Confidence in Haskins?
Rivals100 quarterback Dwayne Haskins might be the single biggest name to watch for Ohio State fans down the stretch based on the type of player he is, the need at the position in this class, and the potential long term recruiting implications that pulling Dwayne out of the DMV could have.
While things have quieted down quite a bit since he made his official visit to Ohio State, I'm still hearing pretty positive things for Ohio State's chances. There is no doubt the OSU staff would like this wrapped up sooner rather than later and that there is definitely some nervous energy in the WHAC that this hasn't been wrapped up, but things still sound pretty solid for the Buckeyes' chances.
Additionally, in speaking with a couple of different people this week, I am told that contact between Ohio State and Louisville commit Tylin Oden has slipped off recently. Yes, we're in the Dead Period right now, but communication over the phone and messaging is still permitted. When you combine that with a complete lack of new names emerging as quarterback targets and no new offers going out, I think that paints a picture that says Ohio State still feels good here.
Is this a done deal for Ohio State? No, but things still look pretty optimistic here for the Buckeyes.
Corley fallout
Tough loss for Ohio State on the recruiting trail on Saturday as four-star wide receiver Donnie Corley went with long time favorite Michigan State. While the Buckeyes made a strong push down the stretch, the relationships fostered between MSU and the Detroit native were too much to overcome.
I don't feel that all is lost here. Unlike defensive tackle recruiting, where I think it's going to be a mad scramble, wing and a prayer, type of deal, there is still a very realistic possibility for the Buckeyes in Florida star Binjimen Victor. I think you'll see a major effort down the stretch from Urban Meyer on Victor. Zach Smith has really done an excellent job throughout this recruitment and I think the rest of the staff will aid him in making this late push.
In speaking with Victor throughout the week and speaking with people close to Ohio State as well as some of the other programs recruiting him, I continue to feel that the most likely outcome at this point is for Victor to end up in Columbus. Ohio State, to the best of my knowledge, feels solid about where things stand there, or at least as solid as you can feel in January about a South Florida kid who still has some visits to take.
They'll need to hold off late charges from Florida, Tennessee, and WVU, but I have felt probably since June or so, that Victor was the more likely addition to this class over Corley and I did not get any vibes or intel this week that would lead me to believe that Ohio State is in serious trouble in this recruitment.
Beyond Victor, in-state standout Jonah Morris will be visiting this upcoming weekend. If Ohio State offers him, there's little doubt in my mind that he's going to take it and probably cancel his remaining visits (Notre Dame is locked in on the 22nd). But the real question is, will they offer?
Is the receiver situation such that they absolutely can't risk losing out on a guy like Victor and being left with just one true receiver? That's a question that really only the people inside the WHAC can answer, because so much of that depends on the health of the receivers room. There are a few guys in that room with serious injury histories and if one or two of them won't be able to produce moving forward, maybe you do take Morris as insurance and keep chasing Victor to be your third receiver in the class.
Malik Harrison is one you could also look at on offense. I felt he was more natural on offense when I saw him play this fall, but at the same time I have my questions about whether or not he can play wide receiver at the next level. He has the look of a kid that is going to be 235-240-pounds eventually and at that point you might have more of an H-Back/TE prospect than a true wide receiver, and they have three tight end types in this class already.
Roommates?
So earlier this week it was announced that 2017 Ohio State commit Isaiah Pryor would be transferring from Lawrenceville (Ga.) Archer High School to IMG Academy in Florida to help get a head start on his college playing career at the nation's premier prep school for football prospects. He'll be challenged every day by elite prospects and receive training that quite frankly isn't available at most high schools around the nation.
Between this move and his plan to enroll early, Pryor is doing everything he can to arrive in Columbus ready to contribute in any way that he can, but he won't be the only Ohio State commit transferring to IMG.
There is *at least* one more current commit going that route, and he's likely going to room with Pryor while he's down there. He doesn't want it out yet as he wants to make sure he tells all of his high school teammates and coaches first, but I'd look for an announcement on that front as early as tomorrow.
So IMG will once again have a pretty heavy Ohio State presence this year, which is a good thing because there will once again be several targets down there for the Buckeyes, most notably five-star defensive end Josh Kaindoh.
In non-OSU related news, I'm also hearing that one of the nation's elite 2017 prospects (think national top 10 - OSU not in the mix here) will likely be at IMG by the spring as well, but that's another one that will be announced at a later date.
2017 talk
Some positive things happening right now in 2017 for Ohio State so I'm going to talk about a few five-stars in that class that the Buckeyes are after.
Mentioned Josh Kaindoh above, the nation's top defensive end in 2017 and No. 2 overall prospect in the recently updated rankings. Was told this week that Penn State's lead may not be quite as big as people think. Both Florida State and Ohio State have been tossed out to me as programs that have made a move in the right direction in recent months.
