High School

Clarkston Football Standout Announces his Power Four College Commitment

Clarkston High School kicker Aidan O’Neill commits to Kansas State. The Michigan standout brings elite leg strength, All-State honors, and a proven track record from a Division 1 powerhouse.

Conner Linsner

Kansas State Wildcats fans cheer a touchdown during the second half of the game against UCF Knights at Bill Snyder Family Stadium on Sept. 27, 2025.
Kansas State Wildcats fans cheer a touchdown during the second half of the game against UCF Knights at Bill Snyder Family Stadium on Sept. 27, 2025. / Evert Nelson/The Capital-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Over the past 10 years, Clarkston High School has become one of the best programs in Michigan, building a powerhouse in MHSAA Division 1 that seems to be in the state-title conversation every season, highlighted by a championship in 2017.

One of Clarkston's most key players over the last four years, Aidan O'Neill, has announced his commitment to Kansas State. The 6-foot-1, 205-pound kicker had a stellar 2025 season, making 7-12 field goals, including a 49-yarder. He was 55-57 on extra points, with the two misses being blocked. Kohl's Kicking has him ranked as the No. 29 kicker in the class of 2026.

Having an elite special teams player is always an advantage at the prep level, and O'neill was a big part of Clarkston's 10-2 2025 season.

The New Kansas State Kicker Has Power

The former First Team All-State standout has no shortage of leg strength. O’Neill recently showed it off on X with a video of him drilling a 65-yard kick, and his kickoff production speaks for itself with 65 touchbacks on 74 tries.

Clarkston Has a Rich History of Producing D1 Recruits

Clarkston is no stranger to producing high-major talent. O'neill becomes the second Clarkston High School player to commit to a Power Four school this recruiting cycle. Offensive tackle Hayden Flavin is taking his talents to Northwestern, and the 2024 class featured two Big Ten commits in Brody Kostin going to Indiana and Desman Stephens going to California to play for Lincoln Riley at USC.

O'Neill had big shoes to fill as he was the replacement at Clarkston for Michigan State commit Stephen Rusnak in 2021. Rusnak was the Cincinnati Bearcats kicker in 2025 and was 47-47 on extra points and 13-17 on field goals.

Consistently producing Division One talent is what sets Clarkston apart from other public schools in the metro Detroit area.

Kansas State Specialists

O'neill is the only high schoool specialist that the Wildcats have recruited out of the high school rnaks for 2026. However, Kansas State has brought in kicker Robert Hammond III from the University of Toledo and punter Dylan Davidson from Emporia State.

Published
Conner Linsner
CONNER LINSNER

Conner has been covering high school football and basketball recruiting for over five years. In college, he started his own blog covering high school recruiting. Right now, Conner is the Site Expert at All for Tennessee, covering Tennessee Volunteers athletics. He has also been covering college and professional sports on various FanSided sites since 2020. After graduating from Wayne State University in 2024, he decided that his passion for collegiate and professional athletics had driven him to pursue a career in sports media. Conner has been to over half of the Major League Baseball stadiums with his father and plans to hit every single ballpark in the majors. He began contributing to High School On SI in 2026.

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