Stall tactics
We spent about 30 minutes today at Bartram Trail High School outside of Jacksonville (Fla.) home of 2018 quarterback Joey Gatewood who is already creating quite a buzz. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound prospect already holds about 20 offers from many of the nation's top programs, an almost unheard of feat for a quarterback prospect heading into his sophomore season.
We talked to a source close to Gatewood today that told me that going into the season Joey sat down and listed four teams that he really wanted to get an offer from. They were Auburn, Florida State, LSU, and Ohio State.
Gatewood liked Florida a bit growing up when Urban Meyer was there but sort of shifted his focus towards Auburn during the Cam Newton era. Gatewood tries to pattern his game after Newton and that has helped Auburn become a player here as that is one quarterback he really looks up and that is by far his favorite player.
Florida State and the recent success they have had with turning out first round picks, combined with the Noles using their proximity to home to get in early on Gatewood (and telling him they won't take a QB in 2017) has put them out to the early lead.
Ohio State is still a school of interest for Gatewood but the Buckeyes can't win a short recruitment here. If Gatewood wants to end things early, that would all but eliminate Ohio State (at least from getting the first commitment). The Buckeyes need a battle of attrition here. They need an opportunity to get him on campus, an opportunity to possibly see a guy like Cardale Jones get drafted high or J.T. Barrett making a Heisman run, things that could certainly happen but have yet to play out on the field.
They also need an opportunity to get Urban Meyer involved in his recruitment. Right now coaches can't call or text class of 2018 kids and head coaches aren't allowed on the road during the spring so Meyer hasn't even had a chance to get involved in this one which has helped some of the local schools as he can go visit a Florida State or a Florida because it's just a short drive away and he can talk to the coaches there, most importantly the head coaches.
If there is a silver lining here, it's that I'm told that despite Joey considering an early commitment that there are a couple of people close to him that are advising him to take his time, knowing how early it is and how many schools are after him. There are people advising him to get out and see some places and let things play out a bit so if that advice is taken, that opens the door for Ohio State to try and strengthen it's position from where it is right now.
QB's coach Tim Beck is expected to be at the school tomorrow. Ohio State knows that the distance factor is going to be tough to overcome because Joey doesn't have the means to really make a lot of out-of-region trips and the restrictions on contact between prospects and coaches only make things more difficult. But with that in mind, I'm told Beck is going to watch the entire practice and is going to make this more than just a quick 10 minute stay to say hello to the coach.
He won't be able to talk to Gatewood while he's there but the strategy in that is simply being seen/noticed and symbolizing that by taking the time to stay for a couple of hours instead of just a quick fly by that the Buckeyes' interest in Gatewood is very serious.
Trinity Christian notes
Spent a few hours at powerhouse Trinity Christian this evening and got to spend a lot of time around 2017 Ohio State pledge Shaun Wade as well as 2018 phenom Tyreke Johnson. Both guys gave pretty good interviews which we'll have up on the site very soon.
The interesting thing about Tyreke Johnson is that he has family in various parts of the country so while the Florida schools will have a chance there and will recruit him hard, he isn't married to the idea of staying in the Sunshine State. This gives Ohio State and some of the SEC schools a puncher's chance here.
Johnson is very likely a five-star player in his class and the Buckeyes will make him a major priority. He's open to exploring his options and has a lot of respect for Urban Meyer and the Ohio State program so I think this is one where the Buckeyes have some staying power.
As for Wade, I think the recent visit to Ohio State strengthened the Buckeyes' position in terms of holding on to his commitment but I still don't think this one will go without at least a little bit of drama over the next 18 months.
There is no doubt the spring game weekend trip went well. He is close with Judson, he had a great time hanging with Danny Clark and is a big Urban Meyer fan but with so many other prospects at his school being heavily recruited and going on visits, he's almost surely going to tag along on some of the trips. Even if those trips are made with completely harmless intentions, you never quite know how things can change after several visits to other schools but, again, I do feel Ohio State is much stronger with him today than they were the day he committed if that makes any sense at all.
Wade is going to try and get up again in July for Friday Night Lights and is almost certainly going to make a game in the fall so as long as the Buckeyes keep getting him back on campus I think they'll be able to hold on here but expect other visits to happen as well.
