Midwest Summer Camp SZN Early Winners: 2025 Edition

With the recruitment of D1-worthy high school football prospects becoming increasingly accelerated, the Summer Camp SZN is one of the last opportunities for rising seniors to make a serious splash on the recruiting trail. Whether that's finally breaking into the D1 recruiting sphere, finally earning that coveted first P4 offer, or simply adding a boatload of offers to their list of suitors, things can change in a single camp performance and positively alter a high school football prospect's trajectory for the rest of their lives.. All because of the Summer Camp SZN. Below, PrepRedzone is rounding our special Midwest series from the past week by naming the biggest and best winners from the 2025 classes experience on the summer camp circuit this past month. Some of the best narratives and anecdotes of the 2025 cycle are below, dig in!   --    A classic recruiting story represented by Hoffman Estates 2025 future LB [player_tooltip player_id='831095' first='Nathan' last='Cleveland'] here. Established FBS offeree and rising senior earns that vaunted and elusive first P4 offer in-person and during the Summer Camp SZN. A 6'3, 215 lb. high school safety who is heading closer to the line of scrimmage in college, Cleveland attended the Wayne State Mega Camp in Michigan and came into the event with 16 FBS and FCS offers. His performance netted him Central Michigan, Minnesota, Kent State, and Western Michigan offers, and that momentum carried him into additional offers from Kansas State and New Hampshire. The Golden Gophers were in contact for a while, and the relationship quickly gained steam, as he visited the Gophers Summer Splash on an official visit and committed to Minnesota less than two weeks later. All of his hard work culminated in that camp performance in Detroit, and Cleveland reached out and took it.   A noticeably large presence at the strong safety position, Cleveland opens his tape with a brutal suplex of a tackle to set a tone of physicality, and he's a turnover-minded defender who does a great job of ripping at and attacking the football when a ball carrier is held up. The now-215 lber. is a rangy defender who finds most of his work and action inside the box, but can cover a ton of ground in pursuit and in run support. He displays plentiful closing speed, takes good angles to the football, runs the alley effectively, and is a comfortable and effective tackler in space and in 1v1 settings. Cleveland accelerates out of a dead stop with noticeable pace, can come downhill and halt ball carriers in their tracks, and is a strong and aggressive tackle. Gophers got a good one, and we have yet another Summer Camp SZN success story.     I was lucky enough to see this Summer Camp SZN success story live and in person, as I was fortunate enough to see Fond du Lac's Rhett Hlavacka at the Minnesota Golden Gophers first prospect camp of the summer back in early June. Hlavacka was unmissable in an already physically impressive LB group working out in Dinkytown. His hard work and long afternoons in the weight room helped create a built, cut up, and towering 6'4, 235+ build for a high school LB, and he was quick and fluid mover during drill work who doesn't waste movement and tested at a P4 level in front of the Golden Gophers staff. Hlavacka came into the PJ Fleck RTB Prospect camp with offers from Ohio, Illinois State, Northern Illinois, Memphis, and Northern Iowa, but had taken multiple visits to Minnesota coming into the camp and was 100% on offer watch contingent on his performance. I was stoked to see this one develop in person, especially as a Gophers fan. Hlavacka will fit in nicely with his B1G peers. Sounds like he'll be moving to the Gophers rush end spot as he continues to get bigger.   The 6'4, 235 lber. comes out of a traditionally talented area of Wisconsin in Fond du Lac, home to recent NFL Draft pick Braelon Allen, and he posted more than 100 tackles for the Cardinals in the Wisconsin Division 1 big school ranks, earning First Team All-FVA Conference honors after his 110 tackle, 11 TFL, 3 sack, and 3 PBU junior season. Hlavacka's COD ability and lateral agility show up when he's chasing down ball carriers in space or finding seams in the OL as a blitzer, and he attacks blockers with physicality and is a mountain of an assignment for OL, both in space and around the LOS. He displays a gassed-up motor and good pursuit speed for his size that can run down ball carriers out to the edge and is a strong tackler who manhandles RBs at the point of attack. Hlavacka is a fluid athlete who reads, reacts, and flows to the football smoothly and with serious play speed, especially for a 6'4, 230 lber., and you can't let an off-ball LB this big, this athletic, and this productive leave your recruiting footprint if you're the Golden Gophers. Great eval and offer by Minnesota here.     