Ohio State Offer Would “Mean Everything” to Top-Five 2024 Ohio Prospect Colin White

By Griffin Strom on June 14, 2023 at 8:35 am
Colin White
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Colin White had company as he walked onto the main floor of the Schottenstein Center on the second day of Ohio State’s high school team camp Friday.

The Ottawa-Glandorf High School senior and fifth-ranked Ohio prospect in the 2024 class was stride-for-stride with Ohio State assistant coach Jake Diebler, who had plenty to say to the three-star small forward before his matchup with Buffalo, New York’s Nichols School.

Whatever Diebler said worked, because White largely dominated in an impressive all-around performance in his final game in Columbus. The 6-foot-6, 180-pound wing spent time running the show as a point forward for the Titans, operated out of the high post against a zone defense, facilitated offense for teammates and routinely scored the ball from both the mid-range and close to the basket.

White displayed the versatility, patience and high basketball IQ that helped make him the No. 150 player in the country, per 247Sports’ composite rankings, and earned another conversation with Diebler immediately following the contest. White said both Diebler and Ohio State head coach Chris Holtmann gave him plaudits and areas for improvement in his two days at the camp and will continue to keep an eye on him moving forward.

“The two days of camp's been awesome. We played pretty well, took some losses, but it's been really good,” White said. “Coach Holtmann and Coach Diebler both talked to me and they'll just keep watching on the AAU circuit and really like my game. I'm an Ohio guy, so it's a nice place, I love it here. And they're good people. … They really like me attacking the rim and getting to the rim, using my athleticism. They like how my jumper looks. It's more focused on the defensive end, like who I can guard, what position I can guard, that's one of the main things.”

Given Ohio State’s obvious interest in White during the camp, one might’ve thought he’d done enough to earn a scholarship offer from the program. But that wasn’t the case. The Buckeyes only have one commit in the 2024 class, Bishop Gorman guard and 38th-ranked overall prospect Juni Mobley, but they may only take one more recruit in the cycle. That means for now, Ohio State can be picky with its remaining targets.

Should White continue to impress, improve his stock and eventually earn an offer from the scarlet and gray, he said he would be thrilled to receive it.

“It'd be great. In-state kid, you grow up watching Ohio State, so that would mean everything,” White said.

White led Ottawa-Glandorf all the way to the Ohio High School Athletic Association boys' basketball Division III state championship game this past season, where the Titans came up just short in a six-point loss to Lutheran East. White led his team with 18 points in the contest.

“It'd be great. In-state kid, you grow up watching Ohio State, so that would mean everything.”– White on what an OSU offer would mean

White and company were also the state runner-up in 2021-22, and made it to the semifinal round of the state championship bracket the season before that. Despite losing six seniors from the 2022-23 roster, White hopes to spearhead another deep postseason run in his final year of high school.

“It was awesome (getting to the state championship this past season). It's a tradition at OG,” White said. “I feel like a team's down there every year, girls or boys. So I mean, that experience is one of a kind and I wouldn't trade it for the world.”

Since the end of his junior season of high school hoops, White has continued to pick up wins on the hardwood with the Indiana Elite AAU program. White said the team only lost one game this spring and “we really shouldn’t have lost it.” Despite having five Division I teammates, White said he’s scored as many as 32 points in a single game over the past few months.

Since the final week of April, White’s earned scholarship offers from Cincinnati, Stanford, Ohio, Toledo and Stanford, among others. While he hasn’t yet released any list of top schools, White said Cincinnati is “on me really hard” and that Stanford, West Virginia, Loyola Chicago and Toledo are “the schools that are really trying to get me.”

White said he’s happy to see the Bearcats moving to the Big 12 and that he has a good relationship with head coach Wes Miller.

“Going to the Big 12, better competition, more eyes on you. That's a huge get,” White said. “And Coach Miller, I love him. He's one of my favorite head coaches. I love his philosophy. So I really like those guys over there.”

White also said he could see himself as a good fit in Bob Huggins’ Mountaineer program, where he could potentially play either guard position.

“They've got a lot of transfers this year, lot of good transfers. And the success they had last year was great, making the NCAA Tournament,” White said. “So I think I could be a lead guard there, maybe play the one or the two and give them a boost on offense. And the IQ is a main thing I could do there.”

More offers are continuing to fly in. Following White's Ohio State camps performances, former Buckeye head coach Thad Matta added Butler to the list of potential suitors for the Ohio native's services when he offered White a scholarship Tuesday.

But White won’t rush to make any final decisions just yet. More high-major offers could follow as White shows off his skills this summer, and perhaps Ohio State will be one of them.

“I would say I'm definitely holding off,” White said. “Try to get a top six maybe by the end of the summer and then make a decision before the basketball season next year.”

As for what’s next, White will participate in the 3SSB AAU finals in Rock Hill, South Carolina, in July, and will also take part in ESPN’s forthcoming tournament in Las Vegas, which features the top five teams in each AAU circuit.

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