Senior Ryan Brinson of Canton McKinley is playing the best football of his
career right now. Brinson, an All-Ohio selection as a junior, set the McKinley
single game rushing record last Friday, gaining 335 yards against Massillon
Jackson. Brinson, ranked as one of the top players in the state by Ohio High
magazine, broke his own record set just two weeks earlier.
When you think of all the great running backs who have played for the
Bulldogs, most people would be surprised to know that the three top rushing
games in school history belong to Brinson.
"I'm honored and humbled to be at the top of that list," said
Brinson. "It means a lot to me, especially when I think of all the great
players from McKinley. Our team is playing great right now. We want to win the
next two games and make the playoffs, hopefully playing at home. That means the
most to me, not the records."
Ryan is being recruited by several schools and currently has offers from Kent State, Iowa, and Indiana. This week, he has received phone calls from Boston College and West Virginia and he is quite high on West Virginia.
"West Virginia has not offered me a scholarship, but if they do, they
would be near the top of my list. Right now, Iowa is my favorite, but I'm
interested in any school that's interested in me. Iowa has told me I could play
running back, and that's where I want to play, but I would play defense if I was
needed there. I weigh 180 pounds right now, and I would like to red-shirt my
first year at college and work on adding weight and strength."
Regarding Ohio State, Ryan said, "They showed some interest this summer,
and I ran a 4.5 forty at camp, but they haven't called me for a long while. If
they would decide to recruit me, I would be very interested."
When asked about his grades, Ryan replied, "My midterm grades were a
3.2. I'm taking the ACT this Saturday, and I need a 19 to be qualified to play
college football. I'm doing the best I can to raise my core average."
Regarding his official visit list, Ryan said, "I have official visits in
December to Iowa and Indiana, and I talked to Kent State today about setting up
a visit with them. I'm hoping to get more offers and go from there."
When asked about playing for Canton McKinley, Ryan said "I love playing
here. It's a great program with great tradition. Coach Cross is a great coach to
play for. He's like a dad to me, really to all the guys. It's a great atmosphere
playing at Fawcett Stadium. Our team has been down the past two years, but I
think we're getting this program back to where it should be. I've talked to Mike Doss and Kenny Peterson about keeping the tradition alive. They're both great
guys and great role models, and I'd like to be like them some day."
Ryan Brinson appears to be maturing, both as a person and a football player.
He's gained fifteen pounds since last season, which, combined with his great
speed, makes him a dangerous running back and defensive back. He also seems to
be taking his academic career seriously, and that will make even more appealing
to college recruiters.