Quinn, Johnson, Pace among OHSAA Circle of Champions 2026 inductees

Dublin Coffman graduate Brady Quinn and former Ohio State offensive linemen Paris Johnson Jr. and Orlando Pace are among five 2026 inductees into the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s Circle of Champions.

The trio, along with former Ohio State women’s basketball player Frani Washington and longtime high school basketball and college football official Denny Morris, will be recognized during the Division VII boys basketball state final March 21 at University of Dayton Arena.

Quinn threw for more than 4,300 yards and 46 touchdowns during his junior and senior years at Coffman and helped the Shamrocks baseball team to the Division I state championship in 2001. Quinn then was a four-year starting quarterback at Notre Dame and a two-time All-American. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in 2007.

He had a seven-year pro career with as many organizations and currently is an analyst for Fox Sports.

Johnson played high school ball at Cincinnati Princeton before starting as a freshman in the Buckeyes ’ 2020 national championship game loss to Alabama and every game after that the next two seasons. A unanimous All-American at left tackle in 2022, Johnson was picked sixth in the 2023 NFL Draft by the Arizona Cardinals .

Pace, a Sandusky graduate, was a two-time unanimous All-American and two-time Lombardi Award winner for the Buckeyes between 1993-96. He also was 1996 Big Ten Player of the Year as Ohio State reached the Rose Bowl and was the top pick in the 1997 NFL Draft by the St. Louis Rams.

Pace played 13 years in the NFL and was a seven-time Pro Bowl and five-time All-Pro selection. He helped St. Louis win Super Bowl XXXIV after the 1999 season and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016.

Washington starred in basketball, track and field and volleyball at Toledo Woodward. The Polar Bears won the first Class AAA state basketball title in 1976, and Washington was the OSU women’s program’s first All-American in 1979.

High school sports reporter Dave Purpura can be reached at dpurpura@dispatch.com and at @dp_dispatch on X.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: OHSAA to honor former high school legends Orlando Pace, Brady Quinn