Justin Sawmiller of
Kenton (Ohio) broke the national record for career receptions Friday in a 48-2 win over Elida, and it looks like he's prepared to put the record out of reach for a while. He now has 362 career grabs.
Sawmiller caught 12 passes for 156 yards and a touchdown in the victory, giving him 75 catches for 1,216 yards on the season. He has scored 12 touchdowns.
Justin Sawmiller, Kenton
File photo by Scott Seighman
He broke the national record with his ninth catch of the game.
Davis Howell of Christian Academy of Knoxville (Tenn.) set the record last season with 358 receptions, according to the National Federation of High Schools Record Book.
According to the Lima News, Sawmiller wasn't concentrating on passing Howell and breaking the record.
“I didn’t even think about it, until at the end of the game,” Sawmiller
told the Lima News. “People were congratulating me. I wasn’t really sure what they
were talking about. It felt good, but it wasn’t on my mind. I was just
hoping we could get the win.”
Sawmiller could put the record out of reach for some time, based on his recent play. Kenton is 7-0 on the season and ranked
No. 8 in the state by the MaxPreps Computer Rankings. Sawmiller has had at least 12 catches in each of his last three games and has had double-digit receptions five times this year.
As a sophomore, Sawmiller caught 137 passes, which ranks second all-time in Ohio history. His 128 receptions last year rank third. He had 22 receptions as a freshman.
Sawmiller also plays with one of the more prolific quarterbacks in the country in
Grant Sherman. Against Elida, Sherman completed 36 of 44 passes for 534 yards and six touchdowns. Sherman holds the Ohio state record for passing yardage in game with 684, set last year.
