'07 WI RB John Clay (Wisconsin signee)

[OSUBucks22]

John Clay
Running Back/Linebacker
Park HS
Racine, WI

<!--StartFragment -->Height: 6-foot-2
Weight: 222 pounds
40-yard dash: 4.5 seconds
Bench max: 315 pounds
Squat max: 460 pounds
GPA: 2.7

Rivals Profile

Scout.com $ (ND site)

10/27

Clay is hearing the most from Tennessee, Notre Dame, Wisconsin, and tOSU. He says Wisconsin and tOSU said they would offer.

Scout.com $

11/29

Clay was named POY for 2005 by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. <!--StartFragment -->Clay missed two games and most of a third early in the season with a high ankle sprain but still rushed for 2,032 yards on 166 attempts and scored 30 touchdowns. He scored 14 touchdowns on runs of 40 yards or more and eight of those were on runs of 65 yards or more. Ran for 1,483 yards and 10 touchdowns on 178 carries as a sophomore.

edit: added his Rivals profile

[crazybuckfan40]

Just another stud running back for us to keep our eye on next year.

[BuckTwenty]

He has power back-like numbers. I wouldn't mind seeing some film of this guy...

[scarletngrey11]

Wow he has great size and speed for the running back position. Hopefully Wells doesnt scare him off or he switches to linebacker in college...

[OSUBucks22]

here's another pic of him from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel...

[Warren Raider]

He could turn into a Fullback.

[Catfish Biff's]

Look at those tree trunks. Wow.

He already looks like quite a powerful dude.

[devily_buck]

Clay's team beat my team (Wisconsin Rapids) for the state title two weeks ago so i'm quite familiar with his abilities on the field.

Clay is being regarded as the best running back from the state of Wisconsin in the history of Wisconsin football. He hails from the same high school as former UW player and first team all Big Ten Brent Moss. Many in Racine believe that he is twice the player that Moss was and his performance this last year seems to prove their rationale.

Against us in the state title game, we were able to keep the game close but his ability to break tackles late in the game allowed him to break off some huge runs which won them the state championship and put Clay on everybody's radar. He is an incredible athelete who is 6'2 220 and impressed us by not wearing down even though he also played linebacker when Racine Park was on defense. He runs with an upright style yet is able to make the moves and break tackles in the secondary when breaking long runs.

There are however, two interesting negatives when looking at the recruitment of Clay. First, he is already (or almost) 18 years old as a high school junior, which may explain his dominance over high school competition in the state of Wisconsin. His age could also be a red flag for possible academic issues because i'm not sure if many parents would honestly keep thier son back two years in school for athletic reasons only. Secondly, i have heard other opposing coaches comment on his poor, me-first attitude. At the state semi-final game, he supposedly refused to warm up with his team and was seen coming out on to the field ten minutes into the warmup with his Ipod in before he warmed up on the sidelines by himself.

Overall, Clay is an incredible talent that is without a doubt the top running back prospect to come out of Wisconsin in at least 15 years (Sorry Brian Calhoun, Michael Bennett). I have yet to hear any rumors about where he might be looking but i do know however that the badgers had a number of scouts at this last two games so i'm sure they're keeping an eye on his progress as well as other coaches to see if he can stay focused in order to build on this years accomplishments. I'll be sure to keep my ear open on any other developments and we'll be the first to know when anything goes down.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

scout.com (free)

1/7/05

<TABLE cellSpacing=1 cellPadding=0 width="98%" align=center border=0><TBODY><TR><TD colSpan=3>Profile 2007 - Wisconsin RB John Clay

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John Clay and Coach Dennis Thompson

</TD><TD noWrap width=3></TD><TD vAlign=top>By Chris Pool
Midwest Recruiting Analyst
Date: Dec 7, 2005

The 2007 running back class is going to be stacked with sensational talent from coast-to-coast. The Midwest will be well represented in that category and the best of the best could be Wisconsin player-of-the-year John Clay. Clay rushed for 2,032 yards and 30 touchdowns as a junior and led his team to a state championship. 14 of Clay’s touchdown runs were over 40 yards and eight of his touchdown runs were over 65 yards. Clay could be the best high school football player ever in the Badger State
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Scout.com caught up with Clay and his coach, Dennis Thompson, at Park High in Racine, Wis., to ask the questions that all the recruitniks around the country want to know. What are Clay’s goals? Where will he camp in the spring and summer? Which schools have offered a scholarship and which schools are the early leaders for his services.

