All Aboard!

Another Monday, another Ohio State recruit commitment. Corey Lindsey, big Ohio offensive lineman, decided to pull the trigger on OSU because that’s who he grew up rooting for and that’s where his mama wanted him to go (good lady). Lindsey was also considering Notre Dame and, gasp, Stanford. It means that Jim Tressel and his staff feel like you can never have enough offensive lineman, and Poe agrees.

So that makes 13 commitments.

Of course, if Ohio State was a member of the SEC or ACC, they would still have 18-20 more recruits to sign (here’s lookin’ at you Miami (Fl) and Alabama). But, alas, they are not and it looks like the 2009 class could top out with 8ish more kids. Me thinks a Glenville kid or two, a running back or two, and a WR or two (especially a 6’5" Randy Moss-Calvin Johnson-freak), and then the staff can call it a recruiting season.

UPDATE: Make it 14, as Zach Boren did what we all thought he would and picked the Buckeyes. These boys sure are ‘Ohio State Men’.

Which offer is the most prestigious?

It’s the age-old question. What school do players consider is the most prestigious offer? It’s the offer that puts a kid on the map and makes people stop and talk about it. No matter where you are in this country, you get the offer from this school and people just assume it’s where you are going…

#1) USC: Hate to say it, fellow Buckeyes, but it’s hard to beat the USC offer. Players from Ohio and Michigan get the USC offer and even the obsessed recruiting followers just assume it will be hard to beat. It’s more than just Pete Carroll and the school. Sure I bet Petey makes it fun and you can all laugh together, but I think the biggest draw is the fact it’s Southern California and the rest are just perks. Columbus, Norman, South Bend, and Gainesville just aren’t LA. There’s no other explanation for the stockpile of running backs than that.

#2) Ohio State: Who Ohio State offers, Ohio State gets (usually). While OSU has predominantly stuck with Ohio boys, more and more athletes from around the country are flocking to Columbus. Example A) Etienne Sabino was a FLA boys and had is USC offer. Sabino, the #1 rated inside linebacker, picks the Buckeyes. Tressel and his staff don’t waste your time or theirs, signing 20 of the 24 kids that officially visited for 2008 (that’s like 80% conversion rate). More and more Florida kids are visiting along with PA kids, Maryland kids, but call me when Tressel starts invading California.

#3) Florida: Urban Meyer must have some positives (though Poe sees none of them, as the Southern boys stay Southern boys and play for Florida. Who else would they play for? Florida State? Miami? Meyer is as lucky as he is good. A lot of kids want to play in Florida, but would rather not play in the ACC. Around 60% of kids in the Rivals100 have Florida listed as a school they are interested in, and I’m sure Urban calls everyone.

Which offer is the least prestigious?

Know what it takes to rebuild? Offers to everybody and their brothers and their brothers’ friends. The next 3 teams are not necessary bad teams, but face an uphill battle in terms of being all that relevant again.

#1) Alabama: Roll Tide. Roll Nick Saban. Roll 50 recruits a season. Saban needs them and he doesn’t want you to worry about the numbers. There’s something I’ve never liked about Saban.

#2) Miami (Fl): Going from having teams stacked with NFL players to QBs who complete 1 of 15 passes, The U might have to change its name to The O for offer after the size of the class they brought in. Bad News is that you now have to put the (Fl) so people know who you are talking about. Good news for Miami is that all those years in the beginning of the millennium help in recruiting.

#3) Illinois: I sent in video of myself sitting at my desk. A week later, I got an in home visit from his staff telling me about how I could get a lot of playing time for the Illini. Oh Zooker. He can sell Rose Bowl appearances, beating Ohio State at home, and playing time, but we still know that 200 kids have been offered for the 25 slots.

Best Week Ever: Buckeye Edition

Let’s run down the list.

1. Ohio State Spring Game – Great for the fans and the recruits
2. Darrell Givens Commits – Teammate of Lamaar Thomas and OSU’s first offer.
3. Dorian Bell Commits – 5 Star Linebacker from Pennsylvania
4. Jordan Hall Commits – 4 Star Running Back and Terrelle Pryor’s right hand man from PA.
5. Justin Boren transfer from Michigan to Ohio State is confirmed by Coach Tressel.
6. Melvin Fellows Commits – Possibly the top ranked Ohio player decommits from Illinois.
7. Vernon Gholston Goes Six to the Jets - Big Vern makes it another Top 10 pick for Jim Tressel
   

That’s a whole lot of good news and good fortune.

The Buckeyes have sealed up 12 commits for the 2009 recruiting class. All it needs is 1 or 2 more running backs (Florida boys, that’s you), another receiver, and you’ve got a pretty good recruiting class. For in depth recruiting, I recommend BuckeyePlanet or DottingtheI. I can spit off names all day, but I’m a reporter, not an investigator.

