Archives for June 2014

Urban Gets A Speedster For Commit Nine

June 19, 2014 by Leave a Comment

My hand is starting to get Carpal Tunnel Syndrome from writing all of these commitment posts this week. I literally have lost count of all the guys who have committed to the 2015 and 2016 class. This is not a bad thing to have and camps are always a great place for guys to earn their offers and commit. It happened earlier with a 2016 kid and now we have one with a 2015 kid.

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Denzel Ward committed to Ohio State as was first reported by…

Denzel Ward is a 5’11” 165 lbs 3 star CB from Nordonia, Ohio. Denzel is a barn burner cover guy. He was clocked as a 4.31 40 yard dash at the OSU camp back in March. He went in to camp today and earned his offer impressing the coaches all day long with his athleticism and speed. He proved he was worthy of an OSU offer and once offered instantly committed.

You can see his highlights by clicking Hudl.

Filed Under: Ohio State Football

Buckeyes Land Second Commit For 2016

June 19, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Things are going well for OSU in the month of June. Sure May and April were the worst but can’t say that OSU fans aren’t being rewarded for their patience right now. The 2015 class is filling up nicely with some big targets going to drop in the next few weeks. The 2016 class is off to a hot start and the Buckeyes landed their second commitment in the class and it is still 2014.

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Tyler Gerald committed to Ohio State as was first reported by….

Tyler Gerald is a 6’5″ 300 lbs 4 star OG from Portsmouth, Ohio. Tyler comes in as the 121st best recruit in the country according to the 247sports composite rankings. The behemoth of a young man came to OSU camp and worked with Coach Warriner and Coach Meyer showing his strength and agility for a big man. He is an athletic kid who could play any spot on the O-Line. He will be a part of a great 2016 class and a strong OL class for OSU. Look for him to help recruit some other trench guys as he goes to camps with them the next 2 years.

You can follow Tyler on Twitter by clicking @tylergerald96.

You can see his highlights by clicking Hudl.

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, College Football Recruiting, High School Football, Ohio State Football Tagged With:

Connor Heyward Creating Own Success Story

June 19, 2014 by Leave a Comment

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Ohio State fans might know the name Heyward from a recent, successful Buckeye in Cameron Heyward.  Meet his younger and equally as talented, younger brother from Georgia, Connor.  Although he is in the class of 2017, the wide receiver and Safety prospect knows  that it is never to early to start recruiting.  The 6 foot 1 inch rising sophomore, has interest from many schools across the country including Ohio State.  He has been to Ohio State many times for his older brother, but the other day he participated in a camp in which he fought hard and went up against some good competition.

“There were a lot of good players at this camp the competition was very good!” Heyward said of the camp experience.  “The kids from Miami were really good also.  The best part was getting to go 1v1 in front of the coaches, especially coach Coombs.  I really like him.”  Another cool part of the camp Heyward told me was getting to meet Danny Clark.  The two instantly hit it off and Heyward told me they have become good friends.

“Danny Clark and I have a good relationship,” he said of Clark.  “He wants me to come here with him and also take more visits when he is on campus also.”  It is a surprise to nobody that follows recruiting that Clark has been recruiting his heart out for the team.

Heyward loves Ohio State for many reasons and it does not have to do a lot with Cam playing here.  He did say although that is cool, it is not the reason he loves the school so much.  He attributes his love for the school to a couple of things like his relationship with Coach Fickell, the facilities, and the success of the program.

“Coach Fickell and I have a great relationship.” Heyward says of his reasons for loving Ohio State. “We have just been around each other so much.  I also just love everything about Ohio State from the campus to the sports facilities.  Also, there is not a better stadium in college football than the Shoe!”

His brother keeps telling him to work hard, something he really takes to heart on the football field.  For the rest of the summer, Heyward will be practicing and training for Football AND basketball.  Yep.  He is a mult-sport athlete and his team for AAU just made it to the finals for the Nike Peach Jam in Florida, something he is very excited for.  He would love to play both in college if lucky, but would choose football over basketball.  When asked what he would like to say to Ohio State fans, he said, “Go Bucks and stay tuned!”  Connor Heyward is a great prospect and will have a great share of college choices.  But he just loves Ohio State and that is where I think he is going to choose to play College Football.

247Sports Page

Highlights

 

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, College Football Recruiting, High School Football, Ohio State Football Tagged With: ,

Eight Is Great For The Buckeyes

June 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Recruiting is on a roll and after several months of inactivity and lots of players picking schools not named Ohio State it is great to see OSU go on a rampage racking up members of the 2015 class at lightening speed. Just a few weeks ago OSU was at just 2 commits and lots of people were panicking even yours truly was a bit depressed. I knew there was no way OSU would stay down and that Coach Meyer and his staff would eventually make a run. They did not let me down and things are looking like they could explode this summer. So let’s get to know our newest commit shall we.

