With the 2012 class all but over, and signing day come and gone, we take a look at the offensive portion of the 2012 class.  Tomorrow we will cover the defensive side of the ball.

Quarterback (1)

B

In a year when the QB position was down overall nationally, we were able to hold on to a kid that is now one year removed from high school, with a year of prep school at Fork Union under his belt.

Cardale Jones (6’5’’ 220)

–          Rivals’ Take – 3*

–          Scout’s Take – 3*

–          ESPN’s Take – 3*

–          Joe’s Take – 4*

I may be showing my OSU bias on this one, but I still remember watching him in the Ohio state playoffs his senior year and being very impressed. His film from Fork Union reminded me of that same player.

Give him a redshirt year and then two more years to sit behind Braxton in Meyer’s system and I see him being able to step in and take the reigns.

He has the ability to throw and run and has the huge body type that is hard to bring down in the pocket.  I am really excited about Jones.  I am surprised to see all the services have him as a 3 star. If he buys in to Meyer’s system and puts the time in he could be a star.

Running Back (2)

A+

Other than DE, this is the only other position that I give an A+ to.  Two big time running backs with great size, the ability to make guys miss- and to run them over is always a welcome addition.   The best part is they were both from in-state.

RB is a position that has depth, but these two guys do have the ability to come in next year and fight for carries.  I see at least one of these guys leaving Ohio State with All Big Ten honors and maybe All American Honors.

Warren Ball (6’2’’ 215)

–          Rivals’ Take – 4*, #16 RB,  #193 Nationally,  #12 in Ohio

–          Scout’s Take – 4*,  #21 RB,  #196 Nationally

–          ESPN’s Take – 3*,  #27 RB,  #24 Ohio

–          Joe’s Take – 5*

I have Warren Ball as the number two player in Ohio behind only Adolphus Washington. He was hampered by injury his senior year, which held him back. Due to this, there were games where he didn’t put up the type of numbers one would expect from a 5 star type player.

With that said, when you watch his highlights and look at his running style, you see that he is a home run threat when he touches the ball. With his size and speed combo, I rate him much higher than recruiting services.

Obviously, Ball verbally committed very early, almost 15 months ago, and not hitting the combine circuit didn’t help him in terms of a very high ranking.

Brionte Dunn (6’1’’ 220)

–          Rivals’ Take – 4*,  #11 RB,  #138 Nationally, #6 in Ohio

–          Scout’s Take – 5*,  #7 RB,  #32 Nationally, #3 in Ohio

–          ESPN’s Take – 4*,  #14 RB,  #11 Ohio

–          Joe’s Take – 4*

I have Dunn just a little bit below Ball.  I think he combines a power style running game with the ability to make people miss but I’m not sure he has quite the home run hitting potential that Ball has.

If you need one yard Dunn is the guy.

He played through injury his senior year and toted the rock a huge amount.  I do like that he doesn’t want to come out of the game, but also think he may be the type that needs a lot of carries to really get going.

With that said, I still have Dunn as a high 4 star, top 100 player and the #4 player in the state.

Wide Receiver (3)

C+

When Meyer came on he was obviously not thrilled with the WR commits he inherited, so he hit the ground running.  With a commitment from either Neal or Diggs we get upgraded, but as of now I rank this class as a C+.

There were guys in state and even in the surrounding states that could have upgraded this class.  We have a large number, but none that really look like game breakers.

Maybe this is me being greedy but at Ohio State, I would say most feel we could have done better.

This is not to knock our commits, but they aren’t jumping  out on film as the game breaker or All-America type.  The WR depth chart is very young right now, so I would expect most of the incoming guys to be redshirt candidates.

Frank Epitropoulos (6’3’’ 195)

–          Rivals’ Take –  3*, #77 WR

–          Scout’s Take – 3*, #60 WR

–          ESPN’s Take – 3*, #71 WR

–          Joe’s Take – 3*

I really don’t know what to make of Epitropoulus. I think in a normal year he doesn’t get an offer,  but we were in 3 star heaven  for a few months and he fit the bill. That said, I will never write off a recruit.

He is a legacy and there is the opportunity for him to be a punter.   On film, Frank does have nice size and the ability to go up and get the ball with a reported 4.47 40.

Epitropoulos is probably a sure fire redshirt candidate.

Ricquan Southward (6’2’’ 190)

–          Rivals’ Take – 3*,  #60 WR,  #60 in Florida

–          Scout’s Take – 3*,  #118 WR

–          ESPN’s Take – 4*, #41 WR,  #46 in Florida

–          Joe’s Take –4*

In terms of a playmaker, I would put Southward as the guy in this class. My only question is why is there not much info out there on him? Things just don’t seem to add up here.

Watching him on film, I tend to agree with ESPN on the 4* rating.  He has the size and speed combo you look for in a receiver.

I would list him as another probable redshirt candidate.

Mike Thomas (6’3’’ 180)

–          Rivals’ Take – 4 star

–          Scout’s Take – 4 star

–          ESPN’s Take – 3 star

–          Joe’s Take – 3*

I have seen him listed as tall as 6’5’’.

I know that he and Braxton struck up a nice friendship during his recruitment and Cardale was firing passes to him this season at Fork Union.