Nothing like a mega camp to really kickstart a prospect's recruitment, and Glenbrook South's 2025 CB standout [player_tooltip player_id='299591' first='Tyrone' last='Cotton'] III is another example of how quickly a recruitment can change during the Summer Camp SZN. Cotton III earned four offers from Western Michigan, Kent State, Western Illinois, and Grand Valley State after his performance at the North Central mega camp, and followed it up with three FBS offers from Miami (OH), Akron, and Buffalo and P4 offer from Indiana after he balled out at the UIndy Mega Camp. Marshall and Southern Illinois joined the mix during June as well, but Cotton III ended up committing to a program who put their faith in the Chicagoland DB and pulled the trigger before his stock-rising Summer Camp SZN campaign. The South Dakota State Jackrabbits offered up on March 1st and got Cotton III up to Brookings for an unofficial visit in mid-April. That early evaluation and faith showed by the Jacks paid off in the end, as Cotton III committed on June 16th for an excellent DB pickup for the back-to-back defending FCS national champs.   Cotton III's speed and explosiveness, which has been clocked in the 4.5s as well as a his 6'5 high jump, shows up as a big-play wide receiver with vertical ability, and he has an impressive rep of him running down a loose RB from the backside CB position far downfield to save a TD. The off-man cornerback displays a smooth backpedal, does a good job of undercutting wide receivers, and uses his length effectively at the catch point and shows good technique when breaking up passes. The 6'1, 170 lber. can also tackle in 1v1 situations and in space and does a good job of maintaining phase with receivers throughout their route. Cotton III earned and deserved all of his Summer Camp SZN attention and success. We can't wait to watch him with the Jackrabbits.     A 6'3, 225+ lb. off-ball LB who clocked a 4.61 40 yard dash on the laser, Kearny High School's Sawyer Schilke is a Nebraska-based camp darling who was committed to Northern Illinois prior to the impacts a successful Summer Camp SZN can bring. Schilke traveled to Manhattan, Kansas in early June and earned P4 offer #1 from the talented KState staff, which catapulted into a commitment to the Wildcats the following week. From FBS to P4 commit, only an in-person camp eval can change things so quickly.   A LB/EDGE hybrid, Schilke displays lead in his hands and attacks blockers with physicality, helping him put his fair share of OTs and OGs on their butts throughout his junior season. The 225 lber. is strong enough to make tackles through contact, does a good job of navigating through traffic and flowing to the football quickly and effectively, and is a powerful tackler who halts defenders in their tracks and negates extra yardage when he gets his paws on a RB . I also like his play speed, which helps him run down ball carriers from the backside of the LOS, and Schilke displays some bend, burst, lateral agility, and ability to go speed to power as a pass rusher. He's also a crushing tackler who put a hurtin' on more than a few QBs and RBs last fall. I can't wait to see what his senior season looks like. KState got a good one!     The #1 RB in Indiana, Concord High School's 6'1, 200 lb. RB [player_tooltip player_id='983647' first='Jaron' last='Thomas'] is also one of the fastest high schoolers in the Hoosier State, PRing with a 10.78 100M and popping off more than a handful of sub-11-second 100M times throughout his high school career. His recruitment has been a condensed one, as his first offer rolled in from Ball State in March, and Western Michigan, Army, Air Force, Navy, Yale, and Southern Illinois offered before May 30th. However, once the summer visits rolled around, Thomas visited with the Purdue Boilermakers, earned an offer, and committed the next day. He's since taken an official to West Lafayette as well. A in-person camp performance didn't ignite this P4 recruiting flame, but it came during the Summer Camp SZN, so I'm throwing Thomas in here anyway.   Posted 1,484 yards and 20 TDs, plus 47 receptions, as well as 93 tackles, 7 TFLs, and a FF as a linebacker in 2023. A smooth and silky RB with long strides and big-play burst and top-end speed, Thomas can be slippery or physical through contact and tackle attempts and I love how he sees and utilizes every inch on the gridiron. Thomas displays a powerful lower body that generates forceful, intentional cuts and can work through weaker tackle attempts at his lower body, and he will drop his pads and run through defenders in the open field easily and smoothly. I also appreciate his strong hands, production as a pass catcher, and is a great asset in the passing and screen game from the RB position. Overall, Thomas is a fun-to-watch, smooth, and confident RB who can beat tackle attempts in a variety of ways, has a nose for the endzone, and is comfortable in space. Can't let a kid like this leave your borders. Great snag by Purdue and their talented 2025 commitment class.     