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Dre’Mont Jones committed to Ohio State today via his Twitter account…

Dre’Mont Jones is a 6’5″ 250 lbs 4 star DE/TE from Cleveland, Ohio. It really was just a matter of time before Dre’Mont committed the stud DE was down to OSU and TTUN and well he decided he wanted to win and not suck so he chose OSU. I kid I kid :). Seriously though the kid has a ton of talent and his size is extremely noticeable. He will bring a lot of athleticism and toughness to the defense and has a chance to play early if he can bulk up some this year.

You can get to know and follow Dre’Mont on Twitter by clicking @TheOfficial_80

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, College Football Recruiting, High School Football, Ohio State Football Tagged With:

MotSaG Chat with 2016 DE Malik Barrow

June 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Malik Barrow is not another ordinary football player.  Standing almost 6’4, and weight about 245 pounds, Barrow stands out amongst the crowd almost immediately.  With offers from the likes of Michigan State, Ohio State, UNC, and many others, he is already beginning to make a name for himself as a Sophomore.  Something that is not abnormal anymore.  Barrow recently took a trip to Ohio State for both and Unofficial visit and a camp.  A camp he says he did very well in.

“I did well in the camp!” Barrow sad of his camp performance.  “I went against one of the top 2016 OT recruits, (He did not know his name), and won the battle.  Overall, I think I did very well going against some tough competition.”

Not only was he there for the camp, but was able to spend time with the coaches as well.  He got to meet Urban Meyer and tour the campus for a little bit.  He had nothing but positive things to say about the campus Ohio State in general.

“The visit was great!” He said of his visit.  “Meeting Urban and Coach Johnson was amazing!  I like Coach Johnson a lot as a position coach. Urban told me that they really like the way I play and that they want me to come there.  I also loved the campus and facilities. Everything was great about Ohio State!”

Although Malik loved the visit to Ohio State, he is wide open in his recruitment.  There is not much pressure to stay instate because he is not originally from Florida.  He moved there from Massachusetts when he was younger.  So to think that any of the Florida teams are for sure getting his commitment is wrong.  He is wide open and is hoping to make it to Georgia Tech, UNC, Duke, and UCF over the summer.  I asked him what he would like to say to Ohio State fans and he said, “Go Bucks!”  He enjoys playing basketball and chilling with friends when he is not training for football.  He keeps himself busy with this and stays in shape for workouts by playing some basketball.  I think there is a good chance that Malik could end up here.  He does love Ohio State and everything about it so they have that going for them.  But has many schools around him that he loves also.  This is going to be an interesting recruiting battle between Ohio State and I think UNC and Miami.  He is a recruit we should all be watching over the next couple of seasons.

247Sports Page

Highlights

 

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, College Football Recruiting, High School Football, Ohio State Football Tagged With:

Nick Conner Has His Dream Come True

June 17, 2014 by Leave a Comment

I have been following and covering recruiting for the better part of 20 years now. In my time I have done my best to not get emotionally invested in which recruits pick OSU and which ones do not. I mean Urban Meyer is offering hundreds of kids every year and if I got too invested I would lose my mind considering only around 20-25 will ever make it into OSU. There is an exception every once in a while where I get to know a recruit and almost get fully invested in his drive to become a Buckeye. Today that dream became reality for one young man and I couldn’t be happier for him.

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Nick Conner is a 6’3″ 225 lbs 4 star Top 247 Linebacker from Dublin, Ohio. Nick being a local kid grew up loving Ohio State and worked his tail off to earn his offer to attend Ohio State. He spent a lot of time getting to know the coaches and the players and building on what the coaches wanted him to improve on. He came into camp today with a mission and earned his offer from Coach Meyer and committed right on the spot.

On a personal note I couldn’t be happier for such a quality young man who has done all that was asked of him and didn’t take offense when the coaches challenged him to get better and come and camp with them and ear his offer. The kid bleeds Scarlet and Gray and hopefully all of Buckeye Nation will get behind him and show him some love.

You can see his highlights by clicking Hudl.

You can follow Nick on Twitter by clicking @NickConner11.

