FanHouse Seantrel Henderson

Lights, camera, action. High school football -- from recruiting battles to Friday's No. 1 vs. 2 national showdown -- continues to entertain.

Offensive lineman Seantrel Henderson, long anointed the nation's top prep football player by recruiting services, hasn't disappointed this season for undefeated Cretin-Derham Hall (St. Paul, Minn.), according to head coach Mike Scanlan. The drama should only build as Henderson remains undecided about his collegiate selection as February's National Signing Day approaches.

Farther South, St. Thomas Aquinas, ranked No. 1 in the USA Today Super 25, is set for its highly-anticipated clash against No. 2 Duncan Byrnes (S.C.) on Friday at Lockhart Stadium in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. The nationally-televised game (ESPNU) could very well decide the prep national championship.

Texas is No. 1.

Or is it Oklahoma? Or does Florida, USC or defending recruiting champion Ohio State have enough juice to finish with a flurry over the next five months and land the nation's top 2010 recruiting class? While questions remain, this much is certain: for many top schools, football coaches are receiving non-binding verbal commitments long before February's national signing day.

Many believe the trend of committing early was a recruiting strategy first implemented by Texas coach Mack Brown.

"Most teams are either pretty much done or halfway done at this point, compared to five years ago when teams were barely getting started commitment-wise by late summer," Jamie Newberg, national recruiting analyst for Rivals. com, told FanHouse.

Summer camps, combines and workouts are nearing a close for the nation's top high school football recruits. Player and team rankings continue to be listed and debated by recruiting analysts as the prep season quickly approaches and the Class of 2010 comes into focus.

Not much has changed, however, for offensive tackle Seantrel Henderson, ranked numero uno in the Class of 2010 by two recruiting services. Henderson, a 6-foot-7, 310-pound offensive tackle from Saint Paul, Minn., has received more than 50 scholarship offers in football and, for good measure, two in basketball.

Elite programs across the country are waiting to hear where Henderson will take his official visits this fall. He has made unofficial trips to Wisconsin, Michigan, Iowa, Florida, USC and Ohio State.

Cretin-Derham Hall has produced a number of amazing athletes over the years, from baseball Hall of Famer Paul Molitor to Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke to first overall major-league baseball selection Joe Mauer of the hometown Minnesota Twins.

There's another superb athlete in the pipeline at the small, private school in St. Paul, Minn. Say hello to Seantrel Henderson, a 6-foot-8, 315-pound junior offensive tackle who is considered the top prep football player in the country by two different scouting services.

Recruiting service Rivals.com has released its initial "Rivals 100" list of the nation's top 100 recruits. The list will inevitably be adjusted a handful of times between now and signing day in 2010 but its a decent starting point for the shape of college football recruiting over the next year.

The early leader for the top recruit is Minnesota offensive tackle Seantrel Henderson. At No. 2 just behind him is a nifty running back out of Texas we've mentioned before named Lache Seastrunk. Rivals is touting the state of Texas this year while noting it may be a bit of a down year for quarterbacks.