Carradine was one of Ohio's top prospects two years ago when he ranked as the No. 18 player in the state. He was only a three-star prospect, but would have ranked much higher if his academics were in order. He visited both Illinois and Michigan, and had offers from Cincinnati, Michigan State, Minnesota, N.C. State, Pitt and Wisconsin before he landed at Butler County.
He quickly made an impact for the Grizzlies, racking up 90 tackles and 20 tackles for loss as a freshman. In the season opener against highly regarded Navarro College, Carradine had eight tackles, four for loss, three sacks and a quarterback hurry.
"I've had a chance to coach some tremendous defensive end prospects in my time at Butler County," Grizzlies coach Troy Morrell said. "But I think there's no question Cornelius is special and will go down as one of the best I've been around. He's so big, strong, physical and explosive."
Butler County coaches don't let their players get too involved with recruiting during the season, but Kansas State, Cincinnati, Kentucky, Ohio State, Purdue, Texas Tech and countless others are already in hot pursuit of Carradine.