St. Joseph-Ogden sophomore offensive lineman Cameron Wagner stands next to a board inside St. Joseph-Ogden High School with T-shirts from nine of the 10 college football programs — Miami (Ohio), Louisville, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Purdue, Penn State, Notre Dame and Ohio State — that have offered him a scholarship so far.
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ST. JOSEPH — Sitting in a classroom chair that seems too small for Cameron Wagner to occupy and deciding which chicken nugget on his tray to eat during his lunch hour, a slight grin spreads across his face.
The St. Joseph-Ogden sophomore already seems at ease with questions lobbed his way. Walking into the offices of college football coaches like Bret Bielema at Illinois, Ryan Day at Ohio State, Marcus Freeman at Notre Dame and James Franklin at Penn State, among others, has that effect.
The 6-foot-6, 290-pound offensive lineman with 10 Division I offers so far didn’t get his driver’s license until last November. Because he didn’t turn 16 years old until shortly before Thanksgiving.
Yet, the answer he gives about which household chore he dislikes the most is what one should expect out of any teenager. No matter if millionaire college football coaches who are household names across the country want Wagner to come play at their school when the 2027 season kicks off.
“Laundry,” Wagner told The News-Gazette without hesitation. “I hate putting it away.”
Even if Wagner has added to his wardrobe in the past year. Because every college football program who extends him an offer, his grandmother buys him a T-shirt of that school.
Which is why he has T-shirts from Louisville, Miami (Ohio), Illinois, Nebraska, Iowa, Purdue, Penn State, Notre Dame and Ohio State — that’s the order he has received his D-I offers so far in his recruitment process — on hangers inside Shawn Skinner’s first-floor classroom at SJ-O on this particular day. A 10th T-shirt will now have to be added after Wagner’s visit on Tuesday to Mississippi, which saw him receive a scholarship offer from Lane Kiffin’s Rebels.
“As much as you can, he’s embraced it,” said Skinner, a business teacher at SJ-O who will start his 10th season as the Spartans’ football coach this upcoming fall. “The kid loves football. He has a genuine passion for it. He has a good IQ for it. He’s taking this in every way you’d want him to. He’s not taking anything for granted.”
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The laundry situation, though, is one Wagner is quick for granted. Just ask his mom, Jenna Flessner.
“Not liking it is an understatement,” Flessner said. “It gets put on his bed to be put away, and it will inevitably end up on his floor. The worst part is the dog sleeps in his room, so I am constantly on him to put it away so he isn’t covered in dog hair. If he wants to look like a wrinkly mess, that’s on him. He wears a cut-off shirt and shorts, even in the winter, most of the time anyway, so I guess it doesn’t matter. I am very quick to say, ‘Check your floor,’ when he asks where something is.”
Cameron Wagner and Bret Bielema on Wednesday.
Landing the offers
Another household chore Wagner might see an uptick in: checking the mailbox in the next year for prospective college material.
Communicating with coaches is a part of the recruiting process Wagner is already well-versed in, but will reach another level in the coming year.
All 10 of his offers have come from conversations with coaches at those respective schools. Nine happened in person, with Penn State the exception after that offer came via a recent phone call.
“They’ve taken me into the head coaches’ office or the offensive line coach’s office,” Wagner said. “They’re like, ‘Hey, we watched your film. We like you in person. We think you have the potential to play for us, so this is an offer to come play for our school.’ As of right now, I’m still too young to get text messages. It’s not as crazy as it’s going to be next year.”
Wagner had offers from Louisville and Miami (Ohio) last spring before Illinois became the third school to offer him last June after he performed during an offensive line camp at Memorial Stadium in Champaign.
He visited two Illini games last season at Memorial Stadium, the season opener against Eastern Illinois on Aug. 29 and the win against Michigan on Oct. 19 that coincided with the 100th anniversary celebration of Memorial Stadium’s 1924 dedication.
Wagner said he stays in constant communication with offensive line coach Bart Miller, director of scouting Drake Leeper and assistant director of player personnel Jon Proto.
“Obviously, it’s really nice that they’re 15 minutes away,” Wagner said. “We’re on the phone probably two to three times a week. They roll out the red carpet for me. I can feel that I’m a priority. Any time I call, they answer. I like Coach Miller’s coaching style. He’ll yell at you on the field, but he’ll explain it after. It’s a good balance.”
The fact Illinois is coming off a 10-win season for the first time in Wagner’s life is also a plus.
“It helps,” he said. “I want to go to a team that is a contender.”
St. Joseph-Ogden offensive lineman Cameron Wagner looks to make a block against Pontiac on Oct. 11. The sophomore already has three Division I offers from Illinois, Louisville and Miami (Ohio).
