It should be no surprise that Michigan's losing is good for Ohio State's recruiting.
The many troubles at The School Up North have ramifications beyond this season. Beyond the losing that makes this season miserable, Michigan's debacle can and already has begun to erode its formerly strong 2015 recruiting class.
In times of trouble, committed recruits tend to look around at their options. Michigan's policy has been that it will no longer consider recruits who have given a verbal commit to Michigan to be solid commitments if they take official visits elsewhere, but this season's failure has required flexibility.
This fall, Michigan's coaching staff has tried to prevent decommitments by allowing their commits greater freedom in taking official visits to other schools. Some of them are using that freedom to visit Ohio State.
Brady Hoke and company cannot be happy that some of his commits are taking official visits to his bitter rival's campus. Given the recent decommitment of four-star defensive lineman Darian Roseboro, they have no other choice.
Garrett Taylor
Garrett Taylor is the centerpiece of a Michigan class that is beginning to shed players. A cornerback from Richmond, Va., Taylor is a consensus top-100 player nationally and one of the top 10 players at his position. He will also be visiting Ohio State this season; as Jeremy Birmingham reported in Thursday night's Hurry Up article, Taylor will visit Columbus on Nov. 22 for the Indiana game.
Wide receiver coach Zach Smith and defensive line coach Larry Johnson are Taylor's recruiters, which makes sense given his location. Smith and Johnson recruit the DMV (District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia) area well, competing with and sometimes beating the top Virginia schools for their services.
Ohio State's chances with Taylor are very good here. Taylor was one of four Wolverine commits who privately expressed interest in hearing from Ohio State, and he was the first to go public with an official announcement. If he has a good experience on the official visit, he could shift allegiances from blue to red.
Mike Weber
The Buckeyes' top running back target has been clear for some time: Damien Harris, a five-star back from Berea, Ky. When Harris decommitted from Michigan in January, Ohio State may have been his top choice. Now, however, things seem to be trending toward Kentucky. (Jeremy Birmingham has predicted "if Kentucky wins more than eight games, Harris is picking Kentucky." The Wildcats are 5-1 and playing some of their best football all season.)
If Harris does opt for Kentucky, the Buckeyes will turn to Mike Weber. A 5-foot-10, 205-pound running back from Detroit, Weber is a top-150 player nationally. He was at the center of a recruiting battle between Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State for months, which shouldn't be a surprise for a quick, bruising Cass Tech prospect.
The skirmish ended when Larry Scott went to MSU and Ohio State remained focused on Harris. With two of three schools looking at other running back options showing a greater level of interest, the Wolverines stood out. A little over two months ago, Weber committed to Michigan.
Weber is hoping to visit this fall for a game, but unlike Taylor he does not have a date set. If he does set a date, it will be for one of the Buckeyes' four remaining home games: Rutgers (Oct 18), Illinois (Nov 1), Indiana (Nov 22) or Michigan (Nov 29).
I think Damien Harris is headed to Kentucky, which opens the door for Mike Weber to head to Columbus. Given Michigan's continued struggles and OSU's connection to Cass Tech, I believe Weber is going to be part of Ohio State's 2015 class.
