College football recruiters targeting Middies

QB Caleb Watkins, DB Jerry Gates and WR Nick McKnight receive scholarship offers.

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By Skip Weaver, Staff Writer Updated 2:29 AM Tuesday, June 30, 2009

MIDDLETOWN — On Monday, June 29, three Middletown High School football players received college scholarship offers.

Quarterback Caleb Watkins and defensive back and return specialist Jerry Gates were offered scholarships by Central Michigan, while wide receiver Nick McKnight was offered one by the Air Force Academy.

Though many of the college football camps have ended, the recruiting process will stay strong for the remainder of the summer and into the high school season, MHS football coach Jason Krause said.

“We feel we have eight to 10 guys who will go Division I, D-IAA or D-II,” Krause said. “Of course, we would like to see these guys make a decision before the season begins in order to take the pressure off, but the bottom line is we want them to find a place that is a good fit for them, and not just with football.

“We tell our guys, if something were to happen tomorrow and you can’t play football again, is that a place you can see yourself going to school?” he continued. “That’s what it is all about. Getting an education. Football is just the mechanism that provides the opportunity for an education.”

Senior-to-be running back Antonio Banks took the first plunge last week when he officially committed to Indiana University.

Watkins, Gates and McKnight are receiving the heaviest recruiting traffic, but Krause mentioned Kevin Watts, Sam Current, Eric Redding, J.J. Greenwood, Jeremiah Burg, Jahmi Calhoun and Aaron Lewis as also getting some attention.

“All these guys were at the Ohio State camp this past weekend,” Krause said. “The bigger schools like that are also worked by (Mid-American Conference) coaches and other smaller schools, so it’s really a great opportunity for them to be seen and coached by those schools as well.

“Right now, it has slowed down a bit,” he continued. “But we have to remind these guys not to lose sight of the fact we have to take care of Middletown first. We can’t let recruiting be a distraction, and so far we’ve done really well with that.”

»More prep coverage at MiddletownJournal.com /go/prepsplus

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