Decisions, decisions
The offers from Illinois, Louisville and Miami (Ohio) were the ones Wagner had throughout his sophomore football season at SJ-O, where he started at right tackle and helped the Spartans compile a 10-1 record, win an outright Illini Prairie Conference championship and reach the second round of the Class 3A playoffs.
Since his sophomore football season ended, though, offers from Nebraska and Iowa happened on Jan. 23. The Purdue offer came a day later on Jan. 24. A month later, Penn State offered on Feb. 24. His offer from Notre Dame came on March 26, and the one from Ohio State a few days later on March 29.
Wagner wrestled for SJ-O this past winter and compiled a 40-17 record in the 285-pound weight class, his first time wrestling since he was about 7 years old. He stopped playing basketball after his freshman year because he said he felt burnt out on the sport, but competes in track and field in the spring, throwing the shot put and discus for the Spartans.
All those athletic attributes, plus his talent on the football field, make it clear why college football powerhouse programs are flocking to SJ-O.
“With Cameron, it’s not a complicated eval,” said Allen Trieu, a national recruiting analyst for 247sports and a BTN contributor. “He’s 6-foot-6, 290 pounds, is still athletic enough to dunk a basketball, and is a good thrower in track and field, which tends to correlate well with offensive line success. You can see on tape that he has the tools and physicality of a national recruit. He still has a lot of physical and technical development potential, so I think that’s always the exciting part is seeing a prospect who is already really good but has the ability still to get better. Those schools that have offered him can go nationwide for offensive linemen and them offering him at this juncture shows that they see him on that level.”
He’s visited all seven of those college campuses that have offered him in 2025 already this year, having just spent last weekend at Nebraska after visiting Penn State the first weekend in April. Getting offers from both Notre Dame and Ohio State, the two teams who played in the College Football Playoff national championship game on Jan. 20, took his recruitment to another level.
“It was crazy,” Wagner said. “Last year, they were the top two teams in the nation. I was so excited for Notre Dame and so excited for Ohio State. It just made it even better after they each offered me.”
Wagner knows the next question is coming. Where’s he going and when will he decide? It’s one he hears often. And will continue to hear until he makes a decision.
“If people in the hallways or around school,” Wagner said, “Go, ‘Hey, Cam, you going to Ohio State or this school or that school?’ I just say, ‘I don’t know yet. I’ve still got some time.’”
From left, Cameron Wagner, Jackson Ennis, Brennan Oleynichak, Quincy Jones and Nolan Earley make up the St. Joseph-Ogden offensive line. The Spartans play at Chillicothe IVC on Friday night.
Family support
Jacob Wagner didn’t experience a recruitment like this when he was an offensive lineman at Kenton Ridge High School in Springfield, Ohio, in the late 1990s.
He visited Indiana. Met with Hoosiers coach Cam Cameron. Talked with Hoosiers offensive line coach Mark Deal. And committed on the spot.
That’s how Cameron Wagner explains what it was like for his dad almost 25 years ago.
“When I first visited Indiana, I was not sure what was important to me when choosing a school to go to,” Jacob said. “Then, I was able to meet the coaches and get around the players it became clear quickly. The minute I walked down the stairs in the football complex for the first time and shook Coach Deal’s hand, it felt like I was part of a family with a great culture.”
Having a dad who played Big Ten football certainly helps in the recruiting process now for Cameron Wagner. Having a mom who competed in the Big Ten is also beneficial. Flessner was on the Indiana track and field team, competing in both the shot put and discus, after a multi-sport standout career at Tuscola High School.
She also knows a bit about football, too, given her maiden name. Her dad is Stan Wienke, the Hall of Fame coach who led Tuscola to a 2006 Class 1A state title and won 149 games in 18 seasons with the Warriors. Her brother, John Wienke, was the Warriors’ standout quarterback on that state title team almost 20 years ago who went on to play at Iowa.
“The recruiting process is a lot faster now,” Flessner said. “Cameron is competing at such a higher level than I ever did and is so much further ahead of what John was with during his recruiting journey. It is definitely a different time.”
Grandpa joins some of the visits, too.
“He takes it all in,” Wagner said. “Obviously, he knows football and he knows recruiting. Every single school I go to, he is always able to connect with some guy who used to coach at some place. He has all sorts of connections. He’s been awesome and a big help.”
Jenna does hear from her family, in a good-natured way, about wearing SJ-O’s maroon, white and columbia blue colors now instead of the black and gold Tuscola colors she wore growing up.
“When Cameron was almost 2 years old, I met his step-dad, Tyler Flessner,” Jenna said. “His family has lived in the St. Joe area for decades. When we got married, it made sense to move here. My brothers and dad still live in Tuscola, so you can bet I got a ton of grief for giving up black and gold. However, SJ-O football has a long tradition of doing well. I just hope that Cameron can play a small part in keeping that tradition alive.”
