Munford returns
After initially being ruled ineligible for the entirety of his senior season, Massillon (Ohio) Washington offensive tackle Thayer Munford won his appeal and made his return to the field this weekend.
"It felt great to be back out there," Munford told me via text this weekend.
Munford remains one of a very few class of 2017 Ohio prospects that are at least somewhat realistic options for Ohio State as the Buckeyes are getting pretty close to full in their recruiting class. Ohio State has never dropped off in terms of its communication with Munford.
"Yes sir I've been keeping up with Ohio State ," Munford added.
The thing to watch here will be if an official visit gets setup with Munford and Ohio State, and perhaps more importantly, when that visit would get setup. Several of the remaining targets are trying to enroll early so because of that, Ohio State should have a decent idea of where everything stands numbers wise by the end of the All-Star games the first week of January. If something is setup in January with Munford, that would typically be a good sign. Rarely are in-state prospects brought in on late official visits if there isn't room as we saw play out last year with Malik Harrison, the year before with Da'von Hamilton, and the year before that with Brady Taylor.
In a 25 or 26 man class, or even in a class with more of a need for offensive linemen, I think this would have been done by now, but a lot will depend on how the Buckeyes close at other positions. Last year Ed Warinner was able to fight for his guy in Malcolm Pridgeon, even when it looked like that spot might go to an additional defensive back, and get him into the class at the very last minute. It wouldn't surprise me if Studrawa pounded the table for Munford in the same manner come December/January.
Munford returned to action looking fresh, not rusty, on Friday. You can watch highlights of Munford's first game back below.
D-End Drought?
Ohio State's defensive end depth right now is truly something to behold. The Buckeyes are rolling out four difference makers every Saturday in Sam Hubbard, Tyquan Lewis, Nick Bosa, and Jalyn Holmes, are getting some quality minutes from Rashod Berry, and have three more good ones in the pipeline in Jonathon Cooper, Chase Young, and Darius Slade.
One challenge that the staff is facing right now is finding players of that caliber in the 2018 class. By the time the 2018 class hits the field in Ohio Stadium, Lewis, Hubbard, and Holmes will be gone and Bosa and Cooper will be draft eligible (and Bosa is a slam dunk three-and-done).
Right now it feels like a lot of the eggs are in the Xavier Thomas basket. While Thomas is a big-time prospect, the reason it may feel like it's Thomas or bust isn't that the Buckeyes feel supremely confident in landing him. Ohio State basically went all-in on Chase Young in this class because there was a high confidence level in landing him and it was a calculated risk to do that for a player of Young's caliber.
The Thomas situation isn't quite the same according to those close to the OSU program.
"(The Ohio State coaches) think it could be a down year nationally at the position," one OSU source shared with me recently. "The coaches know Xavier Thomas is a long shot, but they haven't had a lot of guys really 'pop' on film so far."
One player who has, is Harrisburg (Pa.) Central Dauphin product Micah Parsons, but there is a long way to go for the PSU commit from the very heart of PSU territory to be really considered a realistic option for Ohio State at this point. In fact, I'd lean fairly heavily against things coming together there.
So this is one position where things could take a while to come together in 2018. North Carolina product K.J. Henry is one to watch, he'll visit for the Michigan game, but there have been some questions about how well he will hold up against the run. Just not a lot of guys out there right now that have established themselves as no-brainers at this position, which could make for a very interesting April-June as the coaches can hit the road in the spring to evaluate prospects and then see them at camps in June.
The Gorman Five
After initially breaking the Bishop Gorman crew up into two weekends, all of the Big Four in the class of 2017 from the Las Vegas powerhouse will be on campus together the weekend of the Nebraska game.
Tate Martell, Tyjon Lindsey, Haskell Garrett, and the uncommitted Bubba Bolden will all be on campus the first weekend in November. Initially it was setup for Martell and Garrett to visit for the Northwestern game the weekend before.
Everything continues to move in the right direction as far as Bolden and Ohio State are concerned. It is looking more and more likely that there will be room for another safety prospect in this class and Bolden has certainly done all he can on the field this fall to put himself in a position to be that guy.
The interesting thing about Bolden's visit that weekend is that it is the only official visit he has scheduled right now. Now Bubba isn't planning to enroll early from everything that I have been told so it's not too far out of the ordinary for a prospect who doesn't have to decide in February to not start his OV schedule until November. But still, it is at least somewhat telling that Ohio State was prioritized while setting up visits elsewhere hasn't been at the forefront of his mind.
