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Observations from Thursday's Rivals Five-Star Challenge
It was an impressive showing from the running back group at the Rivals Five-Star Challenge in Atlanta on Thursday.
Priority 2022 target Dallan Hayden proved why Ohio State is high on his skill set.
In individual drills, Hayden demonstrated great balance, lateral quickness and had good bursts of speed at the end of his reps. Even on one rep where Hayden got a little off-balance halfway through, he recovered right away and finished off the drill on a high note.
When going up against linebackers in a drill where he had to make them miss a tackle, Hayden exploded from his stance after receiving the ball and would cut to the side without compromising his speed. Hayden was actually the only running back I saw win two of these reps, one of them coming against Gabe Powers. The other rep was filmed and sent to Tony Alford, who texted Hayden after the camp and told him he was impressed with what he saw.
Although he did not make it to the next group of the pass catching drill, I liked what Hayden showcased near the end of the camp. Hayden was one of the fastest running backs I saw, and had no problem getting behind the opposing linebacker; what affected his case of advancing, however, were a few overthrows from the quarterbacks. He’s not known for his receiving skills nearly as much as what he can do on the ground, but I believe Hayden can be very effective on wheel routes out of the backfield.
We will have a story on him tomorrow, but Hayden and his father – former Tennessee running back Aaron Hayden – are looking forward to making the trek up to Ohio State for his official visit this weekend. I heard that Notre Dame did well with them recently and that the staff feels they have a good shot, though I’m still keeping my FutureCast in for the Buckeyes.
Switching over to Justice Haynes, he was absolutely deserving of winning Running Back MVP at today’s camp.
The word I would use to describe Haynes is “electric” as he exploded out of each cut with an incredible burst of speed, turned corners with ease, and is just an overall fundamentally sound player. It’s clear to see why the Rivals100 prospect told us after his visit this month that Ryan Day said Haynes is “his guy” for the 2023 class.
If you didn’t know Haynes is a running back, then you would have mistaken him for being a receiver. He’s a solid route runner who will almost certainly command the attention of slot corners at the next level as Haynes consistently proved he is too fast for linebackers to cover him one-on-one. Haynes’ downfield speed was tough to match, he won essentially every rep where he ran an outside route, and he did not drop a single catchable ball.
With Haynes, Richard Young and Treyaun Webb all high on the Buckeyes, Alford, Day and the rest of the staff must be thrilled with what their 2023 running backs class may end up looking like.
These camps are always difficult to evaluate linebackers at because, typically, their bread and butter is playing with pads on and tackling players.
Even with this being the case, I was impressed with what I saw from Murphy on Thursday.
In a one-on-one drill where a ball carrier had to get past the linebacker, Murphy did a great job of bursting from his starting position, diagnosing where the running back was going and making the play on him. What really stood out was how well Murphy chopped his feet and maintained his balance; he was in complete control and did not lose any of the reps I saw him in.
Along with making plays in this drill, Murphy showed off some of his pass coverage skills as well. The 6-foot-1, 209-pounder did not get fooled on any juke moves that his opposition tried to make, kept up with most players stride-for-stride, and even got his hands in front for a couple of pass deflections.
I do believe he could pack on some more pounds before he gets to college, but Murphy looked solid for my first time seeing him in person.
As for his recruitment, Murphy told BuckeyeGrove yesterday that he is planning on going to Ohio State within the next couple of weeks. LSU has been gaining some momentum recently, but we’ll see if the Buckeyes can make some progress with him once he gets back on campus.
Ohio State’s commits both looked the part and lived up to their rankings earlier today.
Starting off with CJ Hicks, the top-ranked outside linebacker in the country performed a little bit under his normal playing weight as his track and field season led to him dropping down to around 210 pounds.
Despite this, Hicks showed out once again in a camp setting. In person, Hicks moves so fast that he is seemingly gliding on the field, and he is capable of turning on the jets in the blink of an eye to make a play on the ball.
Using his long legs, Hicks covers a lot of ground using only a few strides, and his side-to-side movement was as good as anyone I saw at Thursday’s event.
In pass coverage drills, Hicks had a couple of reps where he showcased his physicality and willingness to make contact near the line of scrimmage. Even with him having lost some weight during his track season, Hicks still possesses a lot of strength, particularly in his upper body, that led to opposing running backs being disrupted at the beginning of their routes.
The one play I took notice of was when he went up against Trevor Etienne, who is a dynamic pass catcher. Hicks played it up close to start the rep, did not get fooled on Etienne’s quick yet subtle fake to the sideline and, even though it was an underthrown ball, Hicks got his hands up and prevented the pass from being completed.