Cameron Wagner (72) at St. Joseph-Ogden’s football practice at the high school in St. Joseph on Tuesday, August 20, 2024.
Juggling it all
The family has created a Google Document to help coordinate the recruiting efforts and the times when Wagner is supposed to speak with a college coach. It also helps in planning the multiple trips the family has gone on in the past year. From a quick, 15-minute drive down Route 150 from St. Joseph to Champaign, or on flights to visit places like Norman, Okla., and State College, Pa.
“We fly if it’s over a six-hour drive,” Wagner said. “On the drives, sometimes I drive. Sometimes, I just sit there and hang out or listen to music.”
Jacob said he does his best to stay in the background on the visits. He’s given his son pointers in the past — how to act, sit up straight and when to talk to the coaches — but is trying to savor this environment from a different perspective.
“Being the dad and not the recruit on visits is easy,” Jacob said. “Cam takes the lead and handles everything. I am intentionally very quiet and let Cam handle conversations, answer and ask questions. Obviously, he knows my wife, Jess, and I are there to support him as needed, but this is his journey, and he needs to ensure he takes ownership of it.”
The requests and demands on Wagner’s life will increase in the coming months. Fans in the stands underneath the Friday night lights in the fall will point out the player wearing No. 72 for SJ-O and mention he’s a big-time recruit.
Reporters will want a minute or two of his time. College coaches will have film of Wagner to assess and pitches to make.
“I don’t know if I could ever get used to it, but I’ve learned how to handle it better,” Wagner said. “I feel my talking skills have gotten a lot better. I know how to react. I know how to interact with people a lot better now.”
Growing up in a town of 3,800 residents in St. Joseph, with two gas stations, a handful of locally-owned restaurants and no stoplights can minimize some of the distractions. Wagner realizes the attention he’s received and will continue to receive puts more of a spotlight on how the tradition-rich SJ-O football program, which has 34 playoff appearances in the last 38 seasons, five state runner-up finishes since 1989 and has reached the playoffs the last six seasons under Skinner, fares on the field.
“You’ve got a couple different things going on,” Skinner said. “He’s worried about his own recruiting, but he’s cognizant of what we’re accomplishing here with our program. We talk weekly about our schematics for our offense and defense. He’ll weigh in. On his way home from Ohio State, he’s sending me play ideas that could work here. That’s awesome. He’s engaged. He’s involved in all aspects of it. Right now, what a tremendous experience it is. You just hope it continues that way.”
St. Joseph-Ogden sophomore offensive lineman Cameron Wagner displays all the lanyards he has received from all the college football programs he has visited so far during his recruitment process.
Staying humble and thankful
Keeping a level head is one aspect his parents constantly remind Wagner of. One his teammates remind him of, too.
“When you see this dude walking around the school, you kind of know something is different,” SJ-O senior offensive lineman Quincy Jones said last fall. “He looks like a father walking around the school. If you don’t talk to him about (recruiting), he’s not bringing it up to you. He keeps it on the down low.”
Sports, particularly football, is what Wagner does. But his dad doesn’t want it to define his life. No matter where football takes him.
“Cameron has big plans athletically after high school and beyond,” Jacob said. “I am confident if he continues to work hard and develop himself daily, he can reach these goals, but I am just as excited for Cameron as he develops into a young man. Cam is a very family-oriented kid that can make any situation fun. Additionally, he treats everyone like an old friend and is very approachable.”
Case in point: when he stops by Casey’s General Store right off Route 150 in St. Joseph to grab a breakfast burrito or a Gatorade.
“About once a month I am thanked by the staff at Casey’s for Cam’s help putting something away on the high shelf they hardly can reach,” Jacob said.
Mom backs up that particular story.
“I would echo that last sentiment about Casey’s,” Jenna said. “They tell me the same thing. The people there love him. We have people around town tell us all the time that Cameron is quick to shake a hand and say ‘hello.’”
Just like he is around St. Joseph, Wagner is easy to spot on the football field. His impressive sophomore season backed up all the attention he had generated. What were his main takeaways from the 2024 season?
“I liked how I showed my downfield blocking,” Wagner said. “Especially in the Bloomington Central Catholic game, I had really good second-level blocking and was able to keep up with those linebackers. This year, I want to improve on my foot speed and pass protection and just overall domination on the line.”
A whole community, school and college coaches across the country will watch to see if those attributes develop even more. And where, one day, they’ll take him to play high-level college football.
“He has handled all of this with so much maturity,” Jenna said. “Everyone, from his coaches, teachers and office staff at the high school, have been so wonderful and supportive. We have had a lot of people in the community tell us, ‘If you didn’t know he was being recruited, you wouldn’t know he is being recruited.’ We have encouraged him to keep it that way. Always stay humble and thankful. He has been thankful and appreciative of every reporter, coach and community member that has reached out to him, and I think that will serve him well in the long run.”