Tuesday Notebook
Ohio State coaches were off the road again today with the exception of cornerbacks coach Kerry Coombs who we ran into late this afternoon at Jacksonville (Fla.) Trinity Christian High School. Coombs was there mainly to watch Wade and Johnson as those are guys in his position group.
It is looking like both Coombs and Luke Fickell could be at Liberty County High School tomorrow for 2017 Rivals100 DB Richard LeCounte. Coaches from Clemson, Florida State, and Florida were all in the school today.
We talked about this in the Skull Session not long ago, that Columbus (Ohio) DeSales cornerback Austin Andrews' upcoming Michigan State visit could seal the deal for the Spartans and it did today. I don't think this has much of an impact on the current board. Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward product Tony Butler is very likely a safety at the next level and I still feel that Damar Hamlin and Wayne Davis are the two corners that Ohio State covets the most at this point in time.
Ed Warinner will be back on the prowl on the East Coast tomorrow so we'll be keeping you updated on where he pops up and I'm also told that Zach Smith will be watching Rivals100 wide receiver Ahmir Mitchell work out on Thursday which could be a very important day in terms of how this wide receiver class shapes up for the Buckeyes.
We mentioned above that QB's coach Tim Beck is expected to have a lengthy stop at Bartram Trail High School tomorrow, but he is also expected to stop by Clay High School outside of Jacksonville to check on 2017 running back Colin Wilson who we also spoke with on Tuesday. Beck would likely stop there before heading to Bartram Trail to watch Joey Gatewood practice.
Looking ahead to Day 3
We still have some content coming from our travels today but we have departed from Jacksonville and have arrived at our next location in preparation for tomorrow's stops. We'll be in the Orlando area on Wednesday with plans to check out three more schools, including a stop to see another 2017 Buckeye commit in Cocoa's Bruce Judson.
Our visit with Judson will be sandwiched between a pair of other stops and we are expecting to sit down tomorrow morning with a five-star prospect so be sure to check back here in the AM to see where we're popping up.
We spent about 30 minutes today at Bartram Trail High School outside of Jacksonville (Fla.) home of 2018 quarterback Joey Gatewood who is already creating quite a buzz. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound prospect already holds about 20 offers from many of the nation's top programs, an almost unheard of feat for a quarterback prospect heading into his sophomore season.
We talked to a source close to Gatewood today that told me that going into the season Joey sat down and listed four teams that he really wanted to get an offer from. They were Auburn, Florida State, LSU, and Ohio State.
Gatewood liked Florida a bit growing up when Urban Meyer was there but sort of shifted his focus towards Auburn during the Cam Newton era. Gatewood tries to pattern his game after Newton and that has helped Auburn become a player here as that is one quarterback he really looks up and that is by far his favorite player.
Florida State and the recent success they have had with turning out first round picks, combined with the Noles using their proximity to home to get in early on Gatewood (and telling him they won't take a QB in 2017) has put them out to the early lead.
Ohio State is still a school of interest for Gatewood but the Buckeyes can't win a short recruitment here. If Gatewood wants to end things early, that would all but eliminate Ohio State (at least from getting the first commitment). The Buckeyes need a battle of attrition here. They need an opportunity to get him on campus, an opportunity to possibly see a guy like Cardale Jones get drafted high or J.T. Barrett making a Heisman run, things that could certainly happen but have yet to play out on the field.
They also need an opportunity to get Urban Meyer involved in his recruitment. Right now coaches can't call or text class of 2018 kids and head coaches aren't allowed on the road during the spring so Meyer hasn't even had a chance to get involved in this one which has helped some of the local schools as he can go visit a Florida State or a Florida because it's just a short drive away and he can talk to the coaches there, most importantly the head coaches.
If there is a silver lining here, it's that I'm told that despite Joey considering an early commitment that there are a couple of people close to him that are advising him to take his time, knowing how early it is and how many schools are after him. There are people advising him to get out and see some places and let things play out a bit so if that advice is taken, that opens the door for Ohio State to try and strengthen it's position from where it is right now.
