Our Honor Defend

Yep, it’s that time again.

Signing day may be a few weeks away, thus making these BKAB features a little bit premature.  However, the size of this class is bigger than yesteryear’s, and I have a summer project underway at the workplace that may actually take me out of the country in the summer and, thus, away from serious blogging.  Otherwise, I would’ve started these in February and gone chronologically.  Instead, I’m starting these now and I start with the kids already enrolled (Boren, Homan, Klein, Mewhort).  First up: Zach Boren.

Height: 6′1
Weight: 240
40: 4.72
High School: Pickerington Central HS; Pickerington, Ohio

His Recruitment: If you follow Ohio State recruiting with some serious interest, or even follow Ohio State football with the slightest of interest, you may have come across the Boren name by now.  If you haven’t heard, Justin Boren — older brother of the Zach Boren in question — (in)famously made headlines when he transferred from the University of Michigan’s football to play for Ohio State as a non-scholarship.  This move came on April 23rd, and — looking ahead — Zach committed 7 days later to the Buckeyes.  Your working assumption might be that the younger brother just naturally followed the older brother, with the trail set by the latter.

This would actually be incorrect.  While Justin was still a starter for Michigan, Zach made a regional splash in the recruiting world when he announced that he was no lock to follow his father’s footsteps, or his older brother’s precedent, to the University of Michigan.

“Yeah, I mean, a lot of the schools that are recruiting me just come in and ask my coach if it’s just Michigan or Ohio State. But right now, I’m actually leaning against Michigan. To tell you the truth, I think it would be cool, starting a different legacy with a Boren going to a different school, so I want to get out to as many schools as I can.”

The announcement, via Scout, came after a late September visit to Ohio State’s campus.  At the time, he was without an offer, but very close to receiving some from Nerdwestern, Ohio and Akron.  A day later, Bucknuts also interviewed him, where Boren again relayed the same message.  In short, he was really interested in what he saw at Ohio State, he really liked Luke Fickell (who he got to know during Justin’s recruitment), he had grown out of his early fascination with Michigan and that Ohio State probably sat at the top of his list (though he had no offers by that point).  The turnaround was certainly shocking for recruitniks who remember his (alleged) message on a Michigan recruiting board where he expressed dismay to the point of tears that his older brother Justin was a serious Buckeye lean during most of his recruitment.  Indeed, the legend holds that Zach played a heavy hand in cajoling Justin to Michigan, even when father Mike was noncommittal about the issue.  As we know now from the fallout of the Justin Boren saga, this fascination with Ohio State on Justin’s end was indeed accurate.  How much of a role a 13-14 year old Zach played in the affair is still left to your imagination.

Michigan must have received the warning signs loud and clear.  A month later, Zach Boren was in Ann Arbor for a visit.  On that visit, Zach received one of the earliest pitches in his recruitment to become a fullback at the next level.  Running backs coach Fred Jackson told Boren he wants to be his position coach.  Lloyd Carr made the “family legacy” pitch.  He told Zach that he didn’t want to hear the younger Boren thinking of going anywhere other than Michigan.  It didn’t sound like a formal scholarship offer at the time (it could’ve been, for all I know).  What it sounded more like was a courtesy offer — an informal, verbal offer — from Carr based off the family name.  By this time, there was some speculation on how much of an impact Zach could make at the next level, if he really was an elite athlete, and if he could even be an effective linebacker at the next level.  I rarely hear it made explicit in recruiting discussions, but “fullback” in college recruiting seems to be a catch-all category for tough-nosed prospects too slow and devoid of the necessary footwork/vision to carry the ball, too slow and devoid of necessary lateral speed to play linebacker and too small and not as explosive to play on the defensive line.  This seems to be the case for Zach Boren and the end of the Lloyd Carr regime in late 2007.  This situation with Michigan carried over into the beginning of Rodriguez’ regime.  Rodriguez remained noncommittal on a formal offer, but led Zach to believe he had a verbal offer.