Hicks also finished second place in “The Gauntlet” event, which incorporated a sled drill, high knees over hurdles, a couple of catches, hitting a few half-round football dummies on the ground, turning corners around cones, and doing a scoop-and-score from 25 yards out. He completed that in 23.69 seconds, and did not commit any errors.
Switching over to Powers, he moved a lot better at 6-foot-3.5, 229 pounds than I initially thought he would.
Powers consistently made plays in the open field, attacked each drill with a lot of confidence, and was not afraid to lose a rep. While some players in this setting play it safe to avoid getting burned, Powers would get up close to the running backs he went up against and essentially challenged each player to try getting around him.
What stood out to me the most was how well Powers performed in one-on-ones against running backs in the pass catching drill. Powers started off each play about 10 yards from his opponent, quickly moved up to close the space between them, and was more than fine with the challenge of having to reverse field and keep up with them when they went down the field.
He had a couple of solid reps where he matched a running back stride-for-stride as they went down the sidelines, and even deflected a pass. Ohio State and its fan base must be thrilled with what they have in both Powers and Hicks due to their coverage abilities that they’ll bring to the linebackers corps.
As for Tshabola, I did not get to see as much of him today as some of the other players on this list. What stood out to me the most, however, was how much bad weight he has shed off over the past year. Tshabola told me on Wednesday that he put in a lot of work over the offseason in terms of conditioning and getting his body ready for his senior season and eventually college.
I only saw two one-on-one reps from Tshabola, but there are a couple of interesting takeaways from those reps.
First of all, Tshabola was placed in the interior of the offensive line, and playing guard at Ohio State has not been ruled out by Greg Studrawa and Kennedy Cook. Also, Tshabola made it to the Best-On-Best OL-DL challenge, and had won a couple of reps against Rivals250 prospects Christen Miller and Mario Eugenio from what I saw.
Christen Miller cancels Ohio State official visit
I posted about Miller today, but I will reiterate what I reported in case anyone missed it.
This morning, Miller told me that he had decided to cancel his upcoming official visits to Louisville and Ohio State. According to Miller, canceling his trip to OSU was not a sign of waning interest in the program; after seeing the school earlier this month on a five-day visit, he would prefer to take the rest of the month off from the road and utilize that official during the season.
He does not have another date locked in just yet, but Miller is eyeing an OV to Columbus the weekend of their home opener against Oregon.
From what I have gathered recently, however, it appears as if the Rivals250 prospect could be close to committing. It’s not set in stone that he will, but I’ve heard that on the heels of his official to USC last weekend, a commitment to the program may be on the horizon.
I was told that Miller is attracted to Los Angeles as he has aspirations of becoming an actor and building his brand, the official visit wowed him and his family, and one of his good friends, Mykel Williams, just committed to the Trojans.
I have submitted a FutureCast in favor of USC, and I expect the Buckeyes to focus on other interior defensive linemen, such as Chris McClellan and Hero Kanu.
Trio of four-star prospects to visit Ohio State next week
One other prospect Ohio State is set to host next week is four-star running back Emeka Megwa.
Megwa told me he does not know the exact date of this visit, but he will be in town and will work out in front of Tony Alford during that trip. This won’t be his first time in Columbus as the Fort Worth (Texas) recruit visited the school as a freshman.
There are other priorities higher on the board right now, but I’ll throw out a possible scenario that could happen. Megwa checked in at 6-foot-1, 220 pounds today, and I think he could end up being a linebacker at the next level given his size. I can’t say for sure if that’s what Ohio State would want him to do some drills at, or if Megwa would even be receptive of this, but I don’t think it should be completely ruled out either.
You can read my full update on Megwa HERE.
Georgia-based defensive backs Caleb Downs and Ethan Nation are both set to visit Ohio State for the first time next week.
Downs tells me that he will be heading up to Columbus on June 22, while Nation is slated to arrive a day before. I asked Downs if he will be camping during Tuesday’s visit, but he is unsure if he will or not.
While speaking with Downs, the No. 81 overall prospect on Rivals.com said that his interest in the Buckeyes is “very high.” Downs, who is being eyed as a free safety by the staff, says contact with the coaches occurs on a weekly basis.
As for Nation, he told me that he is “very excited” about visiting because he’s heard great things about the school. Nation, a rising junior with over 40 offers, says what stands out the most about Ohio State is the amount of defensive backs they put in the NFL.
I’ll have updates on both of them either tomorrow or Saturday, so be on the lookout for those stories.
Quick note on No. 1 prospect in the 2023 cycle
I will also mention before ending today's Skull Session that L.T. Overton, the No. 1 overall prospect in the 2023 class, plans on visiting Ohio State next month. No visit date has been set up yet, but Overton told me that he likes the Buckeyes because of their development of pass rushers, and says that his mom "loves" the coaching staff in Columbus.
Be on the lookout for an update on Overton tomorrow morning.