There is no doubt that Ohio State is in a position to be picky at defensive end in 2017. It's the strength of the roster right now, the strength of the 2016 recruiting class, and the Buckeyes can put in a lot of time and effort on a very select group of prospects and Kaindoh is absolutely at the top of the wish list. Having multiple Ohio State commits at IMG over the next several months won't hurt things either.
Staying in Florida, things are still very, very good with Trevon Grimes who we have criminally underrated at No. 11 overall in the nation (bet he jumps into the top five next update). Grimes tore up the Under Armour Elite 50 showcase last week and is, for my money, the best wide receiver prospect to emerge from the high school ranks in quite a few years.
When Grimes will make a commitment is anyone's guess, for me it's really a thing of whenever he can next make it up to Ohio State for a visit. But as I said in our recent chat, I wouldn't agonize over that. He's an Indiana native, but he's now well indoctrinated in the ways of South Florida football prospects and I think you guys should be thankful more than anything that he doesn't pull a Judson or Wade and commit out of emotion and then send you all on a roller coaster for the next 12 months as OSU tries to hold on to him.
Trust the process on this one, Ohio State remains in tremendous shape. Besides, you guys love late commitments, you'll take him for granted if he commits too early.
You probably saw last week, but five-star safety Jeff Okudah reiterated that Ohio State is his leader, even after his main recruiter Chris Ash took the Rutgers job. While I do believe that to be the case, I don't think he's blowing smoke, it was definitely a hit to OSU's lead that Ash left and Schiano will need to swoop in here and pick up where Ash left off.
Ultimately, Okudah not being able to make a fall unofficial visit may benefit Ohio State. He plans to visit this winter/spring instead and because of that, will get a chance to spend a lot of time with Schiano if/when that visit takes place. Had he visited during the season as initially planned, all that would have done is continued to forge a relationship with Ash who in turn would have left just weeks after the visit.
I still like Ohio State with Okudah, but understand that this is a kid with 50+ schools offering him and that all think he's the best safety prospect in the class so I don't foresee smooth sailing, they'll have to earn this one.
Finally, Lamont Wade. I teased last week that I felt Wade was "close" to being a slam dunk for Ohio State. I want to elaborate on that a little bit more. I fully expect him to take a bunch of unofficial visits this spring and perhaps into the summer, so I don't see a commitment coming in the immediate future.
I do, however, have Ohio State as a big, big leader right now. I think Penn State has probably done the second best job recruiting him and as I've mentioned in the past, I don't think Pitt is a school to be feared here which is unusual for that area. Ohio State is going to keep showing him the love the next several months, he and his family are going to keep bonding with the rest of the commits and their families and this is one that I'm just very confident in right now. A ton of things working in their favor here.
News and notes
Ohio State offered the Southlake (Texas) Carroll duo of 2016 defensive back Obi Eboh and 2017 defensive back Robert Barnes. Eboh could be one to watch in terms of setting up a visit and I think a lot of that could be dictated by the vibes that the OSU staff gets this coming weekend from Damar Hamlin and Jordan Fuller who will be making their official visits to Columbus. I don't see this one as particularly likely for Ohio State as it would be a tough pull out of Texas regardless and they aren't working with a lot of time here. I also remain optimistic about where things stand with Fuller.
As for Barnes, that one seems highly unlikely to materialize into anything serious. He is an early Oklahoma commit and a legacy.
Moving on....
Still not seeing where the second defensive tackle is going to come from in this class. Again, I give them a puncher's chance with Rashard Lawrence, even had a source familiar with his recruitment reiterate to me in San Antonio this week to not rule OSU out there, but can't in good faith pick OSU there right now.
Chris Daniels is a long shot to flip from Oklahoma. Getting him on campus right before Signing Day is probably the best timing, if you can knock his socks off and sell him on being THE nose tackle in this class and really being one of just a couple true nose tackles on the roster, maybe you can get him to make a late switch with only a few days to think about things post-visit. Right now the smart money is on Daniels sticking with his Oklahoma pledge, however.
Don't see Karamo Dioubate happening. I can perhaps dive a little more into why I feel that way after National Signing Day, but have just had too many people tell me in the past week that they don't think he'll be a real option for the Buckeyes. Could see a visit being setup, but I don't think it goes much past that, if a visit even happens at all.
Finally, 2017 wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones (future five-star?) released his top ten yesterday and Ohio State is on it, as expected. Kerry Coombs has attacked this recruitment as hard as any kid he has ever went after and he's a favorite of the family.
That said, this one is going to be tough. I think the Buckeyes right now are very much in the middle of the pack within that top 10 and it's going to be a big-time national battle. Coombs' resilience is probably his strength as a recruiter so you'd probably like this to go all the way to January of next year if you're Ohio State but I think expectations should be tempered a bit on this particular recruitment.
