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Saunders is next at Westerville South

Saunders already runs a sub 11-second 100-meter dash.
Saunders already runs a sub 11-second 100-meter dash. (Jeff Wakefield ~ R12 inc.)

The Westerville (Ohio) South football program has been churning out Division I prospects for many years now and there is another very talented prospect in the system right now in freshman wide receiver/return man Kaden Saunders. The 5-foot-11, 155-pound prospect just wrapped up his first year at South and it was a very productive one that saw him net approximately 900 all-purpose yards in 10 games for the Wildcats.

"Me personally, I really wanted to play varsity football my freshman year and I had been telling my parents that that was what I really wanted to do," explained Saunders. "As the off-season went on, my coaches were telling me that it was going to be hard for me to play as a freshman because I needed to get bigger and stronger so I just had to work hard in the off-season to get stronger and more physical."

Saunders was part of a youth movement at South this fall as the Wildcats played a lot of underclassmen, going just 3-7.

"It was kind of a rebuilding year," he explained. "We played a lot of young guys this year and I feel like we'll be a lot better next year."

Growing up, Saunders has generally always been the best player on the field in every game he plays. So stepping up to play top competition from Ohio's Division I and Division II classifications was a humbling experience.

"I actually had a learning experience in the first game," he said. "I caught a kickoff and I didn't realize that I was so close to the sideline and I stepped out at the one-yard line. That was a learning moment from the very beginning of the season. I also learned about the speed of the game. In middle school, I could also cut it back across the field whenever I wanted to because I was always the fastest guy. You can't do that in high school."

But make no mistake, even in high school, Saunders was often times the fastest player on the field. Saunders was the 8th grade 100-meter champion in the state of Ohio, running a 10.9-second time, a pretty staggering result for such a young person. He'll run track and play baseball for the Wildcats this spring.

In fact, baseball might be his best sport. Saunders plays travel baseball for the Bo Jackson Elite 2022 team and is drawing college interest already as a centerfielder. He'd like to play both in college if he can make it work.

"I've been telling my coaches that it's a dream of mine to play both football and baseball in college," he said. "I've been reaching out to schools that I think I could play both sports at."

Saunders has all the time in the world to worry about recruiting. Right now he's focused on continuing his development as both a football and baseball player. When college football is on the television on Saturday's, however, there are certain programs that he enjoys watching.

"I've grown up an Ohio State fan," he said. "Just living in Columbus I've always watched them. Lately I've been watching more colleges, especially ones where I think I could play baseball too. So I've been watching North Carolina, Jordyn Adams was going to go there to play both so I've been looking at them. I've been watching Cincinnati, they are having a pretty good season so far and I've been in touch with their baseball coach. I've been watching Texas because their running backs coach used to be at Ohio State (Stan Drayton) and my little sister is friends with his daughter, so I have a relationship with him so Texas is one of my favorite schools to watch. I also like to watch Clemson, Louisville, and Florida."



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