Kirksville, Missouri has been one of the hottest high school program names in the Midwest during the early Summer Camp SZN in America's Heartland. They've seen a few of their talented players break into new realms of the recruiting space, and leading the way in terms of notoriety and attention is their 2025 giant of an offensive tackle Andrew Williams. Measuring in at a gigantic 6'8, 275 lbs., Williams had one of the best and busiest Junes of any 2025 in the Midwest, kicking things off by earning his first P4 offer from Kansas State after a big-time camp performance in Manhattan at the Wildcats early prospect camp. He followed it up with another Big12 offer after balling out in Ames at Iowa State's prospect camp, then earned an offer from the Kansas Jayhawks after a showing in Lawrence. Williams then took an official visit to KState, followed it up with a camp performance and offer from Brigham Young in Utah, took two more OVs to Iowa State and Kansas, and then shut down his recruitment and committed to BYU. All in the span of a month, too! What a ride, and one that can only be manufactured during the Summer Camp SZN.   The LT's body control, understanding of leverage, and finishing ability all pop off the tape in notable fashion, and the overall mobility and versatility are as eye-catching as they are hard to find in a 6'8, 275 lb. high school OT prospect. Williams displays good bend for a towering OT of his his size, and his quickness and balance show up effectively as a puller. Plus, he's comfortable in pass pro and able to work up to the second level easily, and demonstrates good pop once he gets his pads on a defender. Williams looks to finish opponents at every opportunity, and when you combine the physicality with the lean, mean, and long 6'8, 275 lbers. rare and remarkable balance and body control, you have all the makings of a high-upside, obvious P4 talent. Big-time addition to BYU's 2025 class of commits. I'm surprised it didn't happen sooner.     Like many prospects before him, Holt High School's Gabriel Cunningham forged his path to recruiting glory and attention through the vaunted Lindenwood Mega Camp, held in his home state of Missouri. A 6'4, 245 lb TE, Cunningham was one of the biggest eye-catchers from Lindenwood's 2024 camp, as he earned offers from North Dakota State, Lindenwood (now D1), South Dakota, Tennessee State, Southern Illinois, Missouri Western State (DII), Austin Peay, North Dakota, and Missouri State all due to his early June camp performance in Saint Charles, Missouri. Offers from Eastern Michigan, Northern Iowa, Tennessee-Martin, and Illinois had come in before the camp, and Central Missouri (DII), and Indiana State came after, but Cunningham shut things down on June 20th and committed to the FCS powerhouse that is the North Dakota State Bison. Cunningham is a big-time piece to the Bison's loaded 2025 class.   The Wentzville product is a game-changer after the catch with an electric blend of speed, quickness, and balance, and I'm impressed by his 50/50 ball and contested catch ability. Good bounce, strong hands, times his jumps out well, and has a big catch radius thanks to his 84' wingspan. Cunningham is also a physical and willing blocker who dished out some serious pancakes in 2023, which will serve him well in the run-heavy, hard-nosed Missouri Valley Football Conference, as well as some twitch and physicality as a pass rusher. Two-way juice, good size, and comes out of a talented area in the Show-Me State. We'll be hearing about this kid in the FCS ranks sooner rather than later.     6'2, 190 lb. Ohio DB Noah King now attends Hamilton High School and owns premium size for the position that is now becoming a hotter and hotter trend with collegiate DB coaches. King did earn a P4 offer from West Virginia back in the summer of 2023, as well as an Oregon State offer in late May of this past spring, but was mostly sitting in the FCS/FBS range offer-wise as Marshall, Illinois State, Buffalo, Ball State, Eastern Kentucky, and Bowling Green State had offered throughout his recruitment. However, he firmly cemented himself into the P4 sphere of recruitment this Summer Camp SZN, as a camp performance at SEC Kentucky netted him an offer from the Wildcats, which carried into Nebraska and Kansas State offers over the course of the rest of June and into July. King also went to Vanderbilt and ran a 4.48 at a verified 6'2, 190, and popped off a 4.59 laser 40 at a NEXTGEN camp back in March. Plus, he was a part of Hamilton's 4x1 D1 state runner-up team this summer.   