I think he could turn into a solid possession type receiver here.  Obviously, already being on campus could really help him.  It will be interesting to see how he plays in the spring game.

Stefon Diggs / DaVonte Neal – If either one of these guys commit they become our top WR recruit and upgrade the class from C+ to a B or B+.  If we get both we go to an A.

They are the type of speed athlete that Meyer is looking for at WR.

Diggs is the #1 receiver pretty much any other year (DGB is a once-in-a-decade talent).

Neal could also be a top DB, but his speed makes him a big time threat to take it to the house any time he touches the ball.  I will write more on each if either of these guys commit.

At this time they are both up in the air with the story surrounding Neal being particularly intriguing.

Tight End (1)

B-

I give the TE class a B-.  Nothing special but we didn’t have a huge need.

Blake Thomas (6’4″ 240 lbs.)

–          Rivals’ Take – 3*, #16 TE, #25 in Ohio

–          Scout’s Take – 3*, #22 TE

–          ESPN’s Take – 3*, #42 TE

–          Joe’s Take – 3*

I think Thomas is a perfect fit for this class.  Obviously, we would have loved a top TE, but Thomas bridges the gap to next year where there are some big time TE recruits we are after.

Thomas may never be a game breaker, but he has the ability to get open and make chain moving receptions.  He can also hold his own blocking.

Offensive Line (5)

A

At one point we were all screaming and wondering if we would land an OT prospect.

At that same point, we weren’t really attacking any prospects at a position that was probably the biggest need on the whole team.

Meyer came in and started making calls to top OTs right after he was announced as head coach.  Landing three guys that can play tackle to go along with a couple interior recruits was huge.

Taylor Decker (6’8’’ 313)

–          Rivals Take – 4 star, #23 OT,  #212 Nationally, #14 in Ohio

–          Scout’s Take – 4*, #14 OT,  #77 Nationally, #12 in Ohio

–          ESPN’s Take – 3*,  #63 OT

–          Joe’s Take – 4*

I think ESPN really has this one wrong.  I have Decker as the top OL in the state and #7 overall.  An entire recruiting season without an offer from the old staff left most observers scratching their heads.

It was fun to watch  Meyer come in and grab him from Notre Dame.  On film, Decker shows everything you look for in a LT.  He has the size at 6’8’’ to provide leverage and the long arms needed to maintain separation from defenders.

He is also a very good basketball player which speaks volumes about his feet.

Jacoby Boren (6’2″ 270 lbs.)

–          Rivals Take – 3*, #37 OG

–          Scout’s Take – 3*, #80 OG

–          ESPN’s Take – 3*, #45 OG

–          Joe’s Take – 3*

He is a Boren. He may be smaller in stature, but I would never bet against him.

He will need a redshirt year and another year or two to get bigger, but with the work ethic and genes he possesses I think he will be a contributor before he leaves.

He could make a switch to the D-Line at some point as well.

Patrick Elflein (6’3’’ 270)

–          Rivals Take – 3 star NR

–          Scouts Take – 3 star #31 OG

–          ESPN’s Take – 4 star #26 OG

–          Joe’s Take – 3*

Elfein is another player that had some scratching their head when he was offered. The good news is that he was a camp offer and the coaches saw him up close.

Like Boren, he will need a redshirt year and another year or two to get bigger.

Joey O’Connor  (6’4’’ 295)  – UA Game Participant

–          Rivals’ Take – 4*, #12  OT, #102 Nationally, #2 in Colorado

–          Scouts Take – 3*, #17 OG

–          ESPN’s Take – 4*, #8 OG, #104 Nationally, #1 in Colorado

–          Joe’s take – 4*

I really like the nasty streak from O’Connor.  At one point there were questions about whether we would take him or not, but some of the staff seemed to like him at RT, which makes him more valuable.

Watching his film and seeing him live in the UA game- he can run block for sure. He goes all the way to the whistle, but the question will be his feet in the pass blocking game against the quick DE’s.

Kyle Dodson (6’6″ 310 lbs) – USAAB Particpant

–          Rivals’ Take – #178 Nationally

–          Scout’s Take – #181 Nationally

–          ESPN’s Take – 3 star, #81 OT

–          Joe’s Take – 4*

I think ESPN is way off base on this one. I agree that Dodson is a 4 star.

I have him as the #2 O-lineman in state behind Decker and just ahead of Kyle Kalis.  Dodson has the ability to stick at LT, which is why I have him above Kalis.

I see Kyle as having the ability to jump right into the 2 deep from day one, but I would really like to get him a redshirt year.

I think the recruiting services have it right with Kyle, and there is a chance that in 4-5 years he could be up there as a first round draft pick- if he capitalizes on his ability to dominate at LT.

Overall

A-

I think we took care of our needs on the offensive side other than a speed playmaker.

Offensive tackle was our biggest need and we landed two.

We continued our string of big time RB’s with 2 studs and filled depth at QB, TE and WR.

Diggs or Neal make this class an A on the offensive side of the ball.

The most amazing part about this class is when Meyer took over we were about to lose Dunn, and Decker and Dodson were both committed elsewhere.