Rivals100 quarterback Dwayne Haskins might be the single biggest name to watch for Ohio State fans down the stretch based on the type of player he is, the need at the position in this class, and the potential long term recruiting implications that pulling Dwayne out of the DMV could have.
While things have quieted down quite a bit since he made his official visit to Ohio State, I'm still hearing pretty positive things for Ohio State's chances. There is no doubt the OSU staff would like this wrapped up sooner rather than later and that there is definitely some nervous energy in the WHAC that this hasn't been wrapped up, but things still sound pretty solid for the Buckeyes' chances.
Additionally, in speaking with a couple of different people this week, I am told that contact between Ohio State and Louisville commit Tylin Oden has slipped off recently. Yes, we're in the Dead Period right now, but communication over the phone and messaging is still permitted. When you combine that with a complete lack of new names emerging as quarterback targets and no new offers going out, I think that paints a picture that says Ohio State still feels good here.
Is this a done deal for Ohio State? No, but things still look pretty optimistic here for the Buckeyes.
Corley fallout
Tough loss for Ohio State on the recruiting trail on Saturday as four-star wide receiver Donnie Corley went with long time favorite Michigan State. While the Buckeyes made a strong push down the stretch, the relationships fostered between MSU and the Detroit native were too much to overcome.
I don't feel that all is lost here. Unlike defensive tackle recruiting, where I think it's going to be a mad scramble, wing and a prayer, type of deal, there is still a very realistic possibility for the Buckeyes in Florida star Binjimen Victor. I think you'll see a major effort down the stretch from Urban Meyer on Victor. Zach Smith has really done an excellent job throughout this recruitment and I think the rest of the staff will aid him in making this late push.
In speaking with Victor throughout the week and speaking with people close to Ohio State as well as some of the other programs recruiting him, I continue to feel that the most likely outcome at this point is for Victor to end up in Columbus. Ohio State, to the best of my knowledge, feels solid about where things stand there, or at least as solid as you can feel in January about a South Florida kid who still has some visits to take.
They'll need to hold off late charges from Florida, Tennessee, and WVU, but I have felt probably since June or so, that Victor was the more likely addition to this class over Corley and I did not get any vibes or intel this week that would lead me to believe that Ohio State is in serious trouble in this recruitment.
Beyond Victor, in-state standout Jonah Morris will be visiting this upcoming weekend. If Ohio State offers him, there's little doubt in my mind that he's going to take it and probably cancel his remaining visits (Notre Dame is locked in on the 22nd). But the real question is, will they offer?
Is the receiver situation such that they absolutely can't risk losing out on a guy like Victor and being left with just one true receiver? That's a question that really only the people inside the WHAC can answer, because so much of that depends on the health of the receivers room. There are a few guys in that room with serious injury histories and if one or two of them won't be able to produce moving forward, maybe you do take Morris as insurance and keep chasing Victor to be your third receiver in the class.
Malik Harrison is one you could also look at on offense. I felt he was more natural on offense when I saw him play this fall, but at the same time I have my questions about whether or not he can play wide receiver at the next level. He has the look of a kid that is going to be 235-240-pounds eventually and at that point you might have more of an H-Back/TE prospect than a true wide receiver, and they have three tight end types in this class already.
Roommates?
So earlier this week it was announced that 2017 Ohio State commit Isaiah Pryor would be transferring from Lawrenceville (Ga.) Archer High School to IMG Academy in Florida to help get a head start on his college playing career at the nation's premier prep school for football prospects. He'll be challenged every day by elite prospects and receive training that quite frankly isn't available at most high schools around the nation.
Between this move and his plan to enroll early, Pryor is doing everything he can to arrive in Columbus ready to contribute in any way that he can, but he won't be the only Ohio State commit transferring to IMG.
There is *at least* one more current commit going that route, and he's likely going to room with Pryor while he's down there. He doesn't want it out yet as he wants to make sure he tells all of his high school teammates and coaches first, but I'd look for an announcement on that front as early as tomorrow.
So IMG will once again have a pretty heavy Ohio State presence this year, which is a good thing because there will once again be several targets down there for the Buckeyes, most notably five-star defensive end Josh Kaindoh.
In non-OSU related news, I'm also hearing that one of the nation's elite 2017 prospects (think national top 10 - OSU not in the mix here) will likely be at IMG by the spring as well, but that's another one that will be announced at a later date.
2017 talk
Some positive things happening right now in 2017 for Ohio State so I'm going to talk about a few five-stars in that class that the Buckeyes are after.
Mentioned Josh Kaindoh above, the nation's top defensive end in 2017 and No. 2 overall prospect in the recently updated rankings. Was told this week that Penn State's lead may not be quite as big as people think. Both Florida State and Ohio State have been tossed out to me as programs that have made a move in the right direction in recent months.
