MANSFIELD, Ohio — Tyrell Ajian could be the area’s most hotly recruited football prospect in decades.
The 6-foot-1, 190-pound Madison junior has scholarship offers from Notre Dame, Michigan and Kentucky among others. He’s rated the 73rd best player nationally in his 2017 class by ESPN.
With all that, there have been times this fall when the Rams struggled to fire their biggest gun. He was little more than an after-thought in a season-opening loss to Shelby. Getting him the ball consistently has proved a challenge at other times as defenses focus on the area’s best athlete, who is also a superb basketball player.
“We’ve gotten it to him in the screen game, but not downfield,” Madison coach Jami Masi said after Friday night’s 33-13 victory over Clear Fork. “We had a meeting and talked about taking advantage of our opportunities.”
Quarterback Tresten Vail found Ajian early and often downfield in Bellville. Ajian caught nine passes for 173 yards and four touchdowns, consistently torching man-to-man coverage with a variety of catches. That performance made Ajian the Richland Bank Athlete of the Week.
“He’s just a tremendous athlete,” Clear Fork coach Dave Carroll said.
Ajian’s scores came from 55, 22, 18 and 52 yards. He also punted once for 45 yards, and played safety on defense.
“I taught him everything he knows,” Madison defensive assistant Tim Niswander joked after the game.
Niswander is a Madison graduate and has seen a number of elite prospects course through the school system in the past 25 years. Obi Stillwell was a walk-on at Ohio State that made it into the two-deep as a linebacker in the 1990s. Rob Whitfield started in the secondary at Toledo, Steve Whitfield was a running back at Eastern Michigan, while Justin Larrick, Dan Norris and Nate Whitcomb were each All-Ohioans with Division I offers and ability.
Where does Ajian rank among them?
“He’s the best athlete I’ve ever coached,” Niswander posted earlier this season on his Facebook page, underneath a photo of his prize pupil.
Interestingly, Ajian wasn’t even Madison’s most prolific receiver before Friday night’s clash. Teammate Billy Buckley had 16 catches for 321 yards. Meanwhile, Ajian now has 13 touchdowns, with scores defensively and as a runner.
His collegiate position is in flux, with some projecting him as a receiver and others as a defensive back. But with his skill set and solid academic standing, Madison’s multi-purpose standout should fit in nicely at the next level, wherever that may be.