Two-way contributor as a WR and DB, the play speed pops off the tape first and foremost, as well as his start/stop acceleration. King is also a strong tackler in the open field and a physical and willing contributor in run support, and shows off a big catch radius and strong hands at the catch point. I'd like to see some more explosive plays and coverage reps as a senior, as the athleticism is apparent and obvious and he has real-deal athletic numbers to back it up. Should be a monster year for the Hamilton High School soon-to-be senior.     Big-time P4 debut for Findlay High School's 6'4, 275 lb. OL Baylor Wilkin thanks to the Summer Camp SZN. He came into June only holding FCS offers, and even a couple DII offers, but the Bowling Green State prospect camp catapulted him into the FBS ranks as the Falcons offered after his performance. Marshall followed soon after. A Central Michigan camp performance earned him an offer from the Chips, as well as Navy, and the Cincinnati Bearcats prospect camp earned him Miami (OH), Western Kentucky, Bucknell, and Akron. Yet another camp performance earned him P4 offer #1 from Indiana, and the Cincinnati prospect camp also earned him a Bearcats offer for good measure. After an official visit to Bloomington, Indiana, Wilkin announced he was committed to the Hoosiers to play his college ball in the B1G.   Wilkin displays one of the better pass sets I've seen in the past couple of months watching OL tape. Good footwork, stays square, can adjust laterally to a rushers path, is able to gain both depth and width when necessary but doesn't overextend, and shows good patience and timing in his punch, as well as some pop when he gets paws on. Wilkin is comfortable zone blocking and handling stunts and twists from opposing defensive linemen. The 275 lber. displays a great motor, aggressive leg drive post-contact, and sticks to his assignment as his 4star Georgia commit of a QB extends plays and moves around the pocket. He's a physical presence as a LT for one of Ohio's more competitive high school programs, always looks to finish, and is balanced and fluid when he gets out in space and looks for work downfield. The technique, size, competitive experience, and athleticism make me very confident that Wilkin is a low floor, ready-to-play-early, and high-quality pickup for the Hoosiers. All thanks to the in-person evaluation and offer!     A Summer Camp SZN darling out of the Great State of Indiana, Homestead High School 6'2, 205 lb. OLB Sam Steward was completely under-the-radar going into June, reporting no interest or offers besides an unofficial visit to Toledo in January, and off the beaten path of media outlets, including ours, where we obviously dropped the ball. Steward attended his second camp in West Lafayette and earned his first college football from the instate, P4, B1G competitor Boilermakers, exploding onto the P4 recruiting radar and scene in such memorable fashion that it could only have came from the Summer Camp SZN.   A First Team All-Conference selection in 2023 who posted 94 tackles (63 solo), 16 TFLs, 11 sacks, a FF, and a FBU for some great production out of the 6A Fort Wayne-based high school, Steward possesses one of the more unique prospects I've come across lately. Traditionally undersized, but is a lightning-quick EDGE that displays some elite quickness, COD, closing speed, and pass rushing skills and nuance that aided in his excellent production as a junior. Steward is twitchy, his play speed pops on tape, and he's smooth when executing twists and stunts and creating his own seams around the LOS. The 205 lber. is an especially effective blitzer, thanks to his sideline-to-sideline speed, physicality, bend at the top of the arc, explosive get-off, and missile-like tackling ability. Steward beats blocks with quickness and doesn't allow them to get hands on or a clean shot, and he closes with pace and is a strong tackler in 1v1 situations and in space. I'm very excited to see how his recruitment continues to develop, what his senior tape looks like, and eventually, how he's used at the college level.     The Indiana Hoosiers found themselves another big addition to their 2025 class thanks to the Summer Camp SZN in instate TE Andrew Barker. The Kokomo High School 6'4, 230 lber. came into the Hoosiers prospect camp in mid-June holding 11 FBS and FCS offers but still itching and scratching for that coveted first P4 offer. All roads and hard work led to this singular camp and moment, and Barker reached out and took it like candy from a baby. It took him less than 10 days to commit to the B1G contender, and we now have another shining success story from the Midwest's summer camp trail.   