“I have to say the God, family and my friends are the three most important things to me,” John Clay said.

“The best advice I’ve ever been given has been by my parents and that’s just to work hard, don’t give up and give 110% at everything and treat others how you want to be treated.

“I started playing football when I was around 8 or 9 years old and I always played running back. I wear #32 because of Jim Brown, he’s my idol. I try and emulate his running style and I look up to him.”

Dennis Thompson, head coach at Park High, first heard of Clay when John was an eighth grader.

“I heard he (Clay) was pretty good,” Coach Thompson said laughing. “When John arrived here at Park we kept him down on the freshman team and he played outside linebacker and running back.

“It wasn’t long before we moved Johnny (Clay) up to the varsity and he just took off from there. What sets John apart from others is his love of the game, he’s always willing to get better and his athletic ability. You see him do things in practice and in games that just can’t be taught.”

Clay was named all-state as a sophomore and was named player-of –the-year as a junior and led Park to a state championship so what else is there to accomplish?

“I want to win another state championship next year,” Clay said. “I want to work on my game. I need to stay lower while running. There’s always room for improvement.

“I don’t want to be a one dimensional running back. I’m going to work on catching the ball out of the backfield; I’m going to work on speed, my power and hitting holes faster.”

Coach Thompson will definitely be a busy man comes April and May when the spring evaluation period is going full throttle and coaches will start to visit Park High on a daily basis. We asked Clay if there are any schools that stand out at this point in his recruitment.

“I don’t have any scholarship offers right now,” Clay said. “I camped at Wisconsin last year and that was my only camp. I’m not sure where I’m going to be camping this year. Wisconsin would be up there. I’m just going to be looking for the best fit.

“My parents and family, I have four sisters that are all older and my coach will all help me in the process. Distance won’t be a factor. I’m just going into this process with an open mind looking for a good fit.

“I also like Notre Dame, Michigan, Iowa, Tennessee, Nebraska and Florida State a lot. I’m going to drive to some schools in the spring and summer to check things out.”

What most people don’t know is that John Clay could also be the best linebacker in Wisconsin and he takes pride in sacking the quarterback. We asked Clay if he’d rather crunch bones on defense or carry the football in college.

“I’m definitely a running back and I crunch just as many bones on offense as I do on defense.” Clay said smiling.

John Clay idolizes Jim Brown and after watching film, he has an uncanny resemblance to Eddie George. His combination of power, speed, vision and athleticism are that of the former Ohio State Heisman Trophy winner.

Look for John Clay to be one of the most sought after prospects in the class of 2007.
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[osugrad21]

Scout $

12/13

Video added.

Solid film. John has a good burst and decent pad level in traffic. I would question the level of competition as many of the defenders looked to be hesitant to bring contact and that resulted in plenty of broken and missed tackles. However, his talent is evident.

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Clay is listed as a top Junior to watch for 2007 from USA Today.....

LINK
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

rivals.com$ (Wisconsin site)

2/2/06

Early list of targets for Wisconsin, Clay is included.
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

rivals.com (free)

2/3/06

From OhioPreps......Clay has been named to the EA Sports National Junior Player of the year.

EA SPORTS National
Junior Player of the Year
John Clay (Washington Park, Racine WI)
The 6-foot-2, 220-pound tailback-linebacker not only was a repeat first team all-state selection this season but a unanimous choice as state Player of the Year. In fact, some veteran state observers are asking if he might be the best player ever from Wisconsin. Clay led the Panthers to a 13-1 record and a state Division 1 title while rushing for a finals' record 259 yards and three TDs on 19 carries in a 28-9 rout of Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln. Park
rallied from a 9-7 third quarter deficit with Clay breaking TD runs of 70 and 65 yards. Despite missing 2 1/2 games with an ankle sprain, Clay carried 166 times for 2,032 yards and 30 TDs including 14 on runs of 40 yards or more.

[BGriffBuckeye]

Anybody know which he wants to play in college? RB or LB?

[devily_buck]

Originally Posted by BGriffBuckeye

Anybody know which he wants to play in college? RB or LB?

RB all the way... Actually played DE towards the end of the season so his experience at LB is minimal compared to RB.