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.
No. 72, Lakota West
Qualification
Three players from Lakota West have been listed on 12 Ohio State rosters. Brandon Maupin was the first Firebird to make a Buckeye roster. He was listed at defensive tackle, but was only on the team for the 2003 and 2004 seasons. At Lakota West, he played on both sides of the line and was on the All-Southwest Ohio District Team.
Steve Rehring played guard for the Buckeyes between 2004 and 2007. He started at guard during his junior and senior seasons and was considered "big, talented and versatile". At Lakota West, Rehring was an All-Ohio player as a senior and All-Southwest District as a junior.
Lakota West's last Buckeye to date was Solomon Thomas (2007-11). The defensive end spent five seasons in Columbus and was described as a "talented athlete who possesses strength, speed and agility". Thomas had to miss the first five games of his senior season due to a suspension. He finished his Buckeye career with 27 tackles and an interception. As a Firebird, Thomas was the first player to be voted as a captain as both a junior and senior. He was an All-Southwest Ohio player as a senior.
Back To School
Lakota West is located in Butler County and is a member of the Greater Miami Conference. The team currently competes in Division I, Region 4. The Firebirds have had three consecutive losing seasons. The last time the football team made the playoffs was 2014. They had a nice run by winning the first two games, but fell to Wayne, 38-3, in the district final.
Notable
Lakota West and Lakota East High Schools were created in 1997, when Lakota High School split.
Lakota West has two state championships. The Girls' basketball team won it all in 2015 and the boys' baseball team in 2007. The girls' basketball team was state runner-up in 2008.
Famous Alumni
Some famous names you may know: NFL players John Conner, Jordan Hicks and Ryan Kelly, MLS soccer player Nick Hagglund and MLB player Jacob May.
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.
| 100 | 99 | 98 | 97 | 96 | 95 | 94 | 93 | 92 | 91 |
| 90 | 89 | 88 | 87 | 86 | 85 | 84 | 83 | 82 | 81 |
| 80 | 79 | 78 | 77 | 76 | 75 | 74 | 73 | 72 | 71 |
| 70 | 69 | 68 | 67 | 66 | 65 | 64 | 63 | 62 | 61 |
| 60 | 59 | 58 | 57 | 56 | 55 | 54 | 53 | 52 | 51 |
| 50 | 49 | 48 | 47 | 46 | 45 | 44 | 43 | 42 | 41 |
| 40 | 39 | 38 | 37 | 36 | 35 | 34 | 33 | 32 | 31 |
| 30 | 29 | 28 | 27 | 26 | 25 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 21 |
| 20 | 19 | 18 | 17 | 16 | 15 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 11 |
| 10 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
2,763 days since Ohio State has not defeated That Team.
163 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.