By late February, interest in Ohio State was picking up.  He attended Junior Day in late February and again gave glowing remarks.  Indeed, with each visit to Ohio State he made, he became more enamored with the program.  He attended Junior Day — same one with the famous Terrelle Pryor appearance, FYI — with friend and HS teammate Jamie Wood.  Both had expressed interest in playing college football together, though Jamie Wood had already pulled the trigger on his scholarship offer from Ohio State.  He was hosted by Luke Fickell, who assumed primary recruiting responsibilities for Zach¹.  Zach again had positive remarks about the same Luke Fickell to whom he was introduced during Justin’s recruitment.  The interest was also becoming mutual.  For it’s part, Ohio State was thinking of adding another fullback to the class.  Though Adam Homan, designated fullback, had already committed to Ohio State, the position was rather thin on the roster.  Further, Ohio State had plenty of scholarships to spare and Luke Fickell even saw, and may even still sees, a future for Zach at linebacker.  Boren left Junior Day thinking that he was getting closer to an offer from Ohio State².

The offer came on April 2, 2008, just days after Justin Boren announced his intent to transfer from the University of Michigan.  With it, the stars were certainly beginning to align that both Borens, with such a strong Michigan legacy, could end up playing together at Ohio State.  Mike Boren, father of Zach and Justin, informed inquisitive journalists that Justin began seriously looking at Ohio State after he transferred.  Further, with Zach’s already growing interest in the same program, Mike let it be known that he preferred to see both of his sons end up at the same place.  At that point, Pittsburgh was listed as a possible destination for Justin³, but not as a possible destination for Zach.  Zach tried to downplay that conversation.  He let it be known that the offer he received from Ohio State was not an implicit combo deal in hopes of getting two Borens for the price of one.  Further, the decision he reached would not be contingent on Justin’s decision.  Still, curious minds began to wonder about the possible transplant of a significant Michigan legacy to the Men of the Scarlet and Gray.  In Zach’s case, some faithful innuendos indicated that Zach had already accepted the Ohio State offer.

By this point, as much Zach tried to hide it and, admirably, treat his recruitment as his own special predicament, the tail end of his recruitment is inexorably tied into the fate of Justin Boren.  As these aforementioned rumors were popping up that Zach had already committed to Ohio State, Justin was still a week away from completing his last semester at the University of Michigan.  Therefore, nothing was official in the days following Zach’s Ohio State offer.  The wheels started to turn right as older brother Justin made his decision to enroll at The Ohio State University.  Zach, who expressed his interest to decide in a month after receiving his offer from Ohio State, was nearing a decision himself.  According to father Mike Boren, Zach was about a week away from his own decision.  Zach, was now hearing more from the coaching staff about being a linebacker at the next level, was unconcerned with the previous commitments of Dorian Bell, Storm Klein and Jordan Whiting at the position.  Per his father, he didn’t care if there were 30 linebackers in the 2009 class.

His Commitment: It may seem as little surprise that Zach Boren chose Ohio State, given the month-long window of events that preceded his April 30th commitment.  However, the couple years that preceded that short-term flurry of events makes Zach’s commitment one of the most unlikely Ohio State commitments in recent history.

As he told ABC 6, he was en route to school that morning when he told his mom that he didn’t feel he wanted to wait any longer to announce what he had known for a while now: he wanted to be a Buckeye.  Zach committed early in the morning by way of a text message to Luke Fickell, who apparently had just gotten off a plane in Washington, DC.  It seems easy to attribute Zach’s decision back to Justin, in that Justin’s decision a week earlier made Zach’s decision an obvious one.  Zach, however, insists this is not the case.

“If my brother was still at Michigan, the same thing would have happened today; I still would have picked Ohio State,” Zach said. “I didn’t see any reason to keep waiting when I knew Ohio State was where I wanted to spend the next four or five years of my life.”

The commitment was Ohio State’s 14th and marked the end of Ohio State’s linebacker recruiting in 2009.

Where He Excels: Boren’s versatility is definitely a plus for right now.  Ohio State graduates two starting linebackers and should (hopefully) open up competition for the one held by Homan.  This is certainly not a knock on Homan (far from it), just an expression of my personal preference to see competition wide open for playing time.  I feel it could only help.  Further, Ohio State is short on fullbacks.  Freshmen like Adam Homan and Jermil Martin (redshirt) figure to play an important role at fullback while other freshmen and sophomores like Etienne Sabino, Andrew Sweat, Jordan Whiting, Dorian Bell and Storm Klein figure to be as important in sorting out the linebacker corp.  Consequently, Zach Boren is not wanting for avenues for competition to gain playing time.

