Meet the top football recruits and commits playing for Butler County schools this season
Under the flood lights on Friday nights this fall, plenty of high school football players will be looking to gain some attention from college teams. Some in the Butler County area already have, including one SEC pledge among a group that has what it takes to contribute in a collegiate setting.
The locale features a good bit of talent that could be taking the field for colleges and universities in seasons to come. Here are the top nearby recruits:
Arth has an offer from his father’s alma mater, Division III John Carroll.
On Friday nights for the Trojans, Arth lines up at tight end, slot receiver, outside linebacker, has dabbled at safety and pops in every now and then as a wildcat quarterback.
“He wants to make an impact for his teammates and his team,” North Catholic coach Chris Rizzo said. “He does not care at what position that that impact comes.”
Budzilek, who will be a fourth-year starter, has offers from Clarion and Seton Hill. His coach has lost count of how many games he’s played.
Planets coach Eric Kasperowicz labeled Budzilek as a “tough, hard-nosed, throwback type of player.” At center and defensive tackle, those are the traits needed.
“It’s like having a coach on the field,” Kasperowicz said. “It’s just that consistency and that toughness and that work ethic. … We’ll be as successful as Adam is.”
Burchett, a selfless trenches player, is being courted as an interior defensive lineman.
“I think if Beau would go the D-III route, he could probably play D-end. If he’s going to go the D-II route, he’s probably going to have to play D-tackle,” Golden Tornado coach Eric Christy said.
Elliott has offers from Division III schools Westminster and Thiel.
He provides intensity, size and strength for the Falcon Knights. Most importantly, he can jump in wherever his team needs him.
“He’s very athletic for how big he is,” Union/A-C Valley coach Dan Reed said, adding he’ll play on the offensive line after playing tight end and fullback last year.
During the regular season last year, according to statistics compiled by the Butler Eagle, Felitsky threw for 2,430 yards, 20 touchdowns and eight interceptions. The effort earned him an offer from John Carroll, and others might be on the way.
“Overall, he’s just taken strides in all the areas you want to see a quarterback take a stride in,” Trojans coach Chris Rizzo said.
Along with Division I offers from Columbia, Maine and Miami (Ohio), Franklin has offers from Division II schools California (Pa.) and Edinboro.
A back ailment limited Franklin last offseason. Kasperowicz believes his work in the weight room this offseason has been beneficial.
“He’ll be a big recruit,” Kasperowicz said. “(He’s a) big kid, long. … He’s just a huge kid for us physically.”
Gehm, who’s been committed to Vanderbilt since June, is tabbed as a three-star in 247Sports’ composite rankings. He has a total of 19 offers, including ones from Power 4 programs Georgia Tech, Louisville, Maryland, Northwestern, Syracuse, Wake Forest and West Virginia.
Hein, a Sacred Heart commit, totaled 939 yards and seven touchdowns on 66 receptions for the Planets last year. He also carried the ball 38 times for 259 yards and another three touchdowns.
“What makes Gabe different is his ability to separate after the ball is in his hands,” Mars receivers coach Ed Malinowski said. “The guys that can get the ball at five yards and then (say) ‘See ya!’ ... those are the ones.”
Neistein pulled in his first offer, from Washington & Jefferson, in May. St. Vincent followed suit earlier this month. He averaged 17.2 yards per reception on 13 grabs for the Yellowjackets in 2024.
This time around, Neistein will join fellow senior Madden Wisniewski and junior Danny King as targets for seasoned passer Drew Ross.
Pino has offers from Allegheny, Case Western Reserve and Westminster. Grove City has also shown interest.
With last year’s leading receiver, Preston Simko, off to North Catholic and Quinlan Hanley graduated, Pino steps in as a top receiving option for Golden Tornado quarterback Nicco Baggetta.
Rockets coach Larry Wendereusz believes Reich could probably slot into all five of the spots on the offensive front, and his role on that side will be ironed out based on where he’ll be needed.
“Knowing that he could play any position up front gives us that ability to maneuver him to possibly help with maybe the best defensive lineman or linebacker on the other side,” Wendereusz said.