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, College Football Recruiting, High School Football, Ohio State Football Tagged With:

MotSaG Chat with Tyrek Tisdale

June 17, 2014 by Leave a Comment

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Recruiting is a constant process. There is no off-season and there is no it is too early to talk about a recruit because he is only a sophomore. There are recruits in middle schools getting offers and even some still in elementary school. So to have the chance to sit down and talk with a High School kid going into his Junior year it is refreshing. So I sat down today and talked with Tyrek Tisdale a 6’2″ 200 lbs Safety/Running Back from Orlando, Florida.

Tyrek has been on a nationwide tour with a group of Florida HS footballers and visited several school where he also received his first 4 offers from UAB, Louisville, Miami of Florida, and Ohio State. Tyrek said “It has been ridiculous, visiting 8 different Division 1 schools.”.

Tyrek grew up a fan of the Oregon Ducks and who can blame him for most of his life Oregon has been a mecca for offensive minded players who want to showcase their skills on the national scene. The uniforms alone can draw in HS recruits and fans a like. Tyrek doesn’t have any plans right now to visit Oregon but I wouldn’t be surprised to see him eventually make his way to Eugene to take in the gloriousness that is Nike.

Where else does Tyrek have visits planned for this summer? He tells me ” I plan to go visit Miami and Ohio State again this summer.”. Which begged the question for him… Will distance play any roll in where he decides to attend college. His answer was quick and precise “No distance wouldn’t be an issue.” Which is great to hear if you are an OSU fan. He clearly has no qualms leaving Florida or the south.

Tyrek visited Ohio State not to long ago and thoroughly enjoyed the visit telling me that he most enjoyed “Learning about the academics and visiting Buckeye Grove.” Buckeye Grove is a huge draw for receuits because it shows in a grand way how many OSU players have come there and had all-american careers. He also was able to sit down and talk to Coach Meyer and Coach Drayton and loved what they told him. He was also able to meet and chat with current OSU TE Jeff Heuerman on the visit.

Keeping his options open are important to him right now. Tyrek is just getting going into the recruiting process and is getting a crash course early on. He doesn’t have a plan for when he will commit but he does have an early leader for his services telling me that Ohio State is his leader right now and that he could see himself being a Buckeye someday. When I asked him what he would Buckeye Nation to know about him the most his answer was extremely revealing… “I would love for Buckeye Nation to know that we will always beat That Team Up North.”. While he is not ready to commit you can tell he knows what is important about being a Buckeye and that he already considers himself a member of Buckeye Nation.

This is definitely a young player that OSU fans need to get to know and watch and you can do that by following him on Twitter by clicking @TyrekTisdale.

You can view his highlights by clicking Hudl.

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, College Football Recruiting, High School Football, Ohio State Football Tagged With: , , ,

Class of 2015 Wide Receiver Recruiting Targets

June 16, 2014 by Leave a Comment

Ohio State fans have seen things starting to pick up again for the 2015 class.  Less than a month ago, we were sitting at two commits.  Now, we are up to six and are adding more.  Let’s dive into the wide receiver recruiting for the class of 2015 and who I think will end up as Buckeyes in the end.

1. Van Jefferson- Brentwood, TN

Van has just always been high on the Buckeyes.  He visited in March and there were reports that his Dad wanted to talk to the coaches more on how the passing game would be improved.  It seemed like the questions were answered on the visit as by all accounts, the visit went very well.  It is known by many that Van Jefferson has always had the Buckeyes on top.  The school that is giving OSU the most competition in my opinion, is Tennessee.  He is a pure wide receiver.  He runs great routes, good hands, and just an overall sense of the wide receiver position.  He earned MVP at the WR position for the Birmingham NFTC and was invited to”The Opening” in Beaverton, Oregon.  I think that Ohio State is in a good position to land Jefferson.  But, if LSU offers it might be one to watch.  He does like LSU and is an offer he wants.  I do think that he will be a Buckeye, when it is all done.\

2. Christian Kirk -Saguaro, AZ

To many, Christian Kirk is the best wide receiver in this class.  The Saguaro, Arizona standout does it all at the receiver position.  He has good speed, great acceleration, and just has that “it” factor that every college coach is drooling over.  He has been to Ohio State before and loved the visit.  He knows that he could do wonders in Urban’s offense, well he could do wonders in anyone’s offense, but still.  He is visiting Ohio State this weekend and many people think that his college choice will come down to Ohio State and Texas A&M.  He has a top ten right now with schools all over the country from Pac-12 territory to SEC country.  Ohio State is on the list and I fully expect that to be there till the end.  I do not think Ohio State leads right now, but, he is visiting this upcoming weekend, and if all goes well, he very easily could become a Buckeye.   I still think there is work in this recruitment, but it is definitely not out of the question.  If he loves Ohio State again I think we have a good shot.  Stick close to this situation Buckeye fans.

