By Jon Mahoney, Special to SI.com, SchoolSports.com
Summer is here, which means fall is right around the corner. And fall means football. So with that in mind, here are the storylines, players and teams to watch this year in high school football -- everything to get you ready for the fall and beyond on the gridiron.
Expectations have been high for the Oaks Christian (Westlake Village, Calif.) senior quarterback ever since he stepped onto a football field -- and they'll only get higher this season. Clausen, whose brothers both played quarterback at Tennessee, has been referred to as the LeBron James of high school football. He is the most celebrated prep signal caller in California since John Elway. Clausen, who committed to Notre Dame in April, is a grounded kid who doesn't generally let pressure get to him, but it will be interesting to see how he deals with being the nation's No. 1 recruit this year and having a gigantic bull's-eye on his back.
Many wondered how long it would take coach Charlie Weis to turn the Irish back into a national power. The answer: one season. Weis made Notre Dame one of the country's top teams last fall and then signed a top five recruiting class for the Class of 2006. And for the Class of 2007, Weis got off to a tremendous start by snagging early commitments from the nation's No. 1 recruit, Clausen, as well as Camden Catholic (Cherry Hill, N.J.) tight end Mike Ragone, Hoboken (Hoboken, N.J.) wideout Duval Kamara and Hampton (Allison Park, Pa.) running back/linebacker Steve Paskorz.
Quarterback is the marquee position in football, so it's fitting that spot is loaded in the Class of 2007. Clausen is the country's top overall recruit, while Ryan Mallett of Texas (Texarkana, Texas), Pat Bostick of Manheim Township (Lancaster, Pa.) and John Brantley of Trinity Catholic (Ocala, Fla.) are all Top 25 recruits nationally. In fact, there could be as many as 15 quarterbacks ranked among the nation's Top 100 recruits this year, and all of them have the potential to make a big-time impact on the college level.
Arguably the best high school football games this fall will occur during the second annual Kirk Herbstreit Ohio vs. USA Challenge in September. Herbstreit, a former Ohio State quarterback and current ESPN college football analyst, created the event, which pits Ohio's top teams against some of the nation's best prep programs. This year features 10 games split between two venues in Ohio on Sept. 15-16. On Sept. 16, defending Division I state champ St. Xavier (Cincinnati, Ohio) is scheduled to play two-time defending Class 5A state champ Lakeland (Lakeland, Fla.). Storied programs De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) and Elder (Cincinnati, Ohio) are also scheduled to face off that day.
National Signing Day, which occurs during the first week of February each year, used to be a time of great anticipation. But it has sadly become nothing more than a formality, as many of the nation's top recruits now commit well before February, effectively taking the drama out of Signing Day. In fact, top Class of 2007 recruits like quarterback Clausen (Notre Dame), Bostick (Pittsburgh), St. Francis (St. Francis, Wis.) offensive lineman Josh Oglesby (Wisconsin) and Servite (Anaheim, Calif.) linebacker Chris Galippo (USC) have already reached their decisions.
