Sawyer focused on development and upcoming season
It isn't often that a player so young finds himself on the recruiting radar like Pickerington (Ohio) North defensive end Jack Sawyer has. The 6-foot-5, 225-pound class of 2021 prospect already holds most of the big Midwest offers, including the likes of Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State, and Penn State.
Last year, Sawyer was able to ease his way into varsity football as an unknown freshman. The cat is out of the bag now and teams will be more focused on his presence this fall. With that in mind, an off-season spent on working on all parts of his game, including the intangibles, has Sawyer primed to really breakout.
"There's always room for improvement in every aspect of my game," said Sawyer. "Getting stronger, getting faster, and really just being a leader with the team. We have a young group of guys and I'm trying to get the team on track for the season at this point."
Sawyer was able to burst onto the scene as a Swiss Army knife. Defensive end, linebacker, tight end, were just some of the positions that Sawyer played as a freshman. Defensive end will be a point of emphasis this season, but you could see his athleticism on display on the outside as a wide receiver.
"Coach has been talking to me and saying that the team could need me on offense too," Sawyer explained. "I'm ready to take on that role. Whatever the team needs, so I'm sure I'll be playing a little bit of receiver this year."
Sawyer's versatility goes beyond football, however. He's also an outstanding basketball player. This week he became the first class of 2021 basketball prospect from the Columbus area to earn a scholarship offer with Stony Brook coming through.
"It was a very cool thing," he said. "It's exciting. It's nice to see to know that the hard work in basketball is working out too."
But football has been king so far for Sawyer who says he is taking it pretty easy right now when it comes to recruiting. That could change in the fall as he hopes to be active in getting around and visiting some of his top schools of interest.
"I think I'm going to wait for the season to start (before making more visits) but I'm going to get to some games for sure," he explained. "I'm pretty sure I'll go to Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan, and Michigan State. Those four for sure."
Due in part to geography and the early interest he has generated from those programs, it's not a surprise to see that the Big Ten East foes are standing out to Sawyer.
On Ohio State - "I talked to coach (Alex) Grinch yesterday on the phone actually. They're just telling me that they're thinking about me and making sure that I'm still thinking about them, which I definitely am. We have a good relationship with Ohio State."
On Michigan - "Michigan is a really cool place. I really like coach (Jim) Harbaugh and coach Mattison is a good coach. I have a great relationship with Michigan as well. It was a great time (on his June visit)."
On Michigan State - "Obviously they have two guys from Pickerington Central last year that are going there (Xavier Henderson and Trenton Gillison). They're telling me how great it is there and everything. It's really nice there too, East Lansing is a great town. I really like the coaching staff there too."
On Penn State - "Penn State is really nice too. Coach Franklin is a great coach and I like coach (Sean) Spencer, I get along with him really well. I like the vibe down there."