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Joseph Hastings' Report
Trio of 2023 Rivals100 prospects to visit Ohio State this month
The Buckeyes are expected to welcome even more prospects back on campus shortly after the dead period concludes on July 25.
Confirmed to be making their way up to Columbus later this month are some of Ohio State’s top targets in the 2023 class: Derrick LeBlanc, Payton Kirkland and Richard Young. The trio of Rivals100 players from Florida will be in town from July 27th through July 29th.
This is excellent news for Ohio State.
Starting with Young, this will mark his second time checking out the school in as many months. If you recall, the top-ranked running back on Rivals.com journeyed up to tOSU for a three-day visit back in June.
Young previously went on record with another outlet saying that the Buckeyes are his leader, and him taking another multi-day trip to the campus shows just how much interest he has in them. We said all the way back in a Skull Session in early May that we view Ohio State being a top-two contender throughout the course of his recruitment, so this one is going just as well as Tony Alford and Co. could have hoped for.
I think it’s worth noting that Clemson recently offered the Lehigh Acres (Florida) recruit in late June, and SEC programs like Alabama and Georgia are continuing to catch his attention. I believe the Buckeyes would be the pick if he decided today, but there’s still a long way to go in this one.
Switching over to LeBlanc, Ohio State would almost assuredly be his choice if he announced his commitment today. I say this as the top-40 overall incoming junior told me this afternoon that they are currently his leader.
It’s no surprise to hear the Buckeyes sit atop his leaderboard.
After all, LeBlanc ventured up to Columbus not once, but twice in June. His first trip saw him staying in town from Friday, June 4, through Monday, June 7. This was a regular unofficial visit, but that return to Ohio State was so he could attend their camp on June 22 and work with Larry Johnson in person.
LeBlanc had the following to say to media members following his camp session a month ago.
“Almost everything,” LeBlanc previously said when asked what he likes about the Buckeyes. “The coaches, the people, the players… you always get the truth from the players. The way they tell me I’ll be most developed here and I’ll be a better person here, it really made me open my eyes about it.”
I have not heard if a decision could be around the corner, but would I be shocked if he pulls the trigger following this month’s visit to Ohio State? Absolutely not.
The combination of three visits to the school this summer and him labeling the Buckeyes his leader, as well as everything he has said about Johnson and the program in general, makes me believe there is a chance LeBlanc could possibly be the first commit in their 2023 class.
Stay tuned later as Carson has a note on LeBlanc as well.
Last but not least, we arrive at Kirkland. The Orlando-based offensive lineman was supposed to be in town for a three-day trip last month, but that visit never materialized.
Even though he’s in Florida now, Kirkland is originally from Chicago (Illinois). As such, his mom’s side of the family supported the Buckeyes growing up, so relocating to the Midwest and playing for the team his family roots for is something that has weighed on Kirkland’s mind.
Kirkland has previously told us that he’s going to remain open in his recruitment and consider all of his options. He’s not someone I’m expecting to be on commit watch anytime soon, but getting Kirkland in town for three days is a positive sign for Ohio State.
What I’m hearing about a 2022 Rivals250 DE
Our Adam Gorney mentioned D.J. Wesolak on The Horseshoe Lounge earlier this week, so I thought I would address what I’ve heard about him thus far. More specifically, Gorney stated that Ohio State would be the favorite for Wesolak if they offered him.
From what I’ve heard, this would be the case if the green light is given.
I’m told that Larry Johnson, who follows him on Twitter, had been in touch with Wesolak last year, and they even had a Zoom meeting set up at one point. Whether it was due to the pandemic or other priorities arising, however, communication dropped off between the two sides.
I heard that Ohio State is Wesolak’s dream school, and a visit to Columbus would be planned as soon as possible if they jumped into the mix. Not only that, but I heard a commitment could come as early as this September if Wesolak receives an offer from the Buckeyes.
Wesolak, a 6-foot-6, 235-pound prospect, is the No. 20 weakside defensive end on Rivals.com in the 2022 class. He holds offers from the likes of Clemson, Florida, Oklahoma, Texas, USC and over 40 other schools.
