We enter the 2025 high school football season in the valley on Aug. 21 with a group of defensive players that may be as good, collectively, as any we’ve had in the last five years.
Our question to you, the readers, is which one of them is the best?
Koa Rapolla, the senior linebacker at Palm Springs High School, collected 81 tackles, 2.5 sacks and four interceptions in six games last year before breaking his arm. Then, there’s Major Hinchen, the senior cornerback at La Quinta, who has committed to play in college for the University of Utah.
Jeremiah Johnson, who plays corner and safety for Rancho Mirage, joins Hinchen as arguably the two most athletic defensive players in the valley. Though Noah Hook, a senior safety at Rancho Mirage, is also in the mix there. All three were all-league selections last season.
Jackson Bishop, a 6-foot-3 defensive end for Palm Desert, which had the best defense in the valley, statistically, last season, had 14.5 sacks as a junior. His teammate, cornerback Jonah Toland, is among the most versatile players in the valley, and he’s also extremely athletic and quick. Palm Desert’s Darius Pine is among the best linebackers in the valley.
Sebastian Casillas, a junior at Coachella Valley, was the Desert Valley League defensive player of the year last year, and he’ll move from the defensive line to linebacker this season.
Desert Christian Academy sophomore Judah Garrison was among the nation’s leaders with 11 interceptions last season, and he returned four of them for touchdowns. Yucca Valley’s Brody Herrera recorded 139 tackles for the Trojans last year as a junior.
Last week we asked you to vote for the top offensive player heading into the 2025 season and you voted for La Quinta tailback James Madden Ruberg. Ruberg is a great offensive player but as reported in The Desert Sun he will miss a chunk of next year due to an ACL tear, so we’ll see if he can still make an impact.
But back to the defensive side of the ball. That’s what this week’s poll is all about.
So, who you do you think is the best defensive player of the bunch? Vote in the poll attached to this article at desertsun.com and whoever has the most votes at noon on Saturday will be the winner.
Andrew John covers sports for The Desert Sun and the USA TODAY Network. Email him at andrew.john@desertsun.com.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Vote: Who will be the best defensive football player in the valley in 2025?
Reporting by Andrew John, Palm Springs Desert Sun / Palm Springs Desert Sun
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