High School Football recruiting roundup: Area seniors make verbal commitments

Another busy week on the recruiting trail for players from all over the Miami Valley produced a pair of commitments and many other noteworthy developments.

Here is a rundown:

1. Reggie Powers III committed to Michigan State.

In case you missed it, the Centerville safety chose to be a Spartan after making his official visit to East Lansing.

This was a come-from-behind victory, so to speak, for MSU as they were the last of more than 30 schools to offer Powers a scholarship.

READ MORE about Powers’ decision here.

2. Gabriel Funk committed to Appalachian State.

An offensive lineman from Xenia, Funk shut his recruitment down after an official visit to Boone, N.C., over the weekend.

He chose the Mountaineers from a group that also included Toledo, Ball State, Kent State, Eastern Michigan, Akron, Central Michigan, Massachusetts, Western Michigan, Middle Tennessee State, Austin Peay and Bowling Green.

Now Funk is on track to be the first Xenia player to sign with an FBS school since Gavin Gerhardt went to Cincinnati in the class of 2020.

Following Powers, he became the fourth area player to make a verbal commitment from the class of 2024. Stebbins offensive lineman Jake Wheelock previously committed to Cincinnati, and Trotwood-Madison quarterback Tim Carpenter Jr. is headed to Indiana.

2. Aaron Scott Jr. visited Michigan.

As he did when he went to Oregon a week earlier, the Springfield cornerback shared a look at what the Wolverines laid out for him in his room on his official visit.

The highly coveted defensive back is scheduled to go to Ohio State for his last official visit this weekend with the Buckeyes, Wolverines and Ducks among his final five released in late spring.

He is the No. 1 prospect in Ohio per 247Sports rankings and the No. 3 cornerback.

3. Tavien St. Clair worked out at Ohio State.

The Bellefontaine junior quarterback took part in one of the Buckeyes’ one-day recruiting camps, which he termed another chance to learn from the OSU coaching staff, including quarterbacks coach Corey Dennis.

“He’s always helping me just refine my mechanics and stuff like that,” St. Clair told reporters at the camp (via BuckeyeSports.com). “Every time I get to learn from somebody like coach Dennis or (assistant) coach (Todd) Fitch or (head) coach (Ryan) Day, it’s big time.”

St. Clair is a four-star prospect and 25th among quarterbacks nationally in 247Sports Composite rankings for 2025 with an impressive offer list that recently added LSU and Alabama.

“My recruitment is going really good,” he added. “I had a blast doing it all. Always love coming back to Ohio State and just enjoy being here. It’s really fun. I really like Ohio State and I just want to keep the relationship going with them.”

Others to camp at Ohio State last week included Noah King of Fairfield and Cam Thomas of Lakota West.

4. St. Clair also picked up an offer from Michigan last week as the Wolverines continue to ramp up their recruiting efforts in the Buckeye State.

Along with making a big push to land Scott from the 2024 class, that includes making an offer to Stebbins junior offensive lineman Isiah Stoudemire, who was named Offensive Line MVP at the camp in Ann Arbor. Dunbar running back Dai’Vontay Young also camped at Michigan and picked up an offer from Toledo.

5. Lakota West senior defensive back Taebron Bennie-Powell picked up an offer from Notre Dame.

Toledo offered one of Bennie-Powell’s teammates, junior Grant Beerman, who also picked up an offer from Pittsburgh after attending a Panthers camp. Beerman also camped at Ohio State and shared plans to check out Notre Dame.

6. Texas A&M offered Northmont junior Dorian Brew while he visited College Station.

7. Wayne junior receiver Kamaurri Smith picked up offers from Cincinnati, Kent and Temple.

Kent also offered fellow Warriors Teaunn Hunter and Jussiah Williams, who also earned a UC offer.

8. Springfield cornerback Javyn Martin went to camp at Florida State over the weekend and announced plans to be at Florida on Monday.

9. Kent State held a camp that included several local prospects, including Bryce Washington of Springfield and Jahmale Clark of Trotwood-Madison.

Clark and fellow Trotwood prospects Donovan Harden, Jermiel Atkins and Armani Rogers also visited Pittsburgh.

10. Central Michigan offered Springfield senior receiver Jamil Miller.

11. Lakota West’s Jacob Asbeck visited the Naval Academy.

12. Lakota East quarterback Jamison Kitna and teammate Derek Jackson visited UAB.

13. Another player to keep an eye on is Fenwick kicker Derek Morris.

The Falcons senior made 10 of 14 field goals last season and is rated the No. 1 kicker in the country by ProKicker.com.

14. And finally we dip into the world of basketball recruiting: Brady Connor, a 6-5 junior guard at Alter, announced receiving an offer from Marshall, where his brother Jacob is a sophomore forward.

If you or someone you know have a recruiting update to share, please reach out to Marcus Hartman at marcus.hartman@coxinc.com.

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