TTUN '20 IL APB - A.J. Henning (Michigan Verbal)

Discussion in ''20 Committed Elsewhere' started by OSUBasketballJunkie, May 18, 2018.

  1. OSUBasketballJunkie

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    [​IMG]

    Rivals.com
    24/7Sports


    CLASS OF 2020
    5'10''|170lbs|APB
    LINCOLN WAY EAST
    FRANKFORT, IL

    Ohio State has offered.
     
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    A DREAM COME TRUE
    Wilson has been busy during the Spring Evaluation Period. He was in Illinois late last week, at which time he offered a scholarship to Frankfort Lincoln-Way East four-star wide receiver A.J. Henning.

    “It means a lot,” Henning toldEleven Warriors. “Ohio State was one of my dream schools growing up, and to receive an offer from them is amazing.”

    The 5-foot-10, 175-pound Henning is considered the fourth-best wide receiver and No. 23 prospect overall in the Class of 2020, as he racked up 651 all-purpose yards and eight touchdowns to lead the Griffins to the second state title in school history last fall. He holds nearly two dozen offers from programs such as Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Northwestern, Penn State, Stanford, Tennessee and Wisconsin.

    “My versatility [stands out],” Henning said. “I can contribute in multiple ways, whether it is lining up in the slot, outside receiver or the backfield, I’ll do it all.”

    Henning has never been to campus, but plans to visit on June 16, though he won’t be participating in the Buckeyes’ one-day camp that afternoon.
     
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    A SOLID PLAN
    As first reported by Eleven Warriors last month, Ohio State will welcome Frankfort Lincoln-Way East four-star wide receiver A.J. Henning to campus for an unofficial visit on Saturday — though he won’t participate in the program’s one-day camp that afternoon.

    “[I’m looking forward to] meeting all the staff face to face and seeing the stadium, obviously,” Henning told Eleven Warriors.

    The 5-foot-10, 175-pound Henning is considered the fourth-best wide receiver and No. 24 prospect overall in the Class of 2020, as he racked up 651 all-purpose yards and eight touchdowns to lead the Griffins to the second state title in school history last fall. He holds more than two dozen offers from programs such as Illinois, Iowa, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Northwestern, Penn State, Stanford, Tennessee and Wisconsin.
     
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    SPECIAL TREATMENT FOR ONE OF THE NATION'S BEST
    While hundreds of prospects of all different skill levels were participating in a one-day camp at Ohio State in mid-June, Frankfort, Illinois, Lincoln-Way East four-star wide receiver A.J. Henning had a much different experience during his unofficial visit that same afternoon.

    “It was great,” Henning told Eleven Warriors. “Seeing the stadium was awesome, and getting to meet the whole coaching staff was awesome.”

    Rather than working out, the 5-foot-10, 175-pound Henning — who is considered the seventh-best wide receiver and No. 40 prospect overall in the Class of 2020 — was chauffeured around campus Meyer and Smith. They toured Ohio Stadium, met with academic advisors, discussed how they see him fit within the Buckeyes’ offensive scheme and went into detail about what the program’s Real Life Wendesdays can offer him on and off the field.

    Henning — who racked up 651 all-purpose yards and eight touchdowns to lead the Griffins to the second state title in school history last fall — holds more than two dozen offers from programs such as Illinois, Iowa, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Stanford, Tennessee and Wisconsin. The Fighting Irish are considered the favorite to land his pledge, but the Buckeyes are no doubt in the conversation as he looks to start narrowing things down this fall.
     
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    A.J. Henning wants to see Ohio State multiple times
    A 247Sports.com crystal ball came in today for Ohio State 2020 wide receiver target A.J. Henning. You may remember that the country’s No. 7-ranked wideout visited the Buckeyes in early June, and following that trip, he was glowing about his time in Columbus.

    “It was amazing, it definitely exceeded expectations,” Henning said at the time. “I don’t have any top schools right now, though. My main focus is this upcoming season. I plan to cut the list after that.”

    There were some rumblings that the No. 40 overall player in the Class of 2020 was trying to make it to Columbus once again for what’s developing into a rather loaded list of visitors next Friday. Henning will not make that trip, however.

    “I will not make it,” he told Lettermen Row on Friday. “I’ll be on vacation.”

    That doesn’t mean there aren’t returns to Ohio State on his mind, though.

    “I definitely want to get to a game or two this year,” Henning said. “I hear the atmosphere is crazy. I just don’t know which ones I’ll be at yet.”
     
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    EXPLAINING MYSELF
    I also placed a 247Sports Crystal Ball prediction in favor of Ohio State this evening for Frankfort, Illinois, Lincoln-Way East four-star wide receiver A.J. Henning.