Ohio State definitely has a chance to ride the momentum it has here and a push on the visit could wrap things up.
As for the small change of plans to have all of the Gorman guys come in on the same weekend, while the Northwestern game should have it's share of visitors, the Nebraska game will be the second biggest weekend of the season, so having the entire group together for that weekend makes a lot of sense strategically.
And as a bonus, big-time class of 2018 linebacker Palaeie Gaoteote is expected to join his teammates in Columbus that weekend as an unofficial visitor, so the small change shouldn't impact his ability to get a look at Columbus. The sooner Ohio State can get him on campus, especially around his committed teammates, the better as the Buckeyes have a lot of early momentum for a prospect who just might be the nation's top junior linebacker.
All falling into place for Browning?
I have had Ohio State as the team to beat for the nation's top linebacker, Baron Browning, since May, but have always cautioned that this was going to be a very heated battle with a lot of moving parts.
But as the season is unfolding, a lot of things are happening right now that are helping Ohio State, namely UCLA and Texas' struggles on the field. The Longhorns are just 3-3 on the season with a few more potential losses left on the schedule. Meanwhile the Bruins have been an even bigger disappointment, sitting at 3-4 and just 1-3 in league play after being billed as a potential Pac-12 favorite in the pre-season. While I can't speak for Jim Mora Jr.'s job stability, the drum beats sure seem to be getting louder in Austin.
The Jeff Okudah factor and relationship there was always going to be a very helpful component for Ohio State in trying to land Browning, but with two of the big four contenders facing serious uncertainty, the Buckeyes have been a big beneficiary of that according to one source close to Browning's recruitment.
"UCLA has fallen off (from where it was a few months ago) with Baron," they shared. "They aren't out, but they aren't the threat (to Ohio State) that they were. And Texas just hasn't shown him any hope for stability. Even if Charlie survives the season, there isn't the (confidence) there that he will be there the next four years. He liked his Michigan visit, but I think he goes to Ohio State."
Michigan has greatly improved its position with Browning in recent months, but not to the point where I think it will overcome Ohio State here. With Okudah and Browning making that joint visit together just a couple of days before his scheduled announcement, it is looking very good for the Buckeyes right now.
After initially being ruled ineligible for the entirety of his senior season, Massillon (Ohio) Washington offensive tackle Thayer Munford won his appeal and made his return to the field this weekend.
"It felt great to be back out there," Munford told me via text this weekend.
Munford remains one of a very few class of 2017 Ohio prospects that are at least somewhat realistic options for Ohio State as the Buckeyes are getting pretty close to full in their recruiting class. Ohio State has never dropped off in terms of its communication with Munford.
"Yes sir I've been keeping up with Ohio State ," Munford added.
The thing to watch here will be if an official visit gets setup with Munford and Ohio State, and perhaps more importantly, when that visit would get setup. Several of the remaining targets are trying to enroll early so because of that, Ohio State should have a decent idea of where everything stands numbers wise by the end of the All-Star games the first week of January. If something is setup in January with Munford, that would typically be a good sign. Rarely are in-state prospects brought in on late official visits if there isn't room as we saw play out last year with Malik Harrison, the year before with Da'von Hamilton, and the year before that with Brady Taylor.
In a 25 or 26 man class, or even in a class with more of a need for offensive linemen, I think this would have been done by now, but a lot will depend on how the Buckeyes close at other positions. Last year Ed Warinner was able to fight for his guy in Malcolm Pridgeon, even when it looked like that spot might go to an additional defensive back, and get him into the class at the very last minute. It wouldn't surprise me if Studrawa pounded the table for Munford in the same manner come December/January.
Munford returned to action looking fresh, not rusty, on Friday. You can watch highlights of Munford's first game back below.
D-End Drought?
Ohio State's defensive end depth right now is truly something to behold. The Buckeyes are rolling out four difference makers every Saturday in Sam Hubbard, Tyquan Lewis, Nick Bosa, and Jalyn Holmes, are getting some quality minutes from Rashod Berry, and have three more good ones in the pipeline in Jonathon Cooper, Chase Young, and Darius Slade.
One challenge that the staff is facing right now is finding players of that caliber in the 2018 class. By the time the 2018 class hits the field in Ohio Stadium, Lewis, Hubbard, and Holmes will be gone and Bosa and Cooper will be draft eligible (and Bosa is a slam dunk three-and-done).
