Our Honor Defend

I normally don’t write about recruiting unless a commitment to Ohio State is made or I’m in the process of better knowing them in light of said commitment and signature.  However, National Letter of Intent Day is this rapidly approaching February 3rd, I don’t get to watch much shooty hoops (no BTN) and I’m struggling for content.  Ergo: this post.

It’s not only such a petty justification.  Ohio State is an interesting position with its 2010 recruiting class.  We all remember that what must be the nadir of Ohio State football recruiting (at least in my lifetime, without a strong knowledge of the Bruce years) occurred between 2003 and 2007.  The past two classes, 2008 and 2009, were a strong departure from Tressel’s usual intake of prepsters with even Dr Saturday, MD (PhD?) noting that these classes are setting up Tressel nicely for the 2010 season and maybe beyond that.  People who follow Buckeye recruiting knew that 2010 was not going to be like 2009 (or what it is for the Florida Gators this year before The Urban begins vacay); we had limited scholarship spaces.  Therefore, no one expected an elite class in 2010, just one that would meet needs and take in some kids that the coaching staff had good feelings about (and, recruiting rankings notwithstanding, the coaching staff has a pretty good track record on these).  Nevertheless, I think the Buckeyes exceeded my expectations in this class so far (having James Louis really helps, more on him later).  Further, there’s a possibility the Buckeyes could exceed even that and finish this class with a bang.  I hope the following will serve as a primer for Buckeye fans who want to know who the Buckeyes are targeting in the homestretch and what are some of the newest developments therein.

For the uninitiated, you can use Rivals.com’s list as a succinct directory of who is committed.  Do you see Carlos Hyde’s name there, but remember that I already better knew him last year?  He didn’t qualify immediately, spent some time at a prep school and enrolled for winter quarter as part of the 2010 class.

Some Buckeye fans may want Jordan Hicks more than Seantrel Henderson.  I’d love to have them both, obviously, but Henderson is the biggest prize since his incorporation into the fold will help the offensive tackle position enormously by virtue of having another option.  Henderson is still undecided and still considering a lot of schools.  Ohio State wants him; Minnesota may want him more than anyone.  Oklahoma, Florida, Miami, Iowa and USC are still in the mix.  Pete Carroll’s recent departure to the pros left things open for Henderson regarding USC, but the arrival of Kiffin and the addition of James Gregg means USC is still in it.  Recently, Notre Dame made a visit.  It was the Henderson’s first foray into Brian Kelly’s up close, personal (and very effective in a good way) form of recruiting and the Hendersons were impressed.  Seantrel has a lot of things on his plate at the moment, not the least of them being upping his ACT score.  His decision will come on February 3rd.  While Ohio State fans “hope for the best, prepare for the worst” with the signing day decisions, I feel oddly comfortable about where we are with Henderson.  I’m by no means guaranteeing anything or saying he’s a lean one way or the other, but I like hearing how the Hendersons see recruiting for what it is and were greatly alarmed by getting so much assurances from places like USC and Florida only to see their coaches undergo different dramas that lead them to A) the NFL or B) media-whoring vacay, respectively.  Proof? Below.

It guarantees nothing, but suggests that the stability of the coaching staff is a major plus and that the interest in Ohio State is earnest, if not decisive. We’ll see how this one pans out.

Update: I finished this post after dinner, only to be surprised with a new Bucknuts story on Jim Tressel’s visit to the Hendersons before I retire for the night.  Everything went well, both Tressels and Jim Bollman made the in-home visit, and Seantrel has eliminated Oklahoma and Iowa from consideration.  A visit from Miami and Florida are forthcoming.

Jordan Hicks, a linebacker from Lakota West, is the other big prize on the board.  Everything I read suggests he’s genuinely torn among Ohio State, Texas and Florida.  Florida surprises me here.  I can’t imagine they have any room left in their recruiting class and I think they’re full on linebackers.  To be honest, it’s mostly just the disgust of the thought of Florida not only getting their state’s best, but ours too.  They’re already after Braxton Miller.  As for Hicks, I always felt like Texas was the one that might ultimately take him away from home since Hicks, for a reason I don’t know entirely know yet, just really liked Texas.  Interestingly enough, with under 2 weeks to signing day, Hicks apparently wants to make a decision before then.  No real interesting developments here, not like in some other cases.

Oh, and just to make the Under Armour Clickety-Clack guys happy, here’s a highlight film of him they wanted me to watch and put on the blog. Done, and, done.

While not a lot is new on the Henderson and Hicks fronts, there’s some intrigue going on with James Louis. James Louis, as you may remember, had me scratching my head when he committed, from Florida, site unseen to Ohio State in July.  The best news from him for the longest time was no news, but there’s now reason to believe his verbal commitment to Ohio State may not be entirely solid.  Florida may or may not be on the verge of putting on a full court press on him;  of this I’m not entirely sure.  I’m not entirely sure because Florida can not have many spots left and they already have some big names that they’re holding out for.  Further, I don’t think he’s in a position of need for the Gators and, again, they can’t have many spots left.  I’m not sure if this is a belated interest from the Gators or a “dog in the manger” deal.  Further, James Louis will apparently visit Virginia Tech and North Carolina with some of his teammates.  His coach says he will but, in the Bucknuts post linked above, James says he won’t.  I’m not too concerned about this.  Southern recruits are a little different.  Wavering, taking visits while committed elsewhere, are all standard fare.  Further, it may be just a trip to see how things are in these two schools since James selected himself out of the recruiting process when he committed to Ohio State.  Whatever happens happens.  I think he ultimately signs with Ohio State, but remember: no recruit is a must have.

The other interesting development you may not have been aware of regards Morgan Moses.  Morgan Moses is a class of 2009 graduate and originally signed with Virginia.  Ohio State was interested, but eventually backed off once it became clear that he would not qualify.  Sure enough, he did not qualify, was shuttled off to Fork Union (w/ Carlos Hyde) and is now back on the market.  I would not have expected Ohio State to go back after him but, to my surprise, they did.  Tressel even made a home visit.  I like this.  I really like this.  Should he sign with Ohio State, he will add important depth at this all-too-important position.  The Buckeyes join other suitors from the likes of South Carolina, Virginia and, yes, Florida.  While Henderson and Hicks will no doubt dominate the interest of Buckeye fans down the stretch, what happens with Morgan Moses will be worth following.

Lastly, Dominique Brown received an offer from Ohio State.  To be painfully honest, I’m a little behind on my reading of Dominique Brown.  He was previously committed to Cincinnati, so I didn’t bother to read much about him.  He’s an athlete from Cincinnati’s Winton Woods high school and an intriguing one at that.  There’s a catch: Ohio State offered him thinking of him as a Y or Z wide receiver.  This is not a major problem for Brown, but he would really love to play quarterback.  It was his position in high school and he’d like to continue making plays with the ball at the next level.  The perfect program for an athlete like Brown is Georgia Tech, who is thinking of him as a quarterback.  Paul Johnson will be making a visit shortly.  Time is running out for Brown as he tries to play catch-up in his recruitment.  This, like Morgan Moses, will be one of the subplots leading to and including February 3rd.

Elsewhere

I’m not allocating much space to the following, thinking that their fates are certain.  These are obviously just my opinions.

• Matt James, OT from Cincinnati’s St. Xavier, is still on the board, but I’m fully expecting he signs with Kelly and the Irish.
• Christian Bryant made a splash when he was rumored to have committed North Carolina.  I still think he ends up at Ohio State.
• Chaz Green, OL from Tampa Catholic, was visited by Tressel, but I don’t see any scenario where he eschews Florida for Ohio State.