'22 OH WR - Kaden Saunders (Penn State Verbal)

One of Ohio's top 2022 prospects. https://t.co/moQU5Tjkf5

— Jeremy Birmingham (@Birm) October 23, 2019

 

SAUNDERS' RECRUITMENT PICKING UP
There is a long way to go in the recruitment of Kaden Saunders, as the 2022 athlete from Westerville South High School – the same school as current Buckeyes receiver Jaelen Gill – has at least another year before he trims down an offer sheet that will continue growing along with his reputation.

As of now, Saunders’ list contains Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Pittsburgh and West Virginia, with the Nittany Lions being the frontrunner early in the process.

Saunders visited for Penn State’s White-Out victory over Michigan last weekend, and he loved it. He told 247Sports’ Bill Greene, “I am really high on Penn State, and I think they are the favorite school for me right now.”

He will be going back to visit Penn State for its game against Indiana, which is part of the reason a very early Crystal Ball prediction was recently put in for Saunders to the Nittany Lions.

Now, with all that being said, Saunders is still an early name to keep an eye on for Ohio State, and Saunders will be able to compare everything about the environments of Beaver Stadium and the Shoe this weekend when he visits for the Buckeyes’ bout with Wisconsin.

“I am real excited to get back on campus. I haven’t been for a while,” Saunders told Eleven Warriors. “I’m looking forward to catching up with some coaches and seeing a good game in the Shoe.”

The Buckeyes have yet to offer Saunders, as they undergo their normal patient approach when it comes to offering in-state prospects.

“They haven’t really talked about an offer, but if I got one this weekend I would be really excited and surprised,” Saunders said.

At 5-foot-10, 160 pounds, the sophomore is an undersized prospect but makes up for it with a 4.43 time he was clocked at in February at the Best of the Midwest combine in Indianapolis.

That speed and explosiveness is something the Buckeyes like about Saunders, who is listed as an athlete but is best at wide receiver – though he probably translates into the slot, where Ohio State will probably have plenty of depth in the future. That’s partially why Ohio State – a dream school for Saunders as a kid – is expected to recruit him at a different position.

“Ohio State has been saying they want me to play defensive back, but I love wide receiver,” Saunders said. “It was a dream of mine when I was little. I will find out later.”

Saunders has made three visits to Penn State and one each to Michigan State, West Virginia, Cincinnati and Texas, visiting with former Ohio State running backs coach and family friend Stan Drayton (currently the Longhorns’ coach at the same position).

 

Westerville South sophomore WR Kaden Saunders is one of Ohio's top 2022 prospects. Has #PennState on top following last week's visit for the #WhiteOut win over Michigan. https://t.co/3Kzg4z89K4

— Bill Greene (@BillBankGreene) October 23, 2019

 

SAUNDERS SEES HILL COMPARISON
K.J. Hill has been one of the more productive receivers in Ohio State history.

Even though the fifth-year senior was held to just one catch for 11 yards on Saturday, he still became the ninth player in program history to record 2,000 career receiving yards while extending his streak of consecutive games with a catch to 42 games.

That leaves him 17 catches away from David Boston’s 20-year school record of 191 career receptions.

On hand Saturday to watch Hill’s continued quest to ascend to the top of the Buckeyes’ record book was a high schooler who believes he could be the next Hill – at least positionally.

“I feel as if I would be like K.J. Hill in their offense,” 2022 Westerville South athlete Kaden Saunders told Eleven Warriors.

We talked a bit about Saunders on Wednesday and again a bit more on Friday. His recruitment is still in the very early stages, as evidenced by the fact he doesn’t even have an Ohio State offer at the moment – which don’t often come from the Buckeyes for in-state prospects until they’re juniors, though Jack Sawyer was a justifiable exception to that rule – and no timeline for a Buckeyes offer was mentioned this weekend.

Saunders is also very high on Penn State right now, and there’s a long way to go in his development as a player.

But Saunders is certainly worth keeping on the radar going forward as his speed would be a useful weapon for the Buckeyes, whether on offense or defense.

The 5-foot-10, 165-pounder said he spent time talking with Brian Hartline and Jeff Hafley before the game – getting to know both the receiver and defensive back coaches – and fellow sophomore C.J. Hicks, who Saunders camped with at Ohio State this summer.

That was before Saunders took in the rest of Ohio State’s 38-7 victory, coming away impressed by how the Buckeyes' offense “didn’t change even though it was raining.”

 

Westerville (Ohio) South 2022 speedster Kaden Saunders offered today during his visit to #Purdue: https://t.co/KIQYEmJJH2 https://t.co/FXoWTm3piF

— Steve Wiltfong (@SWiltfong247) November 2, 2019

 

Second Buckeyes game in a row for 2022 WR/ATH Kaden Saunders https://t.co/287oV5sMvY

— Jeremy Birmingham (@Birm) November 6, 2019

 

Local standout Kaden Saunders returning to see Buckeyes
Westerville South athlete Kaden Saunders made his first trip to Ohio State this season two weeks ago for the Wisconsin game, and the 5-foot-10, 180-pound prospect had a good time getting caught up with the assistant coaches in Columbus. He was also impressed by the atmosphere in the stadium, especially when the weather that day was considered.

“It was better than I thought,” Saunders said. “I wasn’t expecting so many people to be there. It was nice. I really like the style of offense and how they didn’t change up the play-calling even though it was raining. They sling the rock regardless, that’s what stood out to me.”

With eight early offers, including Michigan, Penn State and Michigan State, the sophomore standout is a player to watch in Ohio. He wants to play wide receiver at the next level and will get his next opportunity to talk with Brian Hartline on Saturday when he returns to campus.
Ohio State has two commitments at the receiver position already in 2021, and there’s a trio of clearly defined remaining targets in Emeka Egbuka, Beaux Collins and Troy Stellato. That could help players like Saunders get some early attention and evaluation from the Buckeyes.

