First things first, a big congratulations to Mr. Miller on an excellent college choice.
If he keeps his head on straight, he has the tools to be the next great QB at The Ohio State University. Exciting stuff. For evaluation and video of what he brings to the table, check out our coverage from earlier in the week.
It is a good day because Miller is on board as a Buckeye, but it may be an even better day because of the implications that Miller’s commitment has for the rest of the class.
Bringing one of the top players in the country on board is something that other recruits take notice of, particularly if that player is a QB.
The Miller commitment has the potential to create a domino affect on some other top players around Ohio (maybe around the country), and I wouldn’t be surprised to see a few more players become a part of this class sooner rather than later.
The class of 2011 is already in great shape, especially considering how early it is in the recruiting season. With a strong close, aided by some active recruiting by Miller and other Buckeye commits, Ohio State is in line for a top 5 recruiting class.
With 12 players already committed, Ohio State will be looking to add about 8 more (give or take) to fill out the class.
With a limited number of scholarship offers on the table and a few heavy Buckeye leans still out there, the staff can get selective with how they fill the rest of the scholarships… just the way they like it.
Since my last update, Centerville defensive tackle Michael Bennett has also committed to Ohio State, which was quite the pick up as well. Bennett is one of the top DTs in the country .
Even though recruiting news has been sparse over the past few weeks, Miller and Bennett make up for the lack of quantity with quality. No matter how the rest of the class shakes out, Ohio State already has an outstanding core group of players with some potential superstars thrown in for good measure.
In my last update, I listed players according to who I thought was most likely to become a part of the class (Bennett and Miller were both on my ‘for sure Buckeye’ list, for what it’s worth).
This time around, I am going to list the players according to who I think are the most important players to fill out the final spots in the class.
Absolute Must Get
Trey DePriest LB
Ohio State will be in great shape at linebacker without DePriest, but they will be in even better shape with him (obviously). Linebacker depth is not the reason DePriest is a ‘must get.’
The reason he is so crucial to this class is to stop the trend of Ohio’s #1 linebacker heading out of state. Jordan Hicks (the #1 linebacker last year) was a bit of an anomaly since he was not born in Ohio, but it is still concerning.
In DePriest’s case, the lure of the Buckeyes will be much harder to overcome, especially with his friend Braxton Miller now in his ear lobbying for the good guys.
Despite the natural advantages Ohio State has here, Alabama is making a strong push and is a serious threat.
DePriest will be making a visit to Alabama this weekend with his family and head coach. If he doesn’t commit on the spot over the weekend to Alabama, I like Ohio State’s chances more and more as the summer drags on.
Funny note about the Alabama visit this weekend; Alabama insiders were extremely excited about the idea of a Miller-DePriest package deal back when they had a legitimate shot at both. Now that Miller is a Buckeye, they are downplaying the obvious connection that both players have as much as possible.
Funny how that works.
Aundrey Walker OL
Walker is the top offensive lineman in Ohio and a Glenville recruit to boot. If Ohio State lost this recruiting battle it would be a major upset.
Ronald Tanner S
Similarly to Walker and DePriest, Tanner is the top player at his position in Ohio and a heavy Buckeye lean. Locking up the top players in the state is going to be a major focus for the rest of this class.
Doran Grant CB
Like DePriest, Walker and Tanner, Grant is the top player in Ohio at his position. Broken record, but locking up the in state talent is an absolute must.
Luckily for Ohio State, outside of DePriest, I would be extremely surprised if any of these players committed somewhere else.
Important, but not absolutely necessary
Nick Vannett TE
Vannett is important because Ohio State wants/needs another TE in this class. Many people thought that he would commit weeks ago, but that clearly has not happened. He appears to be completely reevaluating his recruiting process and may not make a decision for some time.
Vannett would be a great get for Ohio State in an area of need, but if things don’t work out there should be plenty of other options, including not taking a second tight end at all.
Shane Wynn WR
Wynn is electric with the ball in his hands, but concerns about his size have many people wary of his potential as an elite prospect.
The fact that he is a Glenville kid with an offer makes him an important target, if only to continue the pipeline. While there is no reason to believe he won’t be a Buckeye, if things don’t work out here it wouldn’t be the end of the world.
Evan Spencer WR
Spencer is a legacy recruit with excellent speed and athleticism. Because he is one of the few WRs Ohio State has targeted in this class, if he went elsewhere Ohio State might be hard pressed to find another top WR that is interested so late in the process.
Despite this, WR isn’t a pressing concern right now, and outside of the disappointment of a legacy with an offer not choosing Ohio State, losing Spencer is not a deal breaker for the class.
The Rest
If you have been counting (12+7), that leaves us with 1 scholarship left in the somewhat likely scenario that everyone above chooses Ohio State.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see one or two scholarships open up at some point, but even then, the space in this class has become extremely limited.
Ohio State has a legitimate shot at some premiere out of state talent, but will there be room? At this point the out of state players are more of a luxury than a necessity.
Lock up the in state players and anyone else is just icing on the cake. I will revert back to my “most likely to commit” analysis for these out of state players.
Jabari Gorman CB
Still between Ohio State and Miami as far as I can tell. Seems like a great kid.
Dondi Kirby S
Some rumors floating around that he is a strong Buckeye lean. He will most likely wait until late in the process, so we won’t find out anytime soon.
Kevin McReynolds DT
Seems like a very down to earth and intelligent kid, the kind that Tressel usually appeals to. Still, it will be tough to pull him from the East Coast.
Conner Crowell LB
No news is bad news most of the time when it comes to out of state recruits. Ohio State seemed to make an impression on him, so we will see.
Joel Hale DL
Hale burst on to the recruiting scene and has an extremely impressive offer list at this point. I would be very pleasantly surprised if he ended up a Buckeye.
James Vaughters LB
An extremely impressive prospect both on and off the field. Lots of mixed reviews about the chances of him becoming a Buckeye. Duane Long says Ohio State is the team to beat, but I have also read people who know more than me completely write him off. When in doubt, out of state prospects don’t end up in scarlet and gray.
Wayne Lyons S
I don’t see him leaving the south.
Ja’Juan Story WR
Another prospect that Duane Long insinuates will be a Buckeye, although extremely indirectly (‘a site’ says he will be a Buckeye, what the hell does that mean?). If ‘a site’ is a credible source, I am here to say that Story won’t be a Buckeye to balance things out.
Angelo Mangiro OL/DL
I don’t see him heading further west than Penn State.
Ect.
If Ohio State completely whiffs on some of the out of state guys, or even some of the heavy leans, there is always room for a few surprises at the end of the class.
There are several players out there with offers that I failed to mention in this update that may come into the picture, or players may emerge during camps this summer, or players may emerge during the season.
No matter what happens, barring some huge surprises, it appears there will be relatively few chances for new players to emerge and become a part of this class. Even if some scholarships open up and bump the class over 20, they may already be reserved for the Glenville players waiting in the wings for an offer (Cardale Jones and Andre Sturdivant).
In a perfect world, Braxton Miller’s commitment today will encourage a few more of the elite in-state players to pull the trigger for the Buckeyes. If that happens, the recruiting picture will become even clearer over the summer and Ohio State can be even more picky with the last few spots in the class.
Since we are talking about a perfect world, I will say we get all seven of the players I mentioned as important and still have room for a few out of state or emerging prospects to come on board as well.
For right now, congratulations to Braxton Miller and Buckeye Nation. An already good recruiting class just got significantly better.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
