Look to Ohios top programs for top recruits

As is the case year in and year out, there is plenty of high school football talent in the state of Ohio this season. So where are the players? A list of 10 of the top programs in the state of Ohio will yield quite a variety of college prospects.

A good place to start would be the fine Cleveland Glenville program. Ted Ginn Sr. has been turning out college prospects on a consistent basis for a number of years, and this year is going to be no exception.

Glenville standout defensive back Jamario O’Neal has already committed to Ohio State. Another Glenville standout that is being highly recruited is linebacker/defensive back Fred Lennix. Offensive lineman Mike Russell, defensive end Curtis Smith, and running back Tim Conner are three more prospects at Glenville to keep in mind.

Cleveland St. Ignatius is always a contender for the Ohio big school state championship and always seems to have at least one major college prospect. There are at least two candidates this year in linebackers Jim Ramella and Sean Kavanagh.

Staying in the Cleveland area, Lakewood St. Edwards boasts the state’s number one prospect in offensive lineman Alex Boone. Boone, who is one of the country’s top offensive linemen, has committed to Oho State. Several others at St. Edwards will also draw attention from recruiters.

Warren Harding has a couple of big-timers this year. Wide receiver Mario Manningham has committed to Michigan and offensive lineman Rocco Cironi is drawing interest from many major colleges across the country.

Canton McKinley and Canton Glen Oak each have several prospects. At McKinley defensive back Ryan Brinson, defensive lineman Antwon Hight, and defensive back Brad Jones lead a group of a half dozen prospects drawing interest from recruiters.

At Glen Oak, Brian Hartline is a talented athlete who could play a number of positions in college. Linebacker Brandon Long, like Hartline, is drawing interest from a number of Big Ten schools as well as many others.

Moving to the other end of the state, Dayton Chaminade year in and year out has some outstanding talent. The top prospect this year is running back Javon Ringer, but wide receiver Sean Allen and cornerback Brandon Harrison is also drawing interest from recruiters.

Cincinnati St. Xavier is the home of the state of Ohio’s pre-season number one quarterback prospect, Rob Schoenhoft. Schoenhoft had five scholarship offers by mid-March. Linebacker Drew Quinn is one of several other prospects at St. Xavier drawing interest from recruiters.

Two other Cincinnati area schools to keep in mind when looking for college football prospects are Cincinnati Colerain and Cincinnati Elder.

At Colerain running back Mister Simpson is the No. 1 prospect and should get a number of scholarship offers, but others who recruiters are well aware of include defensive lineman Terrill Byrd, linebacker Andre Revels and defensive back Brayden Coombs.

And finally, no mention of some of the top football programs and top prospects in the state of Ohio would be complete without Cincinnati Elder.

Elder has won two straight big-school state championships and two players who were a huge part of the most recent championship are Eric Kenkel and Craig Carey. Kenkel is a standout defensive end and Carey starred at tight end during the 2003 season. Both are drawing attention from plenty of recruiters though Carey will move to quarterback his senior season and likely play that position at the next level.

As always is the case there are plenty of outstanding football prospects in the state of Ohio who play on some excellent teams. Recruiters will be beating a steady path to all of these schools from now till national signing day rolls around.