any huge plays from him in this matchup, but he didn’t make the small mistakes that the others did. He’s technically sound with a solid ability to manage an offense and a big enough arm to offer something vertically. The level of competition is a fair knock though. He had huge windows and a lot of time on a large majority of plays. Seeing if he can continue to be accurate and manage the pocket well when he’s facing bigger and faster defenders is the main question for his translation.
Central Catholic runs a pretty common high school variation of the college spread. They sprinkle in a bit of no-huddle, but most of their passing looks coming out of spread formation 3x1 or 2x2. Lots of screens and short game work based off of a read option heavy run game.
What Hebert does well:
Mechanics: Hebert has the best footwork out of the three quarterbacks I’ve now watched in the ‘25 class. Solid 3 and 5 step drops, sets himself well in his base and gives himself a platform to rotate through to create velocity. Props to him and whoever he’s working with because it was a very clean game from his lower body, a rarity at that level and age. His throwing motion is quick and efficient. Impressed with the power and velocity he creates.
Hebert has a lot of juice as a runner. Absolutely offers a second dimension in that aspect. The opposing defense stayed him on a lot of the read options out of respect for his ground game. He breaks a long TD run late as well. I’d bet he’s running in the 4.6-4.7s.
He is willing to stay in the pocket and take a shot if he’s got a route coming open. Looks very comfortable maneuvering in there and has the guts to stick in. To note, good footwork leads to good pocket presence. It all ties together, and he is well put together in that way.
I thought outside of one throw, Hebert displayed good accuracy and ball placement at all three levels. He’s especially comfortable on out routes within 10 yards, slants and in routes. On those, I thought he put the ball in a place where only his guys could get it. With that, he had great timing. I was really impressed with him hitting guys just out of their breaks and right when they cleared defenders. Shows an awareness and understanding of the offense and his progressions.
His deep ball placement is solid. I didn’t see him really chucking it like some other guys, but his ball is flat and gets to the receiver quickly and usually in stride. Something that needs to continue to develop consistency, but there’s enough here to point as a likely plus trait down the road.
Where Hebert needs to grow:
The first thing is almost an unfair criticism. The guys he’s playing aren’t very good. In his defense, neither are his receivers (5+ drops in this game), but he wasn't asked to think a ton since there was so much time and so many windows. That’s something to monitor in his transition. When there are 4 Florida State defensive linemen in your face and your primary is covered, can you check to your secondary and make it happen? Not saying he can’t, just posing that as something to acknowledge about his film.
Very small technical thing. He burps the baby about every other throw. Gets away with it in Massachusetts; he won’t down here. Slows down timing and when the window is smaller, it matters.
While his deep ball is very sharp, I don't think he has the cannon of an arm that some other prospects do. He's a lot more precise and quick with the deep ball, but he doesn't boom it quite as deep. Is that a huge deal? I don't really think so, but it's worth noting for a point of comparison.
Overall:
I thought Hebert was pretty good. When watching MacIntyre and Hill, I was impressed by their big play ability but frustrated at times by their small errors (moreso Hill than Mac). With Hebert, it’s the opposite. I didn’t see any huge plays from him in this matchup, but he didn’t make the small mistakes that the others did. He’s technically sound with a solid ability to manage an offense and a big enough arm to offer something vertically. The level of competition is a fair knock though. He had huge windows and a lot of time on a large majority of plays. Seeing if he can continue to be accurate and manage the pocket well when he’s facing bigger and faster defenders is the main question for his translation.
