“I think it helped as far as travel for the coaches and not having to go all over the place, so that part, you know, I’m all for,” Wayne coach Roosevelt Mukes said.
“Any time our kids have an opportunity to show the talents that they’ve been blessed with, that’s what it’s about.”
Wayne receiver Jamier Averette-Brown, who has already verbally committed to Ohio State and is one of the top-rated players nationally in the class of 2027, was the main attraction of the day, but many Warriors who waited their turns behind a talented group of senior skill players last fall also got to show their wares.
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Credit: Marcus Hartman
That included seniors-to-be Jerald Battles and Sean Heisle, rising junior Aeden Curtis and sophomore Brayden Redd while lefty quarterback Kye Graham (class of 2028) also showed a glimpse of the future throwing them the ball.
“It’s really good,” Averette-Brown said. “Me being the center of attention kind of helped my teammates get to show their talent, so that’s really why I’m here today — just for everybody to come out so my teammates can get some looks. So hopefully all my teammates have great conversations with all the coaches and great people out here.”
Closer to the line of scrimmage, offensive lineman Paxton Tengesdahl, linebacker Javon Lewis and defensive lineman Avant Hunter (all seniors-to-be) are players to watch according to Mukes.
“We’ve got good players that want to get better, that want to push each other and are happy for each other’s success,” Mukes said. “So for me, that’s what it’s about. Your best teams are player-led teams, so we’re blessed and fortunate to have some guys that are going to be great leaders.”
Division I FBS coaches from Kentucky, West Virginia, Louisville, Purdue, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Temple, Toledo, Kent State, Miami (Ohio), Bowling Green, Ohio, Eastern Michigan, Western Michigan, Central Michigan, Navy and Massachusetts were spotted at multiple locations — if not all of them — while many smaller schools also had representatives at every stop.
The latter group included not only local schools Dayton, Central State and Wittenberg but also Bucknell, Youngstown State, Butler, Mount Saint Joseph, Otterbein, James Madison, Eastern Illinois, Heidelberg, Valparaiso, Ohio Northern, Marietta, Butler, Capital, Wabash, Fairmont State, Mercyhurst, Gardiner-Webb, Franklin, Marian (Ind.),Hocking College and others.
Fairmont coach Dave Miller appreciated the opportunity to team up with CHS, his alma mater.
“That’s hard for college coaches traveling to eight different sites in the amount of time we’re giving them,” Miller said. “That’s a long day, so I think this is better. I kind of like the format.”
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Trotwood-Madison also held its showcase Monday, staging its event between the one in Centerville and Springfield, but schools of the GWOC are just some of the many around Ohio to host college coaches this week.
Credit: Marcus Hartman
Credit: Marcus Hartman
The Miami Valley League and Dayton City League were also scheduled to host events Tuesday while schools closer to Cincinnati and in Central Ohio had already done the same.
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