Welcome to The Hurry Up, which runs Sunday through Thursday, serving as your last stop for recruiting news and notes nightly. We'll recap the day as it happened and preview the days ahead while keeping our ear to the ground on the Ohio State recruiting scene.
EICHENBERG VISITS NOTRE DAME
Ohio's top uncommitted offensive lineman for the 2016 class, Cleveland St. Ignatius tackle Liam Eichenberg, visited Notre Dame this past weekend. Reports from the Notre Dame side of things indicate that things went very well, and most associated with the Fighting Irish believe that they've done what was necessary to land the country's 83rd-ranked overall prospect.
Ohio State, for their part, remains cautiously optimistic that Eichenberg coming back to campus this weekend for his final pre-commitment visit gives them a chance to "right the ship" with the 6-foot-6, 290-pounder. As it stands, the Buckeyes are taking the "anything can happen" approach with Eichenberg but they realize this one could be moving away from them.
While the roster damage done by losing out on Eichenberg is minimal thanks to last year's six-man offensive line group, there's no doubt that losing both of Ohio's top two offensive lineman to Notre Dame – after winning a national title – would sting. I'm not going to call Eichenberg to the Irish yet, but it's getting close and the Buckeyes are playing from behind this coming weekend.
CASS TECH STAR TALKS OHIO STATE VISIT
In recent months the Buckeyes have gone from the favorite to land Detroit Cass Tech two-way lineman Michael Onwenu to a longshot. Onwenu has regularly tried to deflect the idea that he no longer "likes" the Buckeyes after the Michael Weber/Stan Drayton dramatics this past February, insisting only that he's taking a step back in the process and re-evaluating all opportunities. This past weekend he was part of a Cass Tech contingent that visited Ohio State and he said it was a good – and necessary – trip.
"I haven't been to Ohio State in a while," Onwenu told Eleven Warriors. "It refreshed my look on the Buckeyes. I was with (Larry) Johnson all day and his way of coaching really stood out."
The next thing for Onwenu is trying to figure out a way to get back to Ohio State while also paying deference to the other schools who've offered him. He has a long list of places he'd like to visit soon.
"I wasn't aware Ohio State's spring game is next week," Onwenu continued. "I have a visit to Penn State next week, so we'll see about that. I'll get around to all of the schools (who have offered)."
One school that has moved into the perceived lead for Onwenu, the country's 210th-ranked prospect and a consensus four-star, is the University of Michigan. While he's comfortable in Ann Arbor, Onwenu says that the Wolverines are not necessarily out in front of anyone.
"I have no favorite," he said when asked if the Wolverines were the team to beat. "People assume that because it's a school in my state and convenient to visit. I can't take a trip everywhere else every week."
BORLAND ON CAMPUS TODAY
Ohio State has a key linebacker visiting today, Bolingbrook, Illinois' Tuf Borland. Borland has been in Columbus three times since November, so he's clearly serious about the Buckeyes, despite family ties to Wisconsin.
Borland and his mother visited today and 11W hopes to have a chance to catch up with the country's 20th-ranked outside linebacker about the visit this evening.
ANGELINE VISIT FEEL
Despite already having a commitment from Ohio tight end Jake Hausmann, the Buckeyes are definitely not done at the position for 2016 and this past weekend hosted Pennsylvania's Cary Angeline, the nation's 9th-ranked tight end. The Buckeyes feel the visit went well and Angeline agreed, calling it a "very good" trip.
The 6-foot-7, 230-pounder from Exton is predicted by most to end up at Penn State, and after talking to a few people close to the Buckeyes, they do feel that's the primary competition for Angeline. Ohio State has been upfront with Hausmann and other tight end targets that they're looking for two at the position in this class.
WAYNE DAVIS TRENDING OHIO STATE?
Last night Marc Givler of Rivals.com made mention of Lake Taylor (Norfolk, Virginia) defensive back Wayne Davis and the belief by many close to Davis that he's very likely to end up a Buckeye. Davis is a former high school teammate of current Buckeye Jalyn Holmes and is slated to visit Columbus this coming weekend for the Ohio State spring game.
A 5-foot-11, 180-pound cornerback, Davis is ranked as the country's 298th-overall prospect and holds offers from Ohio State, Virginia Tech, Auburn, Clemson, Michigan, North Carolina and others. Sources close to the Buckeyes have indicated that Davis is a player Ohio State "loves" and he's a very real – despite being a bit unknown – possibility for the class of 2016.
FISHER OFF THE TABLE
One player that the Buckeyes were hoping to see at a camp this summer to try and earn an offer – especially as things are trending away with Liam Eichenberg – was Mundelein, Illinois offensive lineman Sean Foster. Yesterday the 6-foot-8, 285-pounder, committed to Minnesota so he's a name to take off your list at home, at least for the time being.
