Our Honor Defend

At long last, I have a small window of time in order to Better Know an O’Niner.  For the 6th installment of this 25 part series in its 2nd edition titled Better Know A Buckeye, I begin to look at the 3 Spring Quarter enrollees.  I start with CJ Barnett, a cornerback and Under-Armour All-American from Clayton, Ohio, before moving forward with features on Jamie Wood and James Jackson.  For a guy who started his recruitment with no interest in staying in the Midwest, let alone Ohio, CJ Barnett was one of the earliest commitments in the class.

Height: 6′1
Weight: 175lbs
40: 4.45
GPA: 3.97
High School: Clayton Northmont HS; Clayton, Ohio

His Recruitment: The kids that commit early in the process don’t have much stories to tell in their respective recruitments for two reasons.  One of them is painfully obvious: there’s not much to their recruitment because it was so short.  The other: they tend to commit to a program before most other programs get a chance to evaluate them or extend their own offers.  They even commit under the cover of darkness, with little fanfare from recruiting services to hype their decision-making process.  This is the case with CJ Barnett.  Cincinnati, always an early entrant into the Ohio prepster sweepstakes, was his only other offer.  Further, write-ups on CJ are few and far between.

The absence of offers is curious, though, since it’s not like CJ was an unknown commodity.  He came from the same high school as Zebrie Sanders, a highly touted offensive line prospect who eventually signed with Florida State.  Following his senior teammate on his unofficial recruiting trips allowed CJ to get some exposure for himself.  He was a frequent companion to Zebrie on some of his trips, including trips to Michigan for an open house and a camp.  In the latter, he demonstrated his abilities to be an elite prospect.  He also went to a few Ohio State events with Zebrie, including a bowl practice for that game in January 2007.  Though CJ was generally warm to all experiences, he remained relatively agnostic to either programs by summer 2007.  He expressed interest in attending the 2007 Ohio State-Michigan game in Ann Arbor, but did not profess an interest in either side winning.  Indeed, he was a Florida State fan growing up.

CJ’s recruitment intensified through the 2007 season, though offers were not forthcoming yet.  He attended Ohio State’s homestands against Nerdwestern and Michigan State, coming away impressed with the game atmosphere and Ohio State’s performances in both games.  He also attended the 2007 installment of The Game in Ann Arbor, remarking how the rivalry compensated for otherwise unpleasant weather on that particular day.  Still, in spite of his guest status at some Ohio State and Michigan events his junior year, and the mailers he was getting from Clemson, Michigan and Boston College by this time, CJ’s recruitment was relatively low key.  Kurt Coleman, a former teammate of his, counseled him on not investing so much into his recruitment and letting it take care of itself.  Indeed, so much of the articles that detail his reactions to his 2007 experiences came after he got his first big offer.

That aforementioned “first big offer” came from Ohio State on the week of Dec 17-21, 2007.  Only when that offer came did the flurry of interest in him from recruiting outlets follow.  Though the offer from Ohio State certainly caught CJ’s attention, he was still in no rush to move towards a decision.  By this time, he was receiving mailers from a diverse set of programs, such as Clemson, Michigan and Boston College aforementioned.  Two SEC programs — Alabama and LSU — joined them in sending mailers as well.  The only important thing CJ volunteered regarding his decision was that football prowess, by itself, would not be enough to wow him.

“I don’t know (who would be in my top five). But the school that I’m going to go to is going to have to have high academics because I’m not going to school just for football. I’m there for the education. As far as a top five, I don’t have a top five.”

Amazingly, the offer to CJ — a future Under Armour All-American — didn’t force the hand from anyone else around the country.  This may have been an artifact of Kurt Coleman’s advice to let recruiting take care of itself, or — just as well — a gross oversight from almost everyone else around the country.  The next write-up on CJ came on January 19, 2008, almost a month after the offer from Ohio State.  By that time, Ohio State was well into its off-season and already looking ahead to the 2009 class, focusing on CJ, Marcus Hall and Melvin Fellows, Safari Planet at the moment.  The only thing CJ volunteered in this conversaton with Bill Kurelic is that he knew he wanted to visit Ohio State.  He just didn’t know when.

