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Return of the group chat
A big thing in the 2018 class, at least for the public, was the famous (infamous?) group chat among the Ohio State commits and other recruiting targets. A group text where the kids would talk and get to know each other and where the Ohio State guys would make sure to get in a little recruiting pitch for the Buckeyes at every possible turn.
The actual impact on the recruiting class is certainly up for debate as guys who were very vocal like Jaiden Woodbey and Emory Jones ultimately ended up leaving the class leading up to Signing Day. I've often stated that people put a little bit too much stock into one prospect's decision impacting another's decision, but there is no question that more dialogue and communication between commits and recruits who are considering the same school(s) is better than less dialogue and communication.
There really hasn't been a group chat type of deal in the 2019 class, but that has already changed in 2020 in a big way. The first four commits; Jake Wray, Lejond Cavazos, Jack Miller, and Paris Johnson are doing quite an amount of recruiting right now and there are some very big fish in the pond.
As you guys know I have been very bullish about Ohio State's 2020 recruiting outlook and there could be a perfect storm brewing here with 2020 being loaded nationally, Ohio State being a top choice for many of the top 100 type guys, and the Buckeyes getting a nice early start to the class with the above four excellent players (along with Luke Wypler who will probably be a bit less vocal), all from different parts of the country, who will also be very vocal in recruiting other guys to join them.
The group effort is being noticed by high level prospects all over the country. Rivals100 wide receiver Rakim Jarrett was recently offered and featured on the site. The Washington (DC) St. John's College standout put things about as well as I think they can be articulated in regards to what this whole group chat thing means.
"We might not all go to Ohio State, but it's like a brotherhood," Jarrett explained. "You see all the commits talking to each other, talking to me about coming up there. It's just a cool feel with those guys, guys like Lejond and Paris and what they have to say about Ohio State. The whole vibe they give off is definitely chill and that's something to look at, it definitely appeals to me."
Jarrett will visit Ohio State next week when the recruiting calendar emerges from the Dead Period (more on that later).
There are some BIG names out there that are involved in this chat and are being worked on by the commits. Here are just a few:
Not over yet?
Recently a pair of wide receiver targets committed to other programs and I'm not convinced that either one of those situations is dead in the water, in fact I think one of them is just beginning. But let's get to the first one which was Rivals100 product Lance Wilhoite committing to Oregon.
Wilhoite is a guy that I know Ohio State really, really likes, but maybe not as much as Marcus Washington or Jameson Williams. Wilhoite camped with the Buckeyes in June and entered that day on the outside looking in but definitely improved his value in the eyes of the staff from everything I was told coming out of that week.
Despite Wilhoite's pledge to Oregon, I think Ohio State will keep kicking the tires there. In fact, the Buckeyes tried to get Wilhoite to delay and give them a chance to try and figure things out.
"Urban Meyer called Lance the night before he announced for Oregon," one source told me. "(Meyer) wanted Lance to give them more time and to wait on making a decision. If there is one school that could pry him away from Oregon, it's probably Ohio State. I think he'll listen to Ohio State and I think a push from Ohio State could sway him."
So that will be something to keep an eye on as we move into the fall, especially as we find out the verdicts on guys like Washington, Williams, and Higgins and as we see how things continue to evolve with David Bell and even West Coast long shot Kyle Ford who the Buckeyes are now recruiting pretty hard as well.
The second receiver target that committed, and I think it's much softer than Wilhoite's pledge to Oregon, is Florida star John Dunmore. I half jokingly said whoever Dunmore committed to this month, you could probably eliminate them from contention but there's probably more truth to that than not.
This isn't just my read on it. Hell it isn't even just the fact that John told me he was going to be committing somewhere soon about a week before he announced but that he was still taking his last two official visits (likely to FSU and Ohio State). It's more so the fact that nobody, and I mean nobody, that is objective about this situation is taking that Penn State pledge seriously. Nobody thinks this is over, or even close to being over. From other people in the recruiting industry, to college coaches, to every source that I've spoken with on the ground in South Florida.