From what I’ve gathered, the reason Ohio State likely hasn’t offered is that they’re focused on a top four of Caden Curry, Gabe Dindy, Omari Abor and Shemar Stewart. Enai White, Kenyatta Jackson and Marvin Jones Jr. also remain on their radar.
If some of these options don’t pan out and head elsewhere, however, then keep an eye on Wesolak.
Feeling good about Ohio State's pursuit of a four-star CB target
While I’m not ready to submit a FutureCast just yet as I’m still waiting to hear back from a couple of sources, I believe Ohio State could very much end up with a commitment from Kayin Lee in the near future.
Lee, who reeled in an offer from the Buckeyes only a month and a half ago, included the Buckeyes in his top 10 back on Friday. That’s not the important news with him; what caught my attention is that Lee told me he is shooting for a commitment date that would be prior to his junior season beginning on Aug. 27.
If he does, look out for Ohio State.
Lee already went on record earlier this month saying that the Buckeyes and in-state Georgia Bulldogs are the two programs sticking out to him the most. We spoke this weekend, with the 2023 target telling me that Ohio State is “Best in America” (something he told our Georgia site as well) and that he could be the next in a long line of talented cornerbacks that went from the school to the NFL.
Also, former Buckeye Jeff Okudah is one of the players he tries to model his game after.
I’ve heard that the Buckeyes are doing a good job in their pursuit of Lee, and another visit could put themselves over the top later this month. The Georgia-based defensive back is looking to check out Columbus after the dead period ends which, like with LeBlanc, I believe could be a visit that puts Ohio State over the top in his recruitment.
With prospects like LeBlanc and Lee feeling the Buckeyes, I’m starting to become convinced that their first 2023 commit could come from out of state.
Carson MacRae’s Report
Updates on a couple of 2023 target
It’s been another fairly quiet week in terms of recruiting news for the Buckeyes. I do have a few tidbits on some 2023 targets for this week, though.
The first guy that I’ve got some info on is Derrick LeBlanc out of Kissimmee (Florida). LeBlanc is considered to be a target who could rise dramatically this upcoming season for the Rivals.com rankings.
LeBlanc is currently the No.38 prospect in the country, and I could see him moving up to be a top-20 player by the time this class rounds out.
As of late the Buckeyes have been building some major ground on the highly regarded defensive end. In last week’s Recruiting Roundtable, we brought up the question who we thought could be among the early players to join the 2023 class and I did not have Leblanc in those predictions.
As of right now, though, I have knowledge that the Buckeyes are leading here and some of the programs who have been thought to be in a good spot like Tennessee, Alabama and Auburn are losing confidence in this recruitment.
I’m not saying this one is close to being over, but I definitely can now see Leblanc being among one of this first to join the 2023 Buckeyes class.
Another piece of info I picked up on LeBlanc was that his father seems to be probably the biggest advocate of his son being a Buckeye. As a parent who values guidance and coaching, he’s put major stock into defensive line coach Larry Johnson. I’m sure this comes as no surprise to anyone, but this is just another great example of Johnson’s name and production being a major part of this recruitment.
With Malachi Nelson and Treyaun Webb committed to the Sooners, another interesting recruitment in 2023 which has Oklahoma also heavily involved is Rivals.com’s top-ranked receiver Brandon Inniss.
Inniss was one of the players who Ohio State has been thought to be going all in on for the 2023 class. The American Heritage Plantation product has been pretty good at keeping his guard up as a top ranked recruit.
No one seems to have a good gauge on who is leading here, but I spoke to a source from Oklahoma who believes that the Sooners are leading right now. This is what I thought to be the case as well from what I’ve been gathering.
However, I spoke to a source close to Inniss who believes that Ohio State is leading here because of his relationship with Brian Hartline. Furthermore, the source informed me that he has thought Ohio State has been the leader all along, but Oklahoma built some serious ground following the visit.
He also mentioned that Inniss’ best connections throughout the country with players is with Treyaun Webb and Malachi Nelson, who are both Oklahoma bound.
Now I’m not sure who is the true leader is as I don’t think Inniss knows even himself, but I do not like the way it’s trending at this time and with the commitment coming from Nelson tomorrow, it’s only going to make things harder for the Buckeyes.