At the fullback position, Zach is given an advantage by his distinct toughness.  Fearlessness is, in my opinion, the first quality to succeeding at fullback and I don’t see where Zach is lacking in that respect.  In available fullback situations that I’ve seen, Zach is more than capable in getting extra yards, especially in goal line situations.  He shows good form in approaching the line of scrimmage while carrying the ball and I’m confident he can show the same in run-blocking situations out of the I-formation.  I’m also confident he can show the same ability on all types of running plays, not just those off tackle.

As a linebacker, his bread and butter in high school, Zach certainly won’t wow you with well-timed blitzes or indeed anything to blindside a quarterback on a passing situation.  He does much better in running situations.  The term “smart” is usually employed to describe a linebacker that lacks a Ray Lewis type explosiveness, but can still deduce formations and anticipate the direction of the upcoming play accordingly.  This would be appropriate for Zach.  He’s pretty good in stopping run plays and getting off lead blocks to do it.  He also shows a pretty good knack to come up with the ball on turnovers.  There’s nothing quite like a grinder to get the respect of the interested football fan.

Must Work On: I still see Zach as ultimately a fullback since the limitations as a linebacker outweigh the limitations observed at fullback.  That said, it appears Zach will try out for both and the coaching staff will see what sticks.

At linebacker, I don’t see the necessary speed⁴ to be a star at the position at the next level.  If he plays any linebacker position at Ohio State, it’s likely to be in the middle, where he played at Pickerington Central.  I’m curious how much man coverage he can safely do.  It’s easy to write off some prospects like Zach as slow at the linebacker position, but the lateral pursuit I see is still decent.  Yet, “decent” is not necessarily a grade I think the Buckeyes are striving for at the position.

At fullback, the limited mobility, especially lateral mobility (see: also dilemma as a possible linebacker), suggests he might have trouble picking up the perimeter heat for Terrelle Pryor on passing situations.  As we know, said perimeter heat has been a serious thorn in the Buckeyes’ side for the past couple seasons.  Ultimately, passing situations for Ohio State are not exclusively done out of the I formation and I think this knock on Zach Boren can be both mitigated through playcalling and corrected through coaching.

It’s also worth noting that the criticisms thrown at Boren as a linebacker are the exact same ones thrown AJ Hawk’s way while he too was a 3-star recruit coming out of high school.  I hate to degenerate recruiting breakdowns to “but they said the same about [ INSERT BUCKEYE LEGEND HERE ], and now look at him!” because those type of comparisons are as fruitless in recruiting breakdowns as “[ INSERT RECRUIT HERE ] is the next [ INSERT BUCKEYE LEGEND HERE ]“, but I should at least volunteer it.

This shouldn’t be much of a surprise, but count Mike Boren as one who thinks Justin will turn some heads as a linebacker.

“He’s probably going to surprise a lot of people, but he’s not going to surprise me,” Mike Boren said. “You can’t teach instinct, and he’s got instinct. He’s a naturally good player.”

Redshirt? He enrolled early and could see immediate playing time at fullback, or possibly linebacker.  However, he did suffer a pretty nasty injury late November in a game against Cincinnati Elder.  In said game, Zach tore his ACL, MCL and meniscus.  Fortunately, he should be ready for full contact drills by June.  I’m still uncertain on what exactly he does, but I’m inclined to guess that he does not redshirt in 2009.

Highlights: Courtesy of Scouting Ohio. The first one is his junior year highlights. The second is senior year.

I would apologize for the music, but it’s ultimately not my doing.

Miscellany:

• Father is Mike Boren.  You may have heard of him through the whole ordeal involving Justin.  Mike Boren played for the Wolvereenies from 1980 to 1983⁵ and went to Ann Arbor by way of Eastmoor HS in Columbus.  If you don’t know, Eastmoor produced Archie Griffin.  Apparently Mike strived to play for the Buckeyes growing up, but he was not offered a scholarship by then-coach Earle Bruce because Bruce thought he was too slow and short to be a linebacker.  Boren was offered by Bo Schembechler and eventually attended the University of Michigan.  He is 6th all-time among Michigan linebackers in tackles.
• Mother is Hope Boren.  She ran track at the University of Michigan.
• The Borens seem like a big family.  We know about Justin and Zach, but there are at least two other siblings in the family.  Jacoby was a true freshman starting center for the Pickerington Central football team (#53).  I think there’s also a kid sister in the family.  You can see her in this picture, but no name is given.
• It’s debatable whether or not Zach Boren is a better baseball prospect than he is a football prospect.  He has made it known that he would like to try both in college.  Zach, a power-hitting first baseman for his Pickerington Central HS team, has gotten the okay from the baseball coaches at Ohio State.  I haven’t gathered what the response was from the football staff.
• Zach becomes the third person recruited and signed under Tressel who had a father who played at Michigan.  TJ Downing and Anthony Gonzalez are the other two.
• Naturally, with Zach (and Justin’s) move to Ohio State, the Boren household has been undergoing something of a transformation.  Upon committing to Ohio State (and corollary to the messy divorce from Michigan for older brother Justin), Zach started to offload some old Michigan clothes.  He donated what accounted to roughly 2 suitcases worth of Michigan clothes to homeless shelters around Franklin County.
• Mike Boren has also started getting into the act.  Upon Zach’s commitment (and Justin’s divorce), he began wearing scarlet and gray colors for the first time ever.  This was a stark contrast from the Michigan paraphernalia he would adorn around central Ohio, and friends and family noted as much.  Actually, if A) you’re a Michigan fan that happens to be reading this and B) you’re looking for something to really piss you off, might I recommend reading this article.  Basically, Mike Boren has transformed from wearing Michigan gear all the time, to wearing scarlet and gray colors (basically: red or heather gray shirts) to now wearing nothing but Buckeye gear all around town.  The article says Zach and Justin went overboard with the Ohio State clothing on Mike’s birthday and Mike has made the clothing articles an everyday thing.
• Any questions pertaining to Zach Boren’s toughness and passion for football can be put to rest in the article linked in this sentence.
• In my opinion, Zach Boren handled the Justin Boren saga at Michigan the best out of anyone who went public with their thoughts.  Remember: Zach received his offer from Ohio State just days after Justin announced his intent to transfer from Michigan.  When pressed by Scout for comment, Zach said:

“Look, I still love Michigan football, even with all that’s taken place recently,” he admitted. “My family was raised on Michigan football, but I realize that I will have a job to do, regardless of where I play college football. If I play for Ohio State, or any school that plays Michigan, it will be my job to go out and beat them. I don’t believe Michigan will continue to recruit me after what has happened, but I still respect that program.’

“I know I made some statements when I was younger that might have angered some people. Those comments were blown out of proportion on the internet, and didn’t reflect what I truly felt. I’m honored to be offered by Ohio State and I can’t tell you how excited I am to have this offer. I’m not sure when I’ll be making a decision and I really want to sit down with the Ohio State coaching staff and talk with them. This is a very happy moment for me.”

• It seems like nice, squishy comments for Michigan football, but I feel pretty sure in saying that Zach has adopted more of a hardline attitude towards Michigan recently as he’s enrolled and hung out more with the other players. Even if the information that I’ve gathered about that is off base, those comments, and Rodriguez’ non-comments, were probably the most dignified in any thing that has been said about the issue since the transfer.
• Jamie Wood, an incoming Buckeye himself and an Army All-American, is a high school teammate.  Pat White (no, not that Pat White) also played for Pickerington Central and I think is already enrolled at Michigan State.  Pat White is the son of a former Bruce-era Buckeye (and eventual transfer to WVU).  I forget if his father’s name is Terry or William, but I digress.  This isn’t Better Know A Spartan.
• Zach’s roommate is currently Adam Homan.  Only 4 2009 recruits are currently enrolled and the assertion that Homan is his roommate, meaning all 4 are not rooming together at the moment (are they?) leads me to believe they’re being housed somewhere other than one of the towers at the moment.
• He took his official visit in December (see: above linked article intended to make Michigan fans pissy) and was hosted by, yes, Justin Boren.  Jake Stoneburner also hosted for a day as well.

Absent any real way to end these silly features that doesn’t incorporate the ‘consider yourself better known’ line with the “The More You Know” PSA graphic: Zach Boren, consider yourself better known… or something.

1. I don’t know for sure, but Ohio State’s approach to recruiting seems to be compartmentalized into regional focuses in important ways.  In other words, I know for sure Joe Daniels (QB coach) has primary responsibility over Western PA.  I think Luke Fickell has similar responsibilities for central Ohio. [↩]
2. Just as a point of reference: Zach also had written offers from Cincinnati, Akron, Toledo and Kent State by this time [↩]
3. It’s where I thought he would end up, to tell you the truth. [↩]
4. Yes, I know, I hate that term too, but bear with me here. [↩]
5. A preseason injury did derail his senior season, though.  Otherwise, I think he would’ve been a 3 year starter. [↩]