The Hurry Up: More from The Opening, Upcoming Visits for Terrell Hall, Examining Shifting DBs and More

HALL MAKING RETURN VISIT TO BAMA, WILL BE AT OHIO STATE FOR FNL

When he visited Maryland a few weeks ago, Ohio State 2016 defensive end commitment Terrell Hall told Buckeye fans that there was "nothing to worry about." He's a Buckeye, he plans to be a Buckeyes and that's that, right? Right.

Except.

On Monday, Hall – along with his best friend, Michigan State commitment Abdul Adams – will make a return trip to Alabama. The Crimson Tide, apparently, want to get a better look at Adams and Hall, the venerable teammate he is, will make the trip as well. 

First, Hall should visit other schools if he wants to, so let's get that out of the way. He's making a huge decision, and although he's continued to insist he's 100-percent satisfied with his choice, it's wise to explore other options in the event anything changed. What if Urban Meyer retired? What if Larry Johnson, Sr. retired suddenly? It's worth checking out other places.

That said, Hall will also be at Ohio State later this month. He told 11W he'll be in Columbus from July 22nd-25th, which means he'll be one of the handful of commitments present for Friday Night Lights.

Bottom line: rest easy, Hall isn't in danger of "flipping" at this point. Also, he's still confident that he's the best lineman in the country.

DEFENSIVE BACK OPTIONS SHRINKING

With the commitment of Wayne Davis on Thursday, the 2016 defensive back puzzle for the Buckeyes gained a bit of clarity while at the same time adding a bit of intrigue to the remaining pieces.

What we know is that the Buckeyes have two commitments, both are from players the staff at Ohio State considers "pure" cornerbacks, in Davis and Kareem Felder. What we don't know, well that is pretty much everything else. However, we can make a few educated guesses, so let's start there.

We're looking at a defensive back group that should total four players. With two in the mix, two more out of the primary group of Damar Hamlin, Jordan Fuller, Andrew Pryts and Jaylon Jones would be the most likely scenario.

The Buckeyes are at the top, or near the top, for each of those four, so the intrigue is far from over. Pryts will visit Ohio State for Friday Night Lights and a commitment/decision is expected shortly thereafter, but even on that timeline he may not be the first of the group to decide because Jaylon Jones could make a choice following next week's trip to Ole Miss. Hamlin is perhaps the most secure in the group, and perhaps the most likely to end up a Buckeye, and he'll have a spot whenever he wants one. He's not likely to decide until following the season, but has remained very interested in Ohio State. 

Fuller, one of the country's best athletes, has a brother at UCLA and is also high on a number of other schools but sources continue to tie him and the Buckeyes closely together. 

Of course, the Buckeyes would not/could not/should not say no to a player like Trayvon Mullen or Chauncey Gardner if either of those Florida stars decided Columbus was where they wanted to be. Ohio State could also be in line for an official visit from Jared Mayden II come season time, even though he just committed to Oregon yesterday.

The Buckeyes are high on both Felder and Davis, so barring any sort of academic or off-the-field trouble, it'd be a surprise to see either of them not end up in this class. Could they take three more at defensive back? Yes, it's possible, but it's not the plan.

What if the primary group is nothing but a whiff-whiff-whiff-whiff? Looks for Lakewood St. Edward's Tony Butler (if he doesn't commit to Michigan next weekend which I think is likely) to be one of the key names for re-evaluation. He's got some big-time supporters on the Ohio State staff.

FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS NEWS AND NOTES

We're two weeks away from the Buckeyes' biggest summer camp, Friday Night Lights, and its return to Ohio Stadium. We've got a handy-dandy little forum thread going about who to expect that night (Thanks to 305Buck for putting that together) but I wanted to bring it to the The Hurry Up for the first time and go over a few things that I'd expect.

• I would not expect Trevon Grimes to be in attendance, although that could change.
• I would not expect Nick Bosa to be in attendance, either. Bosa has been to Ohio State so many times and their family travels regularly so he could decide on a whim to attend, but I don't think it's likely.
• Terrell Hall, as noted above, will be there.
• Kareem Walker will not and I have not received confirmation from George Hill.
• Louisville commitment, wide receiver Dez Fitzpatrick, will be in attendance. The Michigan native is one of my favorite wide receivers in the 2016 class and he's hoping to get some face time with the Ohio State staff.
• Donnie Corley is expected.
• The Buckeyes would like to see Dakari Carter, the state's fastest high schooler, camp. Whether or not he will remains up in the air, but he did confirm to 11W that he plans to be there.
• Tristen Wallace is hoping to make it back into town for the chance to relationship-build and work on his game.

UPDATES FROM THE OPENING

The Opening concludes today and, as usual, there's been no shortage of news. Ohio State commitments Austin Mack, Jake Hausmann and Jonathon Cooper have all earned rave reviews throughout the week. Unfortunately for Buckeye commit Demario McCall, these sort of events are not really designed to showcase running backs, especially once they enter the seven-on-seven portion of things. 

• Nigel Warrior, a star from Atlanta whose first offer was from Ohio State almost a year ago, has had five interceptions and over 15 pass break ups through the week. He has stated the Buckeyes will receive one of his official visits.
• Sachse, Texas wide receiver Devin Duvernay is a guy that the Buckeyes really like and it wouldn't be a surprise to see them continuing to recruit him, especially if his teammate Jared Mayden does make an official visit to Columbus
• This tidbit from 247Sports.com analyst Barton Simmons about Demario McCall: "Demario McCall when he gets in space is so quick and explosive."
• Nice video showcasing Jonathon Cooper versus Michigan commit Michael Onwenu. 
• Jake Hausmann caught four touchdown passes this week.
• Don't be surprised if the Buckeyes offer 2017 wide receiver Tyjon Lindsey soon. He was impressive on Thursday and caught the eye of a few different folks watching.
• Ohio State feels they've done as "good a job as possible" on Cass Tech wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones at this point but remain less-than-optimistic they can land him.