“When” became the February 10th OSU-Indiana game.  “When” also became the day of his commitment.

His Commitment: Before the start of the Buckeyes-Hoosiers game, CJ Barnett saw enough from his visit to issue a verbal commitment to Ohio State.  In doing so, CJ became the 6th O’Niner in the class.  For a guy with no emotional connection to Ohio State outside of former HS teammate Kurt Coleman, and who was counseled by said teammate on taking a hands-off approach to his recruitment, the commitment was a little surprising.  When pressed for why he made his decision, CJ expressed how everything “just felt right” during his visit.  In his own words:

“Coach (Paul) Haynes showed us around,” he said. “The facilities are nice. Everything was nice up there. Then after coach Haynes showed us around, coach Tressel and the A.D. talked. Then I talked to coach Tressel and told him I was committing. After that I went out and watched the basketball game.”

Thus ends the recruitment that never really was.

Where He Excels: I believe the Buckeyes approached recruiting at the cornerback position in a unique way in 2009, specifically targeting two molds of cornerback.  First, there’s the tall, smothering jammer needed to handle the influx of 6′3-and-taller wide receivers that’s becoming vogue in pro-style college offenses and the NFL (i.e, Corey Brown; Travis Howard).  Second, there’s the speed demons to assist in handling the shorter, speedy wideouts that’s becoming vogue elsewhere in the college football landscape (i.e, Dominic Clarke, Justin Green).  CJ falls into the former category.

The first thing that caught my eye with CJ is his wingspan.  I’ve not seen a formal measure of it, but it still looks like he’s got longer arms than usual (see: here).  This allows for some good press coverage on man-to-man and the ability to force wide receivers off their routes.

CJ can also ballhawk with the best of them.  He shows an impressive ability to make plays on the ball in the air, either undercutting the receiver for an interception or leveling said hypothetical receiver for an incomplete pass.  Some of the plays made during the course of his career, and at the Under Armour All-American game, showcase CJ’s athleticism, instincts and ability to be left on an island to himself, reliably making the play necessary for his defense.

The physicality is impressive for a guy slated to be a cornerback at the next level.  He excels in run support.  Basically, CJ has the size to hit like a safety and often does.  Truthfully, he could be just as good of a safety product at the next level, though cornerback is his designated position for Ohio State.  In terms of violence, his highlight reels strongly resemble Kurt Coleman’s film, though he has the tools necessary to be a great followup to Malcolm Jenkins’ magnificent career at Ohio State.  Superlatives like the ones I just used are never helpful and should be used and interpreted with great caution, though.  It’ll be up to CJ and staff to make the most of his abilities.

Must Work On: I didn’t see too much in his clips on what he must work on, though a few issues can be discerned.  First, maybe it’s the backdrop of everything said on ESPN regarding Malcolm Jenkins’ jump to the NFL, but “speed”, while not lacking per se, is not a strength, per se.  In short, if he’s an eligible candidate for a high draft pick in the NFL in a couple years time, I suspect this same conversation on Malcolm Jenkins will carry for CJ.  It won’t matter much for his time at Ohio State, though.

The only red flag that came to my eyes was his backpedal.  The tools are there for a great backpedal like that exhibited by Dominic Clarke; I even see it every now and then.  However, even the casual observer can probably pick up that he gets a little lacksadaisical with it.  Sometimes his backpedal degenerates into a bit of a hop.  Unless he works on consistency with his backpedal, he’ll be easier crossed up in coverage, allowing his targets space for a catch.

Redshirt? He’s enrolling early and the freshmen (Dominic Clarke, Corey Brown, Travis Howard {RS}) will play an important role in the secondary for this upcoming season.  There’s some anxiety, of course, because ideally experience on the field is best.  However, with a jumpstart to his Ohio State career, CJ will play an important role as either a nickelback on certain situations, or a necessary element to maintaining depth at the position.

Highlights: Scouting Ohio is a prince among thieves.

