'These kids did things that I've never seen': Miami football coach lands star recruits

Indiana's Mr. Football Josh Ringer is crossing the border to play college football in Ohio. Ringer headlines a strong recruitment class for coach Chuck Martin and the Miami University RedHawks that includes two other players from the Great Cincinnati area.

The Redhawks are reigning MAC champions and Martin knows his team's recent success has brought in more top-quality recruits than ever before.

"Good seasons help everyone in recruiting. ... We were getting calls from some kids that kind of had passed on us; (they) were maybe too good for us at that time. Not in a bad way just, but then it's like, 'well, the team I was kind of thinking of, they weren't very good and you guys were," Martin said at a press conference on Wednesday.

"We had no defections. There's typically gonna be one or two defections late. That's just normal. But probably the success we had led to us not having any defections."

The 2023 recruiting class is made up of 21 athletes from as far away as Alaska but, of course, the RedHawks recruited heavily in Ohio and Indiana and even harder in the immediate area. In addition to Ringer, Brach Rice of Dixie Heights and Jacob Schorsch of Elder are joining the RedHawks program.

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East Central's Josh Ringer brings unbelievable offense

Ringer's senior year was, simply put, record-breaking. The running back rushed for 2,880 yards and 55 touchdowns this season, a feat that blew away Martin.

"He has 118 touchdowns in his high school career. I can't wrap my brain around that. That's more than most high schools score in four years, let alone a player," Martin said.

But his rushing offensive is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Ringer.

More: East Central RB Josh Ringer wins 2023 Indiana Mr. Football: 'A great surprise.'

"You know, there's people in his family that want him to play safety in college. He's that gifted. ... I think he could play safety, receiver or running back. He's just such a talented young man and we're very fortunate that we've convinced him to come hang out with us for a little while."

At receiver, Ringer had 278 yards and five touchdown catches in 2023. All told, Ringer holds East Central career records for rushing yards and touchdowns scored with 6,640 yards and 118 total touchdowns.

College football will bring new obstacles for Ringer to overcome, but his high school coach Jake Meiners has seen how Ringer rises to the occasion constantly.

"He’s an incredible human being. Every week, knowing you’re at the top of the other team’s scouting reports, for him to continue to have success is incredible," Meiners told the Enquirer after East Central won a second straight state championship this year.

Elder's Jacob Schorsch will be the big man on campus

At 6-foot-6, Elder's Jacob Schorsch is an imposing figure on the field and he has the physicality and smarts to back up his stature.

"He's a tremendously big, physical offensive lineman that's really well-schooled. You get a kid from Elder; they're really well-coached. Not every kid has the same opportunities to prepare for college, but coach (Doug) Ramsey's program, if you get a kid from there they've got a really good coach," Martin said at Wednesday's press conference.

"(Schorsch) technically, is way ahead of a lot of high school kids and he understands run footwork, stance pass blocking. And then Elder, it's a who's who every week. They play the best teams ... so he's played in so many of those big moments and there'll still be a transition to college, but the transition's easier for those kids that have played in those great programs."

Schorsch not only played in a great program, he led in a great program. As a team captain, Schorsch helped the Panthers to a 7-5 record during a tough schedule this season. Schorsch was the Greater Catholic League's offensive lineman of the year and made first-team all-conference.

Dixie Heights' Brach Rice ready to tackle college ball

Miami's lone defensive recruit from Greater Cincinnati, Brach Rice of Dixie Heights is a standout at his position. Rice was a team captain for his senior year and helped take the Colonels to the second round of the KHSAA playoffs.

One of the keys that Rice brings is a laser-like ability to make tackles. Rice holds the Dixie Heights record for tackles in a single game with 28 and the record for most tackles in a season with 184.

"A lot of these kids did things that I've never seen, you know, Rice had like 180 tackles in a year and (he's) blocking kicks for touchdowns. He's a complete competitor," Martin said.

Martin said Miami might not be able to get a player like Rice a few years ago.

"Ten years ago, (he's) probably untouchable for us. But just times have changed with recruiting and the big schools are taking less high school kids and they'd rather get a Brach Rice in the portal and take him probably two years from now."

Final word on Miami RedHawks 2023-2024 recruiting class

After such a strong season for the RedHawks, these local recruits will need to show up ready to compete. Ringer will have a small head start on Rice and Schorsch as the running back already graduated from East Central and is set to enroll at Miami for the spring semester.

However, coming from top-notch programs at Elder and Dixie Heights, Schorsch and Rice will likely slot right into place on their new college team come fall.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Miami RedHawks football signs Indiana Mr. Football, Cincinnati stars