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Joseph Hastings' Report
2022 Rivals250 TE target will commit on Wednesday
The wait is over to see who will come out victorious in the Benji Gosnell Sweepstakes. Earlier today, the fifth-ranked tight end in next year’s class revealed that he’ll be announcing his commitment on Wednesday at 8:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time.
He did not reveal which schools are his finalists, but most are assuming that this one will come down to Florida, North Carolina and Ohio State.
It’s been an up-and-down road for Gosnell to get to this point. I heard from a source that he was going to commit to the Buckeyes in mid-September, leading me to submit a FutureCast prediction in OSU’s favor back in late August.
He ultimately decided not to commit, and Florida began to trend heavily in his recruitment. In fact, Gosnell told GatorsTerritory’s Corey Bender two weeks ago that if he was to commit that day, it would be to UF.
So, when Gosnell made his announcement today, Kevin Noon and I switched our picks to Florida. After speaking with multiple sources, however, we’re hearing that Ohio State has gotten back into the thick of things and is expected to receive a commitment from him this upcoming week.
I apologize for this confusion as I don’t usually flip-flop my picks like this, but we wanted to get this right. Based off of what we are hearing as of today, the Buckeyes are expected to come out on top on Wednesday and add Gosnell to their 2022 class.
Gosnell and fellow junior tight end Bennett Christian would complement each other well at the next level. Christian is more of a blocker while Gosnell can make opposing linebackers and cornerbacks pay with his receiving ability.
This would be a huge commitment in a month that could potentially mark an epic run for the Buckeyes. They are currently trending for five-stars Domani Jackson and Quinn Ewers, as well as Caleb Burton and Xavier Nwankpa.
Speaking of Ohio State’s 2022 class…
I just listed nearly a handful of prospects that Ohio State is trending for, all of whom would be big-time additions for the program. I have submitted FutureCast predictions for each of these recruits, and the general belief is that the staff will receive more than one pledge in the coming weeks.
The one I am a little hesitant about is Jackson. He has been making social media posts tagging Will Johnson, a five-star prospect out of Michigan. Johnson is a priority target for Kerry Coombs and company, but we know the Wolverines are highly involved here as well. Jackson grew up with Michigan as his dream school, so that’s worth noting as they may be looking to play together in college.
Jackson also put the Ohio State Instagram handle in his profile’s bio section, which could be some trolling on his part. The No. 2 overall junior in the nation still has that in his bio, but when asked if he is committed to the Buckeyes, he told me he is not.
Jackson is more of the wild card here, but I still have Ohio State as my pick to land him.
Another name that I am hearing is five-star Shawn Murphy, who is the second-ranked outside linebacker in his class. His name popped up on my radar a few days ago, and I heard from a source today that he could be close to committing to the Buckeyes.
These are a lot of elite prospects linked to Ohio State, so it could be a November to remember for the program. Assuming each of these players commits to the Buckeyes, then the staff would hold pledges from seven of the top-30 juniors in the nation.
That would be nearly unprecedented.
We’ll continue to provide coverage and have updates if we hear anything new.
My trip to the Peach State
From Thursday to Saturday, I spent some time in Georgia talking to prospects committed to Ohio State or targets that are on their radar. In those 48 hours, I spoke with priority running back target Damari Alston, Rivals100 recruits Addison Nichols and Mykel Williams, recent TE offer Oscar Delp and future Buckeyes Bennett Christian and Jordan Hancock.
I will briefly summarize each conversation, and I am going to link my interviews with each prospect as well as share my thoughts on where Ohio State stands with them in their recruitments.
Alston: Alston has made it clear to me in the past that he wants to go to a school where he can get early playing time. That’s not necessarily a guarantee at Ohio State with Evan Pryor and TreVeyon Henderson arriving in this class, but that doesn’t appear to be an issue with Alston.
The 12th-ranked RB on Rivals told me that he would welcome this competition as he believes iron sharpens iron.
This was something notable I took away from our conversation, but the main takeaway was what Alston had to say about Tony Alford. Alston said he speaks with Alford almost every chance he gets, and that he is the coach he has the closest relationship with at this juncture. He also noted the running backs coach is well-liked by his family, and that Alford makes it a point to reach out to his parents.
My sense here is that Florida and Georgia Tech are key contenders, along with others, but I would go as far as to say that Ohio State would be in his top three if he was to release one today. A visit will be crucial, and Alston not being close to a decision should allow him to visit Columbus before he commits.
Christian: I unfortunately caught the very end of his practice, so I did not get to see enough for a full evaluation of Christian's skill set. From what I saw, however, I can definitely tell he’s used a lot as an extra offensive lineman in their run sets. He’s getting a lot of development with his blocking, and that will pay dividends when he arrives in Columbus. Christian can slip past defenders and catch passes as well, but his bread and butter will be assisting along the o-line.
During our interview, Christian said to expect multiple commitments in the coming weeks. He would not give out any names or when these decisions will transpire, but could not hold back his excitement when describing what’s in store for the Buckeyes.
As for his pledge, the three-star tight end is all in with Ohio State. He talks with the coaches every day, and has joined CJ Hicks and Dasan McCullough as the leaders of their 2022 class. Christian even mentioned the possibility of a Buckeye Bash for juniors this January, which could be another big commit-organized event we’ll be covering.
Delp: I will keep this section short given the recent developments with Gosnell.