Miscellany

• CJ will do the pre-law program at Ohio State.  Scout ran a really cool fluff piece way back explaining why he chose pre-law.  In short, CJ likes to argue and he loves debate and thinks that pre-law will be a good fit for him.  The recommendation came from Mom.
• The article’s point is that CJ has dual personalities.  The “on-field” personality is where he wants to hit you.  The “off-field” personality is where he’s rather likeable because he’s not hitting you and causing you grief and emotional strife.
• There’s a lot confusion as to how many offers CJ got.  The Lantern thinks he gathered additional offers from Florida State, Michigan, Miami, Stanford and others.  Bucknuts and Rivals bios, as well as RecruitingPlanet discussion, suggest that he did not.  I side with the latter here, but will make corrections where appropriate.
• CJ initially had no interest in Ohio State because he wanted to be at a college where the weather wasn’t so cold.  Guess who played a unique role in CJ rethinking Ohio State? John Cooper.  Oh yes.  CJ bought John Cooper’s instructional DVD for how to play cornerback, where in it Coop apparently runs off a list of all-[insert superlatives here] corners that have come through his program (Shawn Springs, Antoine Winfield and many, many more).  The idea of Ohio State as a cornerback factory¹ had CJ rethink Ohio State early into his recruitment.  One thing led to another and, voila, CJ Barnett is a Buckeye.  Coop should get an assist for this to some degree.
• Played in the Under Armour All-American Game, along with Jaamal Berry, Duron Carter, Jack Mewhort and Melvin Fellows, Safari Planet.  CJ, however, was the lone future Buckeye playing for the White team.
• Bucknuts’ Barnett file makes this so much easier:

* Vital Statistics: Barnett is regarded as one of the nation’s top prospects at cornerback. He excelled in the secondary as Northmont posted a 10-2 record and reached the second round of the Division I playoffs. He had 63 tackles, 13 pass breakups and one interception on the season. Barnett was a first-team All-Ohio pick by The Associated Press and was also a first-team pick for the ONN/Ohio High All-Ohio team. He also played in the Under Armour All-American Game. Barnett made 59 tackles and intercepted three passes during his sophomore season. Barnett had over 60 tackles and intercepted three more passes during his junior season. Comes from the same high school as current OSU safety Kurt Coleman. Barnett is due to enroll in late March in time for spring football.

* Rankings: He is rated as the No. 8 overall senior prospect in Ohio, according to Ohio High magazine. Also rated as the No. 9 overall prospect in the state, according to The Ohio Football Recruiting News. Barnett is rated as a national top-150 prospect by ESPN.com. That site ranks him as the nation’s No. 89 prospect overall and also as the nation’s 10th-best cornerback

As always, CJ Barnett, consider yourself better known… if that’d be okay with you.

And, to complete the Colbert reference, let’s go ahead and put him on the board.

Class of 2009
Name	Position	Hometown	Better Known?	Name	Position	Hometown	Better Known?
CJ Barnett	DB	Clayton, OH	02.20	Marcus Hall	OL	Glenville, OH
Dorian Bell	LB	Monroeville, PA		Adam Homan	FB	Coldwater, OH	01.29
Adam Bellamy	DT	Aurora, OH		Carlos Hyde	RB	Naples, FL
Jaamal Berry	RB	Miami, FL		James Jackson	WR	Grand Ledge, TSUN
Zach Boren	FB	Pickerington, OH	01.22	Storm Klein	LB	Nerk, Ahia	02.02
Corey Brown	WR/DB	Monroeville, PA		Corey Linsley	OL	Youngstown, OH
Duron Carter	WR	Ft. Lauderdale, FL		Sam Longo	OL	Belbrook, OH
Dominic Clarke	DB	Frederick MD	02.11	Jack Mewhort	OL	Toledo, OH	02.05
Melvin Fellows’ Safari Planet	DE	Garfield Heights, OH		Jonathan Newsome	LB/DE	Glenville, OH
Chris Fields	WR	Painesville, OH		John Simon	DE	Youngstown, OH
Reid Fragel	TE	Grosse Pointe, TSUN		Jordan Whiting	LB	Louisville, KY
Kenny Guiton	QB	Aldine, TX		Jamie Wood	DB	Pickerington, OH
Jordan Hall	ATH	Jeannette, PA

1. …and it is. [↩]