Recruiting is said to be the lifeblood of college football. This series will countdown the top 100 high schools in Ohio that have provided the Buckeyes with football players. The rankings are based on how many times a player from each high school has been listed on Ohio State's roster between 1970 and 2018.

**NOTE**
Earlier today, Toledo Central Catholic was at this spot. Ludwig Yards correctly noticed that Mike Scannell was not listed as a Toledo Central Catholic alum. Ohio State's roster had him listed as a Central Catholic player, but from Sylvania. I am not from the region and mistakenly placed him on "Sylvania Central Catholic" in my notes.

Due to the addition of Mike Scannell, you will see Toledo Central Catholic on the countdown in a couple of weeks. With the upward movement of Central Catholic, Avon Lake gets bumped to No. 93.

Ludwig Yards, thanks for the assist. 

No. 93, Avon Lake

Qualification

Four players from Avon Lake have been listed on 11 Ohio State rosters. Receiver Dick Wakefield earned All-Ohio honors at Avon Lake and was captain of the football and basketball teams. He finished his Buckeye career with 35 receptions for 467 yards and a touchdown.

Joe Berner was the next Avon Lake player to make Ohio State's roster. The linebacker spent three seasons with the Buckeyes. He played on special teams during his time in Columbus. Berner was an All-Ohioan at tackle in high school and said his favorite football moment was when he blocked a punt and recovered it for a touchdown to give Avon Lake a 7-0 victory.

Mike D'Andrea was a highly-touted linebacker for Ohio State's 2002 recruiting class. He was a Parade All-American and was rated as the nation's top linebacker by various scouting agencies. D'Andrea was earned All-Ohio honors in football and won the state championship in the shot put his junior and senior years and the discus his junior year.

When D'Andrea arrived at Ohio State he played in 13 games as a freshman, but only saw limited action after that due to knee and shoulder injuries. His potential was never met, but he was considered one of the strongest players on Ohio State's roster.  

Back To School

Avon Lake is located in Lorain County and is a member of the Southwestern Conference. The team currently competes in Division II, Region 6.  The Shoremen made the playoffs last year and hosted Olmsted Falls in a 44-28 first round win. The playoff run ended the next week when Toledo Central Catholic defeated Avon Lake 56-16. The football team won a state title in 2003. 

Notable

Avon Lake has a total of five state championships. Girls' cross country has two (1988, 1986), rugby (2015), football (2003) and girls' basketball (1994).

Famous Alumni

Some names, or bodies faces you may know: Playboy Playmate and WWE Diva search contestant Carmella DeCesare, MLB pitchers Dick Tomanek and Jeremy Griffiths and illusionist Angela Funovits.

Explanation of the Rankings
School "A" had 14 players appear 16 times on Ohio State's roster. School "B" had 11 players appear 20 times on Ohio State's roster. School "B" will have the higher ranking. Why? Even though school "B" has less players, those players played for more years. 

If two or more schools have the same number of appearances, the tie will be broken by the school with the highest average of roster appearances per player. If there is a tie in the average, the tie breaker will be the school with the most prominent Ohio State player. 

2,742 days since Ohio State has not defeated That Team.
183 days until The Game.

Are you a former player, graduate, live near or have something to add about today's featured high school? Please share your story with us in the comments. What makes the 11W community unique is the amount of great information everybody is willing to share.