Heavily recruited Peters Township duo overcoming recruiting obstacles
Eleanor Bailey / The Almanac
Peters Township’s Donovan McMillon makes an interception during a WPIAL Class 5A semifinal game against Penn-Trafford.
Luke Campbell/Observer-Reporter
Corban Hondru
Luke Campbell/O-R
Peters Township safety Donovan McMillon has ties to the state of Florida. Though his relatives there are Florida State fans, McMillon committed to Florida.
Donovan McMillon
Corban Hondru
Eleanor Bailey/The Almanac
Corban Hondru gave Peters Township football fans plenty to celebrate in his four seasons as a starter.
Donovan McMillon and Corban Hondru have been taught to play at one speed. … fast.
Now, the two soon-to-be seniors who have been intricate parts to the Peters Township football defense over the past few seasons are forced to slow their pace, at least in the recruiting process.
The coronavirus pandemic has far from put a halt to the process for the two highly recruited friends and teammates, but narrowing down their long lists of scholarship offers has taken a different route because of it.
College campuses have shut down, which means no visits during a crucial time for juniors entering their senior year. For McMillon, who has 44 Division I offers, and Hondru, who has 27, the luxury of physically seeing all the campuses is a pipe dream.
“I’ve had some spring visits in March and April to go and see some practices. All of those got blown out of the water,” Hondru said. “I’m going to push stuff back and hopefully be able to go throughout the summer. It’s slowing down my process but I’m trying to narrow it down as I go.”
But narrowing down anything can be a challenge, especially when schools continue to come knocking – at least knocking from a distance.
One day after McMillon, a safety, announced his top 15 schools on social media, the University of Tennessee offered him a scholarship. The Volunteers won’t be the final team to join the fray. All of McMillon’s 44 offers have come following a junior season in which he had a team-leading 84 tackles, seven tackles for a loss, four forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and a pair of interceptions. Schools that make his top 15 list are Oklahoma, Michigan State, Iowa, Virginia Tech, Michigan, Penn State, Pitt, Arizona State, Purdue, Northwestern, Cincinnati, Louisville, Texas A&M, Notre Dame and Duke.
That’s a lot of mileage for any summer soiree, even if life soon returns to normal.
“It’s been very exciting and every offer is special. I’m grateful for every single one,” McMillon said. “I’m trying to find the best fit for me. From the education to the people, I want to go to a place that makes me feel at home.”
McMillon had very little time throughout the winter to visit schools because he wrestled his way into becoming a state runner-up. His wrestling season lasted until March 7, when he lost in a historic bout to Canon-McMillan’s Gerrit Nijenhuis in the PIAA Class AAA 182-pound final. It was the first time in PIAA history two Washington County wrestlers competed against one another for a state championship.
Of his top 15 schools, he has only visited Pitt, Penn State, Virginia Tech and Purdue.
A lull in life hasn’t been all bad, though.
“I’ve been able to FaceTime a bunch of coaches,” McMillon said. “I’ve been able to build relationships with both head and assistant coaches, learning where they would want me to play or how they would use me. A lot of people would think of it as just not going to a campus, which does stink. It has delayed my process of wanting to commit before the season. It’s going to be slow.”
In the last month-and-a-half, Hondru has added offers from Navy, New Hampshire, Elon, Furman, Richmond, Holy Cross, Cornell and most recently Ohio on Monday. His other offers include Air Force, Akron, Army, Ball State, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Dartmouth, Eastern Michigan, Fordham, Lafayette, Lehigh, Liberty, Miami (Ohio), Penn, Toledo, William & Mary, Yale and Youngstown State.
Hondru said he’s visited nearly half of the schools over the last several months prior to the pandemic throwing a wrench into spring plans.
“I want to decide before my senior year,” Hondru said. “It just would help get the pressure off so I can focus on the season. I want to get back to the WPIAL championship and do what we weren’t able to do last year.
“Having this break (from school) has been beneficial for me personally because I’ve been able to really talk to coaches,” he continued. “I just want to be comfortable with where I’m going. I want to be comfortable with my decision.”
Hondru finished his junior year with 69 tackles, including 16 for losses. He had 10 sacks and was a big reason why Peters Township limited opponents to only 9.4 points per game.
Both were selections for the Observer-Reporter Fab 15 last season and made the 2019 Pennsylvania Writers’ all-state team. Hondru also made the O-R’s Fab 15 team as a sophomore.
“Recruiting is the smallest problem I have right now,” McMillon said calmly. “I just want everyone to be safe and healthy. If my recruiting getting delayed a little bit is the worst thing that happens to me, then I’m very thankful.”