Now that certainly doesn't mean Ohio State is getting Dunmore. I'd bet against it. I've always given them a puncher's chance but at the same time always felt he would be a tough pull and would probably stay in the South. I think Florida State being the childhood dream school, being closer than most of the other contenders, and still being able to host John for an official visit stands in a decent spot. Auburn came close to getting this latest commitment, but dodged that bullet by finishing either 2nd or 3rd this time around depending on who you ask.
But Ohio State will keep talking to Dunmore and John will keep listening so we'll just see where things are at in like October when he starts talking about making an official visit
Recruiting momentum carrying over to August?
August could be yet another big month for Ohio State on the recruiting trail. Four-star wide receiver Marcus Washington doubled down on his August 7th announcement date, three-star Texas athlete Peyton Powell recently set an August 13th decision date, and five-star defensive end Zach Harrison is still tentatively scheduled to announce on August 14 which I believe he will hold to if he doesn't announce earlier.
I've had Marcus Washington as a Buckeye for a while and though Missouri is making a hard charge, I don't see the Buckeyes losing out on that one. In fact I think him holding to that August 7th date is good news for Ohio State. As I've said before, I think the Buckeyes very much want a little bit of clarity at wide receiver before the football season kicks off, and that means getting 1 or 2 of these guys officially in the fold.
All signs right now are positive for Ohio State with Powell who is extremely quiet. There was some concern that the Buckeyes might be burning that official visit too early, but they nailed the visit and now he's going to announce before the season starts. Ohio State would be my pick today for Powell.
Ohio State also remains my pick for Harrison with Michigan trying to shake this one up and definitely being the biggest threat. I continue to believe that Penn State has stumbled to a distant third over the past two months or so.
Big trio of visitors from St. John's College
There will be a week long window here starting next week where Ohio State can host both unofficial visitors as well as official visitors. Not sure how many, if any, official visitors we'll actually see make it to campus, but we will see several unofficial visitors including some huge names in the 2020 class.
Headlining the week, in my opinion will be the 2020 group of St. John's College in Washington DC. That group will include the big-time trio of four-star defensive tackle Tre Williams, Rivals100 wide receiver Rakim Jarrett, and five-star outside linebacker/defensive end Mekhail Sherman.
All three of these visits are big in their own way.
Jarrett may be the closest to wanting into the class, but he's also the guy they know the least about and was just recently offered. So I don't know how quickly this one can move, though I believe Jarrett would prefer it to move pretty quickly. This will be a two-way interview of sorts and just about anything is possible here but we'll know more about how ready Ohio State would be to move on Rakim after the visit.
With Williams, there is already a pretty established relationship there. Larry Johnson has been recruiting him for about a year and so there has been a decent amount of dialogue between Williams and Ohio State. I could certainly see Ohio State winning this battle with Penn State probably being the biggest threat right now. This is a fairly traditional east coast recruitment with schools like Penn State and Virginia Tech being pretty heavily involved.
Sherman is the big one though in my opinion. This is a special prospect. A Micah Parsons type of talent but perhaps without some of the baggage. And though Sherman has been talking to Ohio State for several months and really likes Ohio State from a distance, this will be one of the big national battles in this cycle and it will be his first time in Columbus. The Buckeyes can cement themselves as a serious player here, they certainly look like they will be up to this point, but visits and first impressions are very important.
Everyone in the country wants Sherman. Alabama, Georgia, Penn State, Clemson, Notre Dame, Florida State. He can pick his school and he's going to be a top of the board guy for almost everyone. It's imperative the Buckeyes make a good impression on this visit as he already has really positive feelings about the program heading into it.
"I would like to see the football aspect of Ohio State," Sherman told me this week. "But I hope the academic portion (is emphasized) on the visit."
In talking to Mekhail over the past six months or so, he strikes me as a kid that will gravitate toward the Real Life Wednesday's program. There is a lot of opportunity here for Ohio State on this visit.
