Urban Meyer is known for his rock star recruiting. Ever since he took over at Ohio State he has made it a point to bring that recruiting power with him from Florida to Columbus. In six years at Florida his recruiting classes never finished lower than 12th (2005, his first season), and he finished with the top overall classes in 2007 and 2010.
Meyer is particularly good at "flipping," convincing a recruit committed to another school to commit to Ohio State instead. Since coming to Columbus in 2011, Meyer has flipped many recruits: Kyle Dodson (Wisconsin), Taylor Decker (Notre Dame) and Se'von Pittman (Michigan State, now at Akron) to name a few.
Class of 2015 wide receiver Alex Stump is one of those flips. Stump, a St. Edward (Lakewood, Ohio) standout, committed to Kentucky in early May. The Wildcats have been a force to be reckoned with when recruiting in Ohio, and they got the jump on Stump.
"Kentucky was one of my first big offers," Stump told Eleven Warriors. "They recruited me from the start and I visited a few times and I really liked the coaches and the way the program was headed."
Ohio State did not offer Stump throughout the summer, so Stump did not take a visit. Buckeye coaches remained in contact with Stump after his commitment, even watching him live in person for St. Edward's game against Elder. On Sept. 21, Stump and his family visited Ohio State. He left the visit with an offer, and many people expected a flip.
On Oct. 12, Stump announced that he was flipping his commitment from Kentucky to Ohio State, becoming the 17th member of the 2015 class. Stump talked about why he chose Ohio State and the difficulty of the decision for him and his family.
"It was a difficult process because you get so close to the coaches and other recruits," Stump said. "The Kentucky staff handled it with nothing but class, they are all great guys. Ultimately I knew it was always my dream to be a Buckeye. I was always a fan, watching games with my family and just knowing I'd be playing for Urban Meyer and seeing how successful the receivers are in that offense."
After a 2013 season in which Stump caught 57 passes for 987 yards and 14 touchdowns, excitement for his senior season was high. Unfortunately, his season ended sooner than he wanted or expected, suffering a season-ending foot injury in St. Edward's loss to Elder.
"It is very hard to watch my team, but all that matters is we keep winning," Stump said. "As long as we are winning I am happy. Everything is healing the way it is supposed to. Now it is all about doing the things necessary to get to 100 percent as soon as possible."
With his season over, Stump is working through rehab and preparing for strength and conditioning coach Mickey Marotti's rigorous program. From the sound of it, he is eager to join his brothers at Ohio State.
"I am excited for everything!" Stump said. "I cannot wait to be a Buckeye and play in the Shoe!"
Flipping is a delicate art. When it nets a player like Alex Stump, the flip is a resounding success.