Maybe that begins this weekend.

 

Kaden Saunders getting more comfortable at Ohio State
Westerville South 2022 receiver Kaden Saunders told Lettermen Row a week ago that his visit to Ohio State for the Wisconsin game was, in some ways, better than he expected. He then returned to campus when the Buckeyes hosted Maryland and spent a little more time with the coaches at Ohio State.

“It was good,” Saunders said. “I got to talk to Coach Day, unlike last time.

“He’s cool. I met him on my very first visit there last year, and we just caught up about my season. He told me to keep coming back as much as possible. Plus, it wasn’t raining. That was good.”

The Buckeyes haven’t offered Saunders, but Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State and a few other Big Ten programs have. But he’s feeling good about where things are headed with Ohio State.

“Things are going in the right direction,” he said. “I think they will continue to go in the right direction as long as I keep going back.”

That Maryland game visit is likely going to be the last this season however for Saunders. He’ll be in Pennsylvania this coming weekend.

“That’s my last game for the season there,” Saunders said. “I am going to Penn State again this weekend and then back to Indiana the weekend after. I’ll then go to Pitt the last game of the season.”

 

https://t.co/ZvFbkUgyRG👇🏽👇🏽‼️

— 𝐊𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐍 𝐒𝐀𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐒 ² (@KSaunders03) November 26, 2019

 

KADEN SAUNDERS, 5-FOOT-10, 165 POUNDS, ATHLETE
Kaden Saunders is another local product who should receive an offer from Ohio State at some point soon. The Westerville native is also listed as an athlete but unlike Hicks, he prefers to play on the offensive side of the ball. Saunders was an offensive weapon all year long for Westerville South where he played wide receiver, slot back and even returned kicks. He also caught some time on defense at cornerback.

Saunders is an electric athlete that has the speed and quickness to take the ball to the house all the time. The key for Saunders over the next few years will be adding size. Nonetheless, Ohio State is keeping a close eye on Saunders, although right now the Buckeyes seem to be playing second fiddle to Penn State. Saunders has been to Happy Valley multiple times and has been sold on being their next KJ Hamler, but there is a long way to go in his recruitment.

 

2022 WR Kaden Saunders names early Big 10 leader #PennState #WeAre https://t.co/39coey1ssw pic.twitter.com/NegoGRaC2A

— Adam Gorney (@adamgorney) January 8, 2020

 

Rising 2022 Ohio WR Kaden Saunders (@KSaunders03) talks about his interest in Michigan and fall visit to Ann Arbor #GoBlue. https://t.co/iq9WFkTuEg pic.twitter.com/RfC4sW82Se

— "EJ Holland" (@EJHolland_TW) January 15, 2020

 

Honored to have earned an offer from The University of Notre Dame🏈🍀 #GoIrish pic.twitter.com/Iha3bDcXbk

— 𝐊𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐍 𝐒𝐀𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐒 ² (@KSaunders03) February 1, 2020

 

Westerville (Ohio) South 2022 WR Kaden Saunders is extremely high on #WestVirginia: https://t.co/8wBoLnrbnQ #WVU @CMAnderson247

— Steve Wiltfong (@SWiltfong247) February 9, 2020

 

KADEN SAUNDERS IS HEARING FROM THE BUCKEYES AND WAITING FOR AN OFFER
The fastest player at the camp last Sunday was Kaden Saunders who clocked in a 4.40 forty yard dash en route to earning MVP of the wide receivers group.

Saunders, a Westerville, Ohio native showed up wearing a Penn State jacket and is very high on the Nittany Lions but after speaking to people at the camp it's clear that Ohio State is the offer he wants. However, it is hard to tell when that offer might come as the Buckeyes are pursuing Saunders as cornerback even though he wants to play offense in college.

Regardless, it looks as though that Saunders is more than willing to put in the necessary work to earn an offer from Ohio State. Expect Saunders to continue tearing up the spring camp circuit this fall in hope of earning an offer from the local Buckeyes.

 

Four-star 2022 WR Kaden Saunders has a fall decision date in mind. #ArizonaState #iufb #PennState #WVU #Michigan #TCU among the contenders here: https://t.co/3yHMAeI3yv pic.twitter.com/2Ehj2mOiaS

— Josh Helmholdt (@JoshHelmholdt) June 8, 2020

 

TRULY BLESSED TO RECIEVE AN OFFER FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS!🤘🏽🧡 #HookEm pic.twitter.com/pITm1lwudP

— 𝐊𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐍 𝐒𝐀𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐒 ² (@KSaunders03) June 10, 2020

 

Why Michigan is a top school for four-star 2022 Ohio WR Kaden Saunders (@KSaunders03) #GoBlue. https://t.co/Gf869JqbVM pic.twitter.com/rVjbSWvNFS

— "EJ Holland" (@EJHolland_TW) June 12, 2020

 

BIG TIME NEWS TODAY!! SUPER EXCITED TO RECEIVE AN OFFER FROM THE PRESTIGIOUS STANFORD UNIVERSITY‼️🌲 #GoStanford pic.twitter.com/h18d1W6mjB

— 𝐊𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐍 𝐒𝐀𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐒 ² (@KSaunders03) June 18, 2020

 

#Buckeyes still a keeping an eye on local 2022 speedster Kaden Saunders @KSaunders03 who recently picked up a couple of big offers from Texas and Stanford: https://t.co/2wzkioGTql

— Marc Givler (@MarcGivler) June 30, 2020