Friday Night Stripes Week 5: St. Xavier vs. La Salle
The adidas #FridayNightStripes series is headed to the Queen City of Cincinnati to feature two of Ohio’s top prep programs. The first live streaming series of high school football games on Twitter has generated strong viewership in the first four weeks of bringing top high school programs and Division I talent to a national audience.
This week’s game features a pair of Greater Catholic League schools who field top Division I talent, but are looking to overcome slow starts to the season. Cincinnati La Salle enters with a 4-2 record just two years removed from back-to-back-to-back state titles, while Cincinnati St. Xavier is 2-4 despite having Ohio’s top ranked 2020 prospect.
Here are the player’s to watch in Friday night’s contest:
THE HEADLINERS
The highest-ranked four-star prospect in the 2020 class will get a chance to make his case for five stars on the national stage Friday night. Johnson has all the tools you are looking for at the left tackle position, from height to athleticism. Sophomore film showed the need for technical and strength development, and without a presence on the off-season camp and combine circuit Johnson’s first chance to showcase his progression has come this season. While his recruitment went national very quickly, the Army All-American Bowl 2020 selection ended the suspense in June when he announced a commitment to Ohio State.
The state of Ohio’s No. 2 ranked running back prospect in the 2020 class, Porter is a physical back who is particularly effective when he can run between the tackles and soften up defenses with a heavy workload. His recruitment kicked off in earnest last April with an offer from Western Michigan. Before the spring was over Porter’s offer total had reached double digits and included Power Five programs Iowa, Iowa State, Louisville, Minnesota and Purdue. Porter’s latest offer came from Northwestern, where former La Salle running back Jeremy Larkin started the season strong for the Wildcats before being forced to retire recently for health reasons.
After starting his high school career at Lakota West High School in nearby West Chester, Horton transferred to La Salle in the off-season and is now leading the Lancer’s offense. A dual-threat quarterback, Horton has completed 53 percent of his passes for 503 yards and seven touchdowns against just one interception, while rushing for a team-high 352 yards and two more scores on the ground. The younger brother of class of 2014 four-star Mikel Horton, the junior quarterback who goes by “MJ” has already pulled in scholarship offers from Kentucky and Louisville.
University of Cincinnati head coach Luke Fickell has made hometown talent a priority in recruiting, and in Ingle he was able to keep another local talent at home when the two-star linebacker committed to the Bearcats in April over offers from Indiana and several Mid-American Conference programs. In fact, Ingle was the first commitment in a Cincinnati 2019 class that now numbers 15 total pledges. This season Ingle is near the team lead in tackles and has also recorded a sack and two forced fumbles. He has the skill set to play all across the linebacker corps.
OTHER PLAYERS TO WATCH