When I spoke with the product out of West Forsyth, the feeling at that time was that Gosnell was trending toward Florida and Ohio State still was in the mix for a receiving threat at tight end. Delp has been in consistent contact with the Buckeyes since being offered on Oct. 10, and even got a text from Ryan Day 30 minutes before our conversation began.
If Gosnell commits to Ohio State on Wednesday, however, then I am interested in seeing what happens with Delp. It honestly would not surprise me if they keep pursuing him. Seeing Delp in person and on tape, I could envision him suiting up at wide receiver at the next level.
I’ll be following up with Delp in a few weeks to see if contact has continued with the Buckeyes – assuming Gosnell commits to Ohio State – so this one is somewhat in the air.
Hancock: Hancock definitely had his struggles on Friday night against Collins Hill.
He was matched up primarily with borderline five-star junior Travis Hunter, who had one drive where he caught two passes for over 80 yards on Hancock. That second reception led to a touchdown as Hancock missed a tackle on him near the line of scrimmage.
The Rivals250 DB also allowed Hunter to catch another touchdown on him later in the game, and committed two costly defensive pass interference penalties in the red zone that led to a touchdown for Collins Hill.
While he did struggle, Hancock did record a pass deflection and had a really nice interception early in this matchup. He broke off of Hunter and demonstrated great closing speed to jump up, snatch the football and come down with the pick. This was impressive as he had to run 15-20 yards to get there and read the quarterback’s eyes well to anticipate where the ball was going. You can watch that play HERE.
I’m definitely giving Hancock a slight pass with this being his second game of the season and the tough competition he was going up against.
As for our interview after, Hancock told me that he speaks with Ohio State’s coaches every single day. The former Clemson commit told me that he is “1,000 percent” committed to the Buckeyes, and that there is no flipping him.
Hancock labeled Derrick Davis and J.T. Tuimoloau as the primary targets the Buckeyes are going after, but did talk about Rivals100 teammate Barrett Carter as well. He said Carter is all in with Clemson, but said “we’ll see in the end,” referring to where he’ll sign.
Hancock is one of five defensive backs committed to Ohio State, which probably has a top-three, if not the No. 1, DB class in the 2021 cycle.
Nichols: Ohio State currently resides in Nichols’ top 12, but I don’t believe they are a shoo-in for his top five that he’s going to be releasing in December.
Nichols is favoring a lot of schools in the Southeast, specifically ones that are in the SEC. The Buckeyes have been in heavy contact with him, and are certainly piquing his interest with their development of o-linemen. The key here will be if Nichols can get on campus before he drops those finalists, with that visit most likely having to be a self-guided tour.
I’m not saying it’s not going to happen, but it will be a close call as to whether or not Nichols includes the program in his top five.
If not, there are still plenty of other options at tackle for Ohio State in the 2022 class. Even though Blake Miller just committed to Clemson, they remain in the mix for five-stars Julian Armella, Kam Dewberry and Zach Rice, as well as out-of-state targets Aliou Bah and Kiyaunta Goodwin.
Williams: I have not posted my video interview with Williams just yet, but I did spend a good 30-40 minutes with him on Saturday.
I watched him at a local football field going through individual drills as he was working out on his own. This is a massive kid as we have him listed at 6-foot-5, 258 pounds, and moves very well for his size. I was especially impressed with his footwork in the ladder drills, though he told me that his strength is the top attribute in his arsenal.
When asked about Ohio State, Williams says he speaks with the coaching staff every couple of days. The primary staff members he chops it up with the most are Day, Larry Johnson and Nick Sebastian. The No. 51 overall junior in the country also says Johnson is using his reputation of developing defensive ends in his recruiting pitch to him.
Williams intends on releasing a top 10 in January, and I’m expecting Ohio State to make the cut. The in-state Georgia Bulldogs will be tough to beat here, but I think the Buckeyes are in a good spot right now.
Commits in action:
By Andy Anders and Joseph Hastings
Playoffs:
CJ Hicks: 20-3 (W). Stats: Along with dominating defensively, Hicks caught a 72-yard touchdown pass.
Jayden Ballard: 45-36 (W). Stats: N/A
Jaylen Johnson: 55-30 (W). Stats: N/A
Jyaire Brown and Tegra Tshabola: 7-10 (L). Stats: N/A
Michael Hall: 6-24 (L). Stats: One solo tackle.
Reid Carrico: 21-14 (W). Stats: 25 carries for 106 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
Zen Michalski: 28-35 (L). Stats: N/A
Regular Season:
Andre Turrentine: 0-10 (L). Stats: Caught four passes for 21 yards.
Ben Christman: 17-19 (L). Stats: N/A
Bennett Christian: 20-10 (W). Stats: N/A
Donovan Jackson: Game was canceled.
Dasan McCullough: 47-13 (W). Stats: Had an interception on the night.
Denzel Burke: 13-7 (L). Burke is unfortunately out for the season due to a shoulder injury.
Jakailin Johnson: 55-0 (W). Stats: N/A
Jantzen Dunn: N/A (Bye)
Jordan Hancock: 21-42 (L). Stats: Pass deflection and an interception in his second game of the season.
Kyle McCord and Marvin Harrison Jr.: 52-6 (W) Stats: McCord tossed for 234 yards and accounted for five total touchdowns, while Harrison had two receptions for 65 yards and a TD.
Sam Hart: 35-14 (W). Stats: Seven catches for 82 yards and his first offensive touchdown of the season.