A TE in a triple-option offense and DE on the flip side of the ball, Barker is a obvious athlete at his size and possesses good speed and big-play capability as a pass catching option on offense. He's also a hard-nosed blocker with strength at the point of attack, technique, and physicality, and is hard to disengage from for opponents once he gets his hands on, and I love how he fights for extra yardage after the catch. Barker also demonstrates suddenness at the top of the route and after the catch, and owns soft hands and is able to reel in receptions with one hand occasionally. Plus, I'm impressed by his get-off, bend, power off the edge as a DE and pass rusher. If he moves in-person like he does on tape, it's a great call by IU to not let this kid leave your recruiting footprint and borders. Can't wait to watch Barker in Bloomington.     Talk about a stock-rising Summer Camp SZN! Edwardsville High School, located deep in Southern Illinois and home to the #16 ranked prospect in the entire nation, according to 247Sports, has another P4 prospect in their ranks thanks to the summer camp circuit. 6'1, 180 lb. speedster of a safety [player_tooltip player_id='1292245' first='Clayton' last='Lakatos'], a noted track athlete who reports a 4.44 40 FAT and 36" vertical jump, came into the summer with one football offer, coming from UNI's standout safeties coach Q Black, an excellent eval by the Panthers, but things changed quickly. Lakatos earned a P4, Big12 offer from Iowa State after balling out at the Cyclones prospect camp, and it followed it up the next week with a B1G offer from the homestate Illini. Back-to-back storybook performances by the safety, who also owns some impressive and exciting junior tape playing against some of the best athletes in the Midwest in that Southern Illinois region.   He displays good size, the ability to gain depth in his backpedal, excellent ball skills and 50/50 ability, and a ton of play speed, particularly in run defense. Lakatos demonstrates exciting range in run support, can cover a ton of ground in pursuit and runs the alley very effectively. He created some massive collisions and hits as a MOF defender, and is quick out of his breaks, changes direction well in coverage, and is able to play man out of the slot as a safety. The play speed and ability to get downhill and meet ball carriers behind the LOS from his high safety spot is very impressive, and the athleticism translates to pass defense as well. Excellent move by both the Cyclones and Illini, Lakatos is poised for an explosive senior season. Someone needs a serious ranking bump.     A decorated and prolific PrepRedzoneOH Showcase MVP and standout who went 4.5 in the 40, 4.37 in the shuttle, and 10'7 in the broad jump in front of our Ohio scouts this past January, 6'4, 180 lb. Ontario ATH Bodpegn Miller is one of the best athletes in the Midwest and proved it during this recent Summer Camp SZN. The 6'4, 180 lber. had off-the-charts production from 2023, going 156-252 for 2,328 yards and 19 TDs through the air as a junior and adding 132 rushes for 1,003 yards and 17 more TDs on the ground. Coming into the summer, he held 14 D1 offers, including P4 offers from Northwestern (came in April), Iowa State (came in March), and Boston College (also April), but he turned up the heat in June. In front of the one-and-only Brian Hartline, WR coach for THEE Ohio State University, Miller earned a big-time Buckeyes offer and committed only a couple of days later. Doesn't get much better than that, folks, but if you look at the athletic numbers at 6'4, 180, and get a look at the kid in-person, you shouldn't be surprised.   Miller looks like a racehorse shot out of the blocks when he tucks the ball and takes off, and sports a long, lean frame that is going to really blow up at the college level. His long legs, top-end speed, and twitch & balance make for an explosive combination in the open field, and defenders seem to have a hard time touching him, much less tackling him. Miller also displays a big arm that can drop the ball in a bucket, and can put noticeable velocity on the ball and fit the rock into some impressively tight windows in 2023. Miller owns elite size/athleticism and is a splash play waiting to happen, either through the air or on the ground. Things are especially easy for him when he totes the rock, and he looks like he's on another plane of athleticism and ability as a ball carrier. Can't wait to see how he develops in Columbus.    --

With the recruitment of D1-worthy high school football prospects becoming increasingly accelerated, the Summer Camp SZN is one of the last opportunities for rising seniors to make a serious splash on the recruiting trail. Whether that's finally breaking into the D1 recruiting sphere, finally earning that coveted first P4 offer, or simply adding a boatload of offers to their list of suitors, things can change in a single camp performance and positively alter a high school football prospect's trajectory for the rest of their lives.. All because of the Summer Camp SZN. Below, PrepRedzone is rounding our special Midwest series from the past week by naming the biggest and best winners from the 2025 classes experience on the summer camp circuit this past month. Some of the best narratives and anecdotes of the 2025 cycle are below, dig in!