Boone leads elite pack at Columbus NIKE Camp

COLUMBUS, Ohio – The NIKE Training Camp on the campus of the Ohio State University attracted some of the top football prospects in the Midwest. While the bulk of the athletes in attendance were from the state of Ohio, some outstanding talent from outside the borders of Ohio made it to Columbus on Saturday.

Here’s a look at 10 key standouts from the camp in the eyes of Rivals100.com Midwest recruiting analyst Bill Kurelic.

For the first time in three years, the NIKE Training Camp returned to Ohio State, so let’s begin with a number of prospects from the state of Ohio who were very impressive on a beautiful Saturday in Columbus .

Lakewood St. Edward’s offensive lineman Alex Boone is one of the country’s top overall prospects and showed why on Saturday. Boone is big, agile, and very athletic. In the one-on-one pass protection drills opponents could not beat him. Simply Boone, who ran a 5.1 40 yard dash at the camp, is a dominant force at the high school level.

Another Ohio offensive lineman who got the attention of many in attendance was Zach Hennis from Plain City Jonathan Alder. On size alone Hennis was hard to miss. He measured 6-foot-7 and weighed in at 309 pounds. Hennis ran a very respectable 5.31 40-yard dash and his other time wasn’t too shabby either at 5.38.

Going into the NIKE Training Camp Cincinnati St. Xavier quarterback Rob Schoenhoft already had close to a dozen scholarship offers, including ones from several Big Ten schools. Schoenhoft showed why on Saturday. Shoenhoft, who has tight end size, was measured at 6-foot-5 and weighed in at 225 pounds. He displayed pretty good footwork, a solid arm, and excellent accuracy.

A couple of the top backs from the state of Ohio were in Columbus for the NIKE Training Camp, Dayton Chaminade teammates Javon Ringer and Brandon Harrison. Harrison, a defensive back, had a blistering 4.28 40-yard dash time, while Ringer, a running back, ran a 4.4. Ringer had a fine 3.87 shuttle time.

Making the trip south from Michigan to Columbus was quarterback/athlete Antonio Bass from Jackson, and Bass was very impressive. He went through the camp working with the quarterback group, but what really stood out was Bass’ overall athletic ability.

It may be hard to find a high school football player with more athletic ability in the state of Michigan. Bass is smooth and does things few high school prospects can. He ran a 4.41 40-yard dash. While it might be debatable as to whether Bass plays quarterback or not at the next level, what isn’t debatable is his athletic ability.

It’s no wonder Michigan, Michigan State, and Purdue are among his early offers.

A number of prospects from the fine Detroit (Mich.) St. Martin DePorres program headed to Ohio to perform at the Nike Training Camp on Saturday. One who was certainly impressive was Talonnie Russell.

Russell, a wide receiver, has soft hands and ran good routes in the day’s passing drills.

Another prospect from the state of Michigan who was impressive was Lake Orion wide receiver Ryan Allison. The younger brother of Michigan signee Roger Allison, Ryan certainly passes the look test. A well muscled young man, he also displayed speed that will certainly pique the interest of recruiters. Ryan ran 4.28 and 4.31 40-yard dashes. Thus far only Eastern Michigan has offered a scholarship, but don’t be surprised if more offers start to come in for Allison in May.

One of the top prospects from the state of Indiana is wide receiver Donald Washington from Indianapolis Franklin Central. Washington was impressive in the passing drills Saturday as he showed good speed and hands and the ability to get open. Washington has offers from Stanford and Eastern Michigan with more sure to come.

Shoenhoft wasn’t the only signal caller who looked good Saturday. Billy Stull from Pittsburgh (Pa.) Seton-LaSalle showed good footwork and pretty good arm strength. Stull, who threw for over 2000 yards during his junior season, has early offers from Kentucky, North Carolina, and Akron, and many other schools are interested including Ohio State, Iowa, Pitt, Michigan, and Michigan State.

For expanded coverage of the Columbus NIKE Training Camp, you should check out StudentSports.com. Access to StudentSports.com requires an additional membership. Coming Soon! The best is getting better. The Rivals.com Recruiting Database will include all authentic data from this summer's NIKE Training Camp schedule.