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. 60, Marion Pleasant
Qualification
Four players from Marion Pleasant have been listed on 14 Ohio State rosters. Max Midlam was the first Spartan on an Ohio State roster. The defensive back was a reserve player between 1973 and 1976. Midlam started every football game in a four-year period with Pleasant. He led the Spartans to two state titles football (1971, 1972) and one in basketball. His athletic feats weren't finished as he also won the state title in the long jump.
Dan Hirneise arrived at Ohio State in 1985 and expected to play guard. He was moved to center and had a knee injury in the preseason. The injury required surgery that cost him his freshman and redshirt freshman seasons. When he came back in 1987, the injury bug struck again. This time it was his back and kept him out for his third-straight year. Hirneise's lower back pain was chronic and he did not play in 1988 either. Heading into his final season, he had an outstanding spring, but it all fell apart when he injured his knee that required yet another surgery.
Jason Warner was a walk-on defensive back in 1990, but did not return to the team.
WR Devlin McDaniel started his Ohio State career as an invited walk-on in 2013. He was on the roster through his senior season in 2016. At Marion Pleasant, McDaniel caught 38 passes for 764 and 11 touchdowns as a senior. He left the Spartans with all of the program's receiving records. He earned all-conference honors in both football and basketball.
Back To School
Marion Pleasant is located in Marion County and is a member of the Mid-Ohio Athletic Conference. The team currently competes in Division V, Region 18. The Spartans went 8–2 in the 2018 regular season and made the playoffs. They traveled to Oak Harbor and lost 28-21 in the first round. The football program has made the playoffs in three straight seasons and has won four state titles. 2002 was the last time the Spartans took home a state title. The other football championships were in 1996, 1972 and 1971.
Notable
Pleasant has won 11 state championships in six different sports. Football leads the way with four, Wrestling has two in duals (2008, 2007), boys' baseball has two (2006, 2001) and boys' track and field (2002), boys' golf (1989) and boys' basketball (1973) have one each.
Famous Alumni
Famous names you may know: None that I could find.
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 |
2,775 days since Ohio State has not defeated That Team.
151 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.