Turns out that Jermale Hines, the OSU linebacker that went down during the spring game, doesn’t have a serious injury and should be back before fall camp. Jermale is one of those fast mo-fo’s OSU is stocking up at linebacker and was widely rumored to have been practicing as a running back prior to the championship game against LSU.

For as good of a week as its been, I still think I would trade it for a certain week in early January.

Most Valuable Recruits

Signing Day '08 has passed. We at JTsHead take a look at what recruits could make an instant impact on the field in 2008. But first, a little background:

• Rivals grades Ohio State's class at #9 in the nation and Scout takes it up to #7. None of this really matters however, since class size is almost a more important factor than actual 'per player' rankings.
• This recruiting class was also the product of efficient recruiting, with 19 players signing out of 24 that actually officially visited campus (make that 23 since the elusive, in more ways than one, Terrelle Pryor has not decided on Ohio State or any school for that matter).

Impact Players (WR)
We'll just assume they are all impact players.

Jake Stoneburner
Rivals says TE, Scout says TE, ESPN says TE, but Ohio State head coach and Stoney himself say WR, WR, WR. Stoneburner checks in at 6'6" 220lbs and figures to cause nightmares for those that have to tackle him in space. The kid can move, is hard to bring down, and is white. You watch Stoneburner and you know why he's at Ohio State, as he can block like a tight end or run a route as a WR.
Photo Caption: Actually Jake Stoneburner


Lamaar Thomas
Ted Ginn/Percy Harvin type player who wants to play running back but will probably be relegated to WR. Lamaar obviously likes the Ted Ginn comparisons thrown at him, now he will have to live up to them. At this point, it's hard to pin down a position since he hasn't yet practiced as a Buckeye. We all wanted to call Ray Small the Next Ted Ginn Jr, but we really meant he would fill the void until Thomas got on campus. All we know for sure is that he will be on punt and kick returns.
Photo Caption: Flash Gordon is the star of a sci-fi comic strip, Lamaar is not.


Devier Posey : Rivals and Scout have him as one of the best wide receivers in the nation. Why? Because he's smart, catches everything that comes his way, and 'cause they said so. Posey could be the best, but he's only 6'2" and not some 6'4" freaksonature such as Julio Jones and AJ Green. It's a lot like playing College Football on Xbox 360; you select 6'4" players because they are taller. But in real world college football, Posey is the only 5 star WR shorter than the 6'3"-6'6" range and on the same level as any one of those recruits.

WR Summary: So what do you do when you have Brian Robiskie, Briant Hartline, Taurian Washington, Dane Sanzenbacher, Devon Torrence, and the 3 newbies on the roster (assuming that Albert Dukes and Devon Lyons graudate and transfer)? Who gets in the 3 wide, 4 wide, and 5 wide? Who redshirts? It's entirely possible that none of the 3 WR recruits redshirt because of the ways they can be used.

Impact Players (OL)
Do they all play or do they sit one?

Mike Adams : Described as the best Ohio O Lineman in a decade. 6'7" 308lbs. Size, strength, and moves will add mammoth to the mammothness of the Ohio State O Line.
Photo Caption: Mike Adams takes on Michigan in an earlier life.

OL Summary: Mike Brewster, designated leader of the Brew Crew, is outspoken and will also add depth. JB Shuggarts proves everything is bigger in Texas, but may redshirt if Tressel doesn't just say "fuck it" and not redshirt anybody on offense.

Impact Players (Defense)
So many defensive players, so many returning from last season.

Etienne Sabino : Who says "God I hate those Miami summers, I really need to go to Ohio"? Thankfully, the #1 rated inside linebacker in the nation has donned the Scarlet & Gray, Mr. 5 Star himself according to Scout (Rivals feels as if #1 rated inside linebackers don't deserve 5 Stars). Fast and big, if Sabino doesn't get the number 18 to help Ohioans pronounce his name it would be a shame (that's you WR David Lisko of whom I had to look up).
Photo Caption: Dave, Etienne wants his name back.

Defense Summary: Zach Domicone looks like he could be the next hard hitting SS for Ohio State and he couldn't be there soon enough. Ohrian Johnson comes from Florida and ESPN still thinks he's a QB. Garret Goebel and Willie Mobley look like athletic DTs that Ohio State needs, while Shawntell Rowell checks in at 325lbs and will eat all the space he needs to. Nathan Williams is a mean dude on the end and Travis Howard could be the 3 star CB that shines aka Malcolm Jenkins or Chimdi Chekwa. Andrew Sweat will probably RS, because there are already 5 LBs wanting time. Lastly, Keith Wells has only been playing foosball for 2 years yet had offers from the finest football factories in the nation and Notre Dame too.

And as for Jemil Martin...
Let's just hope he's the truck of fullback he can be.