3. Devante Peete- Pompano Beach, FL

Standing just about 6’6, Devante Peete’s size is what most coaches loathe more than anything about Devante Peete.  The St. Thomas Aquinas standout wide receiver, has offers from schools all across the nation.  He has good speed for a tall receiver as well.  The Crystal Balls on Peete are split down the middle 50/50 to Miami and Ohio State.  I think this will come down to the home town Hurricanes and Ohio State.  He has not been to Ohio State but there is a reason he has Ohio State at the top with Miami without even visiting.  St. Thomas has  been good to Ohio State in the past, (Joey Bosa), and I think that is going to continue with Peete as I think he will pick the Buckeyes in the end.  Just a hunch as he has not visited but loves everything about Ohio State.

Filed Under: B1G Football, College Football, College Football Recruiting, High School Football, Ohio State Football Tagged With: , ,

George Hill is Number One For 2016

June 14, 2014 by Leave a Comment

In a non-surprise move to many, George Hill has become the first commitment for the class of 2016 for Ohio State.  The 6 ft, 182 pound runningback, commits to Ohio State on a day when many thought that he would.  He was on commitment watch, well basically since his recruitment started.  The Hubbard High School standout received an offer from Ohio State, visited multiple times, and the rest is history.  Hill is also the teammate of Ohio State target Larry Scott.  Imagine having a backfield with both of these stars?  It must make the coaches job easy.  Hill told me he knew where he was going after his last visit.

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“I knew the last time I visited here, I was playing here.  I did not want to commit then because I did not want to commit in the excitement of the visit.  So I knew going to the visit today, I was going to walk out of there a Buckeye,” Hill said of the commitment.

Hill gives the Buckeyes a good start to the class as he is the 57th ranked player in the nation by the 247sports Composite.  He is one of, if not, the best players from the state of Ohio, regardless of class.  Hopefully he can bring his teammate along with him in LJ Scott.  He is going to try and talk to him about it and see how it goes, but told me, “I guess it can’t hurt hat I am going there now.”

Hill is a talented player and should be a highly rated recruit when it is all said and done.  This is a good get for Urban and Co. and it gets the ball rolling on what should be a top 5 class and if it rolls the right way, I think the 2016 class could be #1 in the nation.  It sure is off to a good start with George Hill.

247sports Page

Filed Under: Ohio State Football

Creating a Path of His Own- Elijah Holyfield- Class of 2016 RB

June 13, 2014 by Leave a Comment

The name Holyfield is familiar with a lot of people around the world.  Evander Holyfield is one of the most prestigious and famous boxers around most sports fans.  No do not worry recruit fans, this story is not about Evander Holyfield.  Instead, this story is about his son, Elijah Holyfield.  If you take one look at his twitter name, you can see that his dad has been his role model.  His twitter name is .  Evander Holyfield taught him about many things in life and has given him some good advice about being in the spotlight.  

“My dad has just told me to stay humble and don’t stop working,” Elijah said of the advice he has received from his dad.  “Somebody is always working harder than you for your spot.  Just stay very humble.”

With offers from some of the top schools in the nation including,  Tennessee, Louisville, Wisconsin, Ole Miss, and Ohio State, Elijah is just enjoying the process.  He has been very humble by all the attention he has been getting but is determined to keep working hard to get  better.  He has been to many campuses, including visits to Louisville and Kentucky last weekend which he liked.  He is planning more visits for the summer and one of them will be a visit to Ohio State on June 19th to the 20th for a camp and visit.  He talked a little bit about by he was intrigued by Ohio State and what he is most looking forward to on his visit.

“I am attending the camp and also getting a chance to visit the school,” Holyfield said of his upcoming visit.  “I am excited to get to talk to coach Drayton and to check out the facilities.  I am very excited about the chance to play at Ohio State because they have had so many players drafted, and many Heisman Trophy winners.  It just feels like I would also be a great fit to their system.”

Holyfield is visiting Michigan before his Ohio State visit.  So it gives him a chance to kind of make a Midwest swing.  He is training hard for the upcoming football season and wants to improve staying healthy, after a little injury last season, and also wants to work on becoming more of a complete runningback, like catching the ball out of the backfield, something almost is a must now for runningbacks.  He is wide open but told me that he was really excited about the Ohio State offer and they will be there till the end.  This is going to be an interesting recruiting battle.  He is a very talented prospect and has the determination to keep working hard to get better at the game.

247sports page

Highlights

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Filed Under: Ohio State Football
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