There is no doubt that Ohio State is in a position to be picky at defensive end in 2017. It's the strength of the roster right now, the strength of the 2016 recruiting class, and the Buckeyes can put in a lot of time and effort on a very select group of prospects and Kaindoh is absolutely at the top of the wish list. Having multiple Ohio State commits at IMG over the next several months won't hurt things either.
Staying in Florida, things are still very, very good with Trevon Grimes who we have criminally underrated at No. 11 overall in the nation (bet he jumps into the top five next update). Grimes tore up the Under Armour Elite 50 showcase last week and is, for my money, the best wide receiver prospect to emerge from the high school ranks in quite a few years.
When Grimes will make a commitment is anyone's guess, for me it's really a thing of whenever he can next make it up to Ohio State for a visit. But as I said in our recent chat, I wouldn't agonize over that. He's an Indiana native, but he's now well indoctrinated in the ways of South Florida football prospects and I think you guys should be thankful more than anything that he doesn't pull a Judson or Wade and commit out of emotion and then send you all on a roller coaster for the next 12 months as OSU tries to hold on to him.
Trust the process on this one, Ohio State remains in tremendous shape. Besides, you guys love late commitments, you'll take him for granted if he commits too early.
You probably saw last week, but five-star safety Jeff Okudah reiterated that Ohio State is his leader, even after his main recruiter Chris Ash took the Rutgers job. While I do believe that to be the case, I don't think he's blowing smoke, it was definitely a hit to OSU's lead that Ash left and Schiano will need to swoop in here and pick up where Ash left off.
Ultimately, Okudah not being able to make a fall unofficial visit may benefit Ohio State. He plans to visit this winter/spring instead and because of that, will get a chance to spend a lot of time with Schiano if/when that visit takes place. Had he visited during the season as initially planned, all that would have done is continued to forge a relationship with Ash who in turn would have left just weeks after the visit.
I still like Ohio State with Okudah, but understand that this is a kid with 50+ schools offering him and that all think he's the best safety prospect in the class so I don't foresee smooth sailing, they'll have to earn this one.
Finally, Lamont Wade. I teased last week that I felt Wade was "close" to being a slam dunk for Ohio State. I want to elaborate on that a little bit more. I fully expect him to take a bunch of unofficial visits this spring and perhaps into the summer, so I don't see a commitment coming in the immediate future.
I do, however, have Ohio State as a big, big leader right now. I think Penn State has probably done the second best job recruiting him and as I've mentioned in the past, I don't think Pitt is a school to be feared here which is unusual for that area. Ohio State is going to keep showing him the love the next several months, he and his family are going to keep bonding with the rest of the commits and their families and this is one that I'm just very confident in right now. A ton of things working in their favor here.
News and notes
Ohio State offered the Southlake (Texas) Carroll duo of 2016 defensive back Obi Eboh and 2017 defensive back Robert Barnes. Eboh could be one to watch in terms of setting up a visit and I think a lot of that could be dictated by the vibes that the OSU staff gets this coming weekend from Damar Hamlin and Jordan Fuller who will be making their official visits to Columbus. I don't see this one as particularly likely for Ohio State as it would be a tough pull out of Texas regardless and they aren't working with a lot of time here. I also remain optimistic about where things stand with Fuller.
As for Barnes, that one seems highly unlikely to materialize into anything serious. He is an early Oklahoma commit and a legacy.
Moving on....
Still not seeing where the second defensive tackle is going to come from in this class. Again, I give them a puncher's chance with Rashard Lawrence, even had a source familiar with his recruitment reiterate to me in San Antonio this week to not rule OSU out there, but can't in good faith pick OSU there right now.
Chris Daniels is a long shot to flip from Oklahoma. Getting him on campus right before Signing Day is probably the best timing, if you can knock his socks off and sell him on being THE nose tackle in this class and really being one of just a couple true nose tackles on the roster, maybe you can get him to make a late switch with only a few days to think about things post-visit. Right now the smart money is on Daniels sticking with his Oklahoma pledge, however.
Don't see Karamo Dioubate happening. I can perhaps dive a little more into why I feel that way after National Signing Day, but have just had too many people tell me in the past week that they don't think he'll be a real option for the Buckeyes. Could see a visit being setup, but I don't think it goes much past that, if a visit even happens at all.
Finally, 2017 wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones (future five-star?) released his top ten yesterday and Ohio State is on it, as expected. Kerry Coombs has attacked this recruitment as hard as any kid he has ever went after and he's a favorite of the family.
That said, this one is going to be tough. I think the Buckeyes right now are very much in the middle of the pack within that top 10 and it's going to be a big-time national battle. Coombs' resilience is probably his strength as a recruiter so you'd probably like this to go all the way to January of next year if you're Ohio State but I think expectations should be tempered a bit on this particular recruitment.