Right now it feels like a lot of the eggs are in the Xavier Thomas basket. While Thomas is a big-time prospect, the reason it may feel like it's Thomas or bust isn't that the Buckeyes feel supremely confident in landing him. Ohio State basically went all-in on Chase Young in this class because there was a high confidence level in landing him and it was a calculated risk to do that for a player of Young's caliber.
The Thomas situation isn't quite the same according to those close to the OSU program.
"(The Ohio State coaches) think it could be a down year nationally at the position," one OSU source shared with me recently. "The coaches know Xavier Thomas is a long shot, but they haven't had a lot of guys really 'pop' on film so far."
One player who has, is Harrisburg (Pa.) Central Dauphin product Micah Parsons, but there is a long way to go for the PSU commit from the very heart of PSU territory to be really considered a realistic option for Ohio State at this point. In fact, I'd lean fairly heavily against things coming together there.
So this is one position where things could take a while to come together in 2018. North Carolina product K.J. Henry is one to watch, he'll visit for the Michigan game, but there have been some questions about how well he will hold up against the run. Just not a lot of guys out there right now that have established themselves as no-brainers at this position, which could make for a very interesting April-June as the coaches can hit the road in the spring to evaluate prospects and then see them at camps in June.
The Gorman Five
After initially breaking the Bishop Gorman crew up into two weekends, all of the Big Four in the class of 2017 from the Las Vegas powerhouse will be on campus together the weekend of the Nebraska game.
Tate Martell, Tyjon Lindsey, Haskell Garrett, and the uncommitted Bubba Bolden will all be on campus the first weekend in November. Initially it was setup for Martell and Garrett to visit for the Northwestern game the weekend before.
Everything continues to move in the right direction as far as Bolden and Ohio State are concerned. It is looking more and more likely that there will be room for another safety prospect in this class and Bolden has certainly done all he can on the field this fall to put himself in a position to be that guy.
The interesting thing about Bolden's visit that weekend is that it is the only official visit he has scheduled right now. Now Bubba isn't planning to enroll early from everything that I have been told so it's not too far out of the ordinary for a prospect who doesn't have to decide in February to not start his OV schedule until November. But still, it is at least somewhat telling that Ohio State was prioritized while setting up visits elsewhere hasn't been at the forefront of his mind.
Ohio State definitely has a chance to ride the momentum it has here and a push on the visit could wrap things up.
As for the small change of plans to have all of the Gorman guys come in on the same weekend, while the Northwestern game should have it's share of visitors, the Nebraska game will be the second biggest weekend of the season, so having the entire group together for that weekend makes a lot of sense strategically.
And as a bonus, big-time class of 2018 linebacker Palaeie Gaoteote is expected to join his teammates in Columbus that weekend as an unofficial visitor, so the small change shouldn't impact his ability to get a look at Columbus. The sooner Ohio State can get him on campus, especially around his committed teammates, the better as the Buckeyes have a lot of early momentum for a prospect who just might be the nation's top junior linebacker.
All falling into place for Browning?
I have had Ohio State as the team to beat for the nation's top linebacker, Baron Browning, since May, but have always cautioned that this was going to be a very heated battle with a lot of moving parts.
But as the season is unfolding, a lot of things are happening right now that are helping Ohio State, namely UCLA and Texas' struggles on the field. The Longhorns are just 3-3 on the season with a few more potential losses left on the schedule. Meanwhile the Bruins have been an even bigger disappointment, sitting at 3-4 and just 1-3 in league play after being billed as a potential Pac-12 favorite in the pre-season. While I can't speak for Jim Mora Jr.'s job stability, the drum beats sure seem to be getting louder in Austin.
The Jeff Okudah factor and relationship there was always going to be a very helpful component for Ohio State in trying to land Browning, but with two of the big four contenders facing serious uncertainty, the Buckeyes have been a big beneficiary of that according to one source close to Browning's recruitment.
"UCLA has fallen off (from where it was a few months ago) with Baron," they shared. "They aren't out, but they aren't the threat (to Ohio State) that they were. And Texas just hasn't shown him any hope for stability. Even if Charlie survives the season, there isn't the (confidence) there that he will be there the next four years. He liked his Michigan visit, but I think he goes to Ohio State."
Michigan has greatly improved its position with Browning in recent months, but not to the point where I think it will overcome Ohio State here. With Okudah and Browning making that joint visit together just a couple of days before his scheduled announcement, it is looking very good for the Buckeyes right now.