    The 5-foot-10, 175-pound Henning — who is considered the eighth-best wide receiver and No. 50 prospect overall in the Class of 2020 — landed an offer from the staff this spring and subsequently visited campus for the first and only time in June. He toured Ohio Stadium, the Woody Hayes Athletic Center, met with academic advisors and hung out with head coach Urban Meyer and then-wide receivers coach Zach Smith.

    “Walking in Ohio State’s stadium was special,” Henning told The Chicago Tribune ahead of the Griffins’ season opener on Friday. “I hope to get back there for a game.”

    Henning — who is still recovering from offseason hip surgery and sat out Lincoln-Way East’s 41-13 win over Crete Monee — had grown close with Smith, who was fired last month amid domestic abuse allegations, but hasn’t been shy about his affinity for the Buckeyes. He’s been quick to point out Ohio State was his favorite school as a child, which will certainly give them an advantage over nearly two dozen offers from programs such as LSU, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Northwestern, Penn State, Stanford, Tennessee and Wisconsin.

    Henning has talked with interim wide receivers coach Brian Hartline in the weeks since he took over at the helm of Zone 6, and the staff is excited to get him back on campus for a game this fall. He hopes to narrow things down following his junior season, which — hopefully — ends in the Griffin’s second-straight state title.

    “A big thing [for me] is academics,” Henning said. “The school has to care about me in the classroom. I have to fit in with the team, the coaches and the locker room culture. It’s going to be hard [to decide.]”
     
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    Receiver AJ Henning plans to visit Ohio State
    For all the talk about all the guys that visited Ohio State over this past weekend, there was one player noticeable absent. That was 2020 wide receiver A.J. Henning, a 4-star prospect from Frankfort (Ill.) Licoln-Way East ranked as the country’s 47th-best player.

    “We were trying to figure out a way to come visit,” Henning told Lettermen Row. “But that didn’t happen. We’re going to figure out something where I can visit again after the season. Probably a basketball game or something.”


    Henning made his first visit to the school in the summer and instantly hit it off with then receivers coach Zach Smith. When Smith left the program in July, his recruitment was thrown a bit into flux, and that was exacerbated by the fact that he spent more than half of his season on the sideline with injury. The time away from the playing meant focusing on rehab and not recovery for the 5-foot-10, 175-pound receiver. He did, however, start getting to know Brian Hartline a bit.

    “Our season is over, so I can really focus on getting bigger, faster, stronger to prevent injury for next year and years to come,” Henning said. “I still stayed in contact with some coaches, but I really wanted to focus on just getting back out on the field.

    “Coach Hartline is a coach I stayed in contact with. We’ve been in touch a good amount. I know he’s played in the league so he’s been through the whole process and knows what he’s talking about. The next step is just to build that face-to-face relationship and get me down to campus.”
     
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    1087863255463354370 is not a valid tweet id
     
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    Buckeyes back in touch with receiver AJ Henning
    At this time last year, there were few receivers in the country with the national clout and recruiting profile of Lincoln-Way East (Frankfort, Ill.) 4-star prospect A.J. Henning. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound receiver visited Columbus last June and was blown away by his experience and the relationship he was developing with then receivers coach Zach Smith.

    ““It’s the total opposite [of what I’d heard], the whole academic side of it,” he said following that trip. “They really stress academics and put their players in position to be successful after football in whatever career choice they choose. … It was amazing. It definitely exceeded expectations.”

    After that visit, things changed quite a bit at Ohio State and for Henning. He suffered a leg injury that cost him the majority of his junior season, and that forced a number of schools to step back and re-evaluate his potential. But now that he’s healthy and back to 100 percent, he’s seen his recruitment pick right back up.

    The country’s 15th-ranked receiver and the top-ranked player in Illinois visited Georgia, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Alabama and Louisville over spring break. He’s also started to hear once again from the Buckeyes and new receivers coach Brian Hartline.

    “There was a while there that I didn’t from them as much,” Henning told Lettermen Row on Tuesday. “But we’ve been in contact a lot more lately. His message to me has been that they’re still going to recruit me and he thinks I can be that next H-back at Ohio State.”

    Though he’s glad to be talking to the Buckeyes again, Henning admits that there’s some work for them to do if they want to catch back up to other programs he’s seriously considering.

    “Just them showing interest that they once had, that can put them back in it,” he said. “I’m sure they will. Coach Hartline and I are talking about me coming up sometime in June.”

    [​IMG]
    Ohio State wide receivers coach Brian Hartline is again reaching out to AJ Henning. (Birm/Lettermen Row)
     

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