QB's coach Tim Beck is expected to be at the school tomorrow. Ohio State knows that the distance factor is going to be tough to overcome because Joey doesn't have the means to really make a lot of out-of-region trips and the restrictions on contact between prospects and coaches only make things more difficult. But with that in mind, I'm told Beck is going to watch the entire practice and is going to make this more than just a quick 10 minute stay to say hello to the coach.
He won't be able to talk to Gatewood while he's there but the strategy in that is simply being seen/noticed and symbolizing that by taking the time to stay for a couple of hours instead of just a quick fly by that the Buckeyes' interest in Gatewood is very serious.
Trinity Christian notes
Spent a few hours at powerhouse Trinity Christian this evening and got to spend a lot of time around 2017 Ohio State pledge Shaun Wade as well as 2018 phenom Tyreke Johnson. Both guys gave pretty good interviews which we'll have up on the site very soon.
The interesting thing about Tyreke Johnson is that he has family in various parts of the country so while the Florida schools will have a chance there and will recruit him hard, he isn't married to the idea of staying in the Sunshine State. This gives Ohio State and some of the SEC schools a puncher's chance here.
Johnson is very likely a five-star player in his class and the Buckeyes will make him a major priority. He's open to exploring his options and has a lot of respect for Urban Meyer and the Ohio State program so I think this is one where the Buckeyes have some staying power.
As for Wade, I think the recent visit to Ohio State strengthened the Buckeyes' position in terms of holding on to his commitment but I still don't think this one will go without at least a little bit of drama over the next 18 months.
There is no doubt the spring game weekend trip went well. He is close with Judson, he had a great time hanging with Danny Clark and is a big Urban Meyer fan but with so many other prospects at his school being heavily recruited and going on visits, he's almost surely going to tag along on some of the trips. Even if those trips are made with completely harmless intentions, you never quite know how things can change after several visits to other schools but, again, I do feel Ohio State is much stronger with him today than they were the day he committed if that makes any sense at all.
Wade is going to try and get up again in July for Friday Night Lights and is almost certainly going to make a game in the fall so as long as the Buckeyes keep getting him back on campus I think they'll be able to hold on here but expect other visits to happen as well.
Tuesday Notebook
Ohio State coaches were off the road again today with the exception of cornerbacks coach Kerry Coombs who we ran into late this afternoon at Jacksonville (Fla.) Trinity Christian High School. Coombs was there mainly to watch Wade and Johnson as those are guys in his position group.
It is looking like both Coombs and Luke Fickell could be at Liberty County High School tomorrow for 2017 Rivals100 DB Richard LeCounte. Coaches from Clemson, Florida State, and Florida were all in the school today.
We talked about this in the Skull Session not long ago, that Columbus (Ohio) DeSales cornerback Austin Andrews' upcoming Michigan State visit could seal the deal for the Spartans and it did today. I don't think this has much of an impact on the current board. Lakewood (Ohio) St. Edward product Tony Butler is very likely a safety at the next level and I still feel that Damar Hamlin and Wayne Davis are the two corners that Ohio State covets the most at this point in time.
Ed Warinner will be back on the prowl on the East Coast tomorrow so we'll be keeping you updated on where he pops up and I'm also told that Zach Smith will be watching Rivals100 wide receiver Ahmir Mitchell work out on Thursday which could be a very important day in terms of how this wide receiver class shapes up for the Buckeyes.
We mentioned above that QB's coach Tim Beck is expected to have a lengthy stop at Bartram Trail High School tomorrow, but he is also expected to stop by Clay High School outside of Jacksonville to check on 2017 running back Colin Wilson who we also spoke with on Tuesday. Beck would likely stop there before heading to Bartram Trail to watch Joey Gatewood practice.
Looking ahead to Day 3
We still have some content coming from our travels today but we have departed from Jacksonville and have arrived at our next location in preparation for tomorrow's stops. We'll be in the Orlando area on Wednesday with plans to check out three more schools, including a stop to see another 2017 Buckeye commit in Cocoa's Bruce Judson.
Our visit with Judson will be sandwiched between a pair of other stops and we are expecting to sit down tomorrow morning with a five-star prospect so be sure to check back here in the AM to see where we're popping up.
