GROVE CITY - “The culture and high standards there are personally what I need.”

That is how Charlie Russell views the Air Force Academy, the future home of the Bishop Ready senior.

Interest in the 37th-ranked 2023 right-handed pitcher in Ohio started innocently when he was seen while pitching in Indiana for Bo Jackson Elite.

“My summer coach, Jimmy Onate, said Air Force was going to be there to watch me pitch,” Russell reflected. “They were there to see the other pitcher from the Chicago Sparks, but Jimmy worked it out with them to see us both.”

While “it wasn’t my best outing,” according to Russell, a connection was made with the coaches at the university in Colorado Springs.

“I emailed to thank them for watching me,” Russell noted. “Jimmy said their recruiting coordinator texted him and liked how I handled the failures of not having a great outing. I ended up talking to him on the phone and he wanted me on a visit.”

The trip out west took place July 11-13.

“I went there and I was blown away,” Russell related. “The campus was beautiful. We didn’t get to the baseball field until 3 o’clock and we started at 8 a.m. There’s something bigger to being there. The opportunities it offers are enormous with free tuition and almost 100 percent job placement afterward if you don’t go into the military.”

Air Force then witnessed the 92nd-rated senior  in Ohio show what he could do on the mound when he was on.

“They saw me in Georgia at the 17U national championships and that was one of my best outings,” explained the 6-5 190-pounder. “They said they like tall basketball players. They said my offspeed has to develop but they think they can shape me into what they want.”

Princeton and Butler also showed interest in Russell, who a summer earlier was talking with Charleston Southern, Eastern Kentucky and Campbell.

“Going into this summer it all fell off and I was on a clean slate,” Russell said. “I was thinking of maybe going to a D-II or D-III in Ohio.”

But then the Air Force entered the picture and his desire to play at the next level was taking shape.

“College baseball has always been something I wanted to do as a kid,” Russell related. “My oldest brother played college baseball, but I didn’t think about it that much until freshman year with Bo Jackson. It opened my eyes to what I needed to do.”

Improvement in his game followed.

“Last fall I started working with Ryan Clark and he helped me with my pitching skills and how the body moves,” Russell noted. “He helped me develop my slider better and my two-seam and cutter. He taught me how to warm up, get loose and get the most out of my body. It all gave me more confidence.”

Now Russell looks forward to what he can bring to the program at Air Force.

“I want to take a leadership role that other guys can come to,” Russell said. “I want to show up and try to bring my best while helping out my teammates. On the field I’d like to work up to the Friday night level.”

While English and computer science are being considered as a college major, Russell is uncertain at this time. What he does know is that he faces a big challenge ahead.

“They told me it’s the hardest thing you’ll do but the easiest decision you’ll make,” Russell said of going to Air Force. “It’s four years of not fun, it’s a grind. But the payout is what keeps everyone in it. You’re not there just for you, you’re there for your country.”

A 3.8 student at Bishop Ready who has future plans to go to flight school and be a pilot, Russell admits to being thrilled to have a college decision finalized.

“It’s a big relief,” concluded Russell, who will turn 18 on Sept. 15. “Going into summer I wasn’t sure where I was going, but my family was 110 percent for this. To get the stress off is big. Everyone is excited.

“But it’s just beginning,” Russell added. “You still have to work and get better. But it’s nice to know where the end is at and not be unclear any more.”