As of late, Ohio State's quarterback recruiting has been a thing of beauty. One could argue that no team in America is in better hands under center than Urban Meyer's Buckeyes. It was Dwayne Haskins for the 2016 cycle and now Tate Martell and five-star Emory Jones are poised to enter the fray over the next two years.
Meyer hasn't always been able to get his guy, though, as Dabo Swinney's Clemson Tigers landed the nation's top dual-threat quarterback in the Class of 2014. Deshaun Watson – now a Heisman Trophy finalist – committed to the Tigers as a junior in high school and stuck with his pledge despite the pursuit from the Buckeyes and the rest of the nation's top schools.
Watson had an interesting recruitment, even if it was mostly uneventful. Despite the early pledge to Clemson, there was always talk about other schools being involved. Ohio State and Auburn were two of the more commonly mentioned threats to the Tigers even though the Gainesville, Georgia, standout didn't take a whole lot of visits outside of the myriad of trips to Clemson.
For Ohio State, 2014 quarterback recruiting went in a number of different directions and – considering the success we've seen lately – it's a bit strange to think that the most important position on the field ever was a small area of concern for a team with Meyer at the helm.
While Watson finished atop the dual-threat ranks, there were a number of others that Ohio State looked into. The Buckeyes locked onto Brandon Harris (Bossier City, Louisiana) in May of 2013, but Les Miles and Harris' in-state squad extended an offer shortly thereafter.
Harris was coveted for his mobility as well as his elite arm strength. As with most signal-callers who end up in Baton Rouge, his time spent there has mostly been disastrous. Now a junior, Harris is listed as the backup to Purdue transfer Danny Etling.
The Buckeyes also looked toward Texas for Denton's Jerrod Heard, who committed to the Longhorns in the summer of 2012. Heard now lines up at wideout in Austin. They briefly expressed some interest in Zack Darlington (Apopka, Florida) but never pushed too hard as the three-star would end up at Nebraska.
The other most likely candidate to hop on board looked to be five-star Kyle Allen, the nation's top pro-style quarterback. Obviously Ohio State prefers a quarterback who can use his legs, and Allen wasn't the traditional pocket passer. His ability to move around the pocket was evident in high school, but the Buckeyes didn't prioritize him at the right time. The Scottsdale, Arizona product eventually signed with Texas A&M and has since transferred to Houston.
Ohio State would ultimately bring in the nation's No. 17 dual-threat passer in Leesburg, Georgia's, Stephen Collier. The three-star did enough at Ohio State's camps to earn an offer and basically committed on the spot.
As for Watson, he said all the right things in remaining firm on his pledge to Clemson. However, a secret visit to Auburn in the spring of 2013 had Clemson fans a bit on edge. It also was a sign that perhaps the five-star was looking around and the door could still be open for the Buckeyes to get back in his good graces.
It just wasn't mean to be, though, as Watson elected to enroll early at Clemson, taking the opportunity to earn early playing time after the departure of Tajh Boyd. He would split time early on with senior Cole Stoudt before tearing his ACL late in the season.
Watson would take over for the 2015 campaign and lead the Tigers to an undefeated regular season. After earning the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoffs, Clemson downed Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl semifinal game, setting the stage for a showdown with the Crimson Tide for the championship.
Despite falling to the Tide by a score of 45-40, Watson's performance helped to put him in the midst of the Heisman discussion for the following season. He completed 30 of 47 passes for 405 yards and four touchdown while adding another 73 yards with his legs.
Some of throws he was making – as a sophomore – against the nation's third-ranked defense also helped to put him in the discussion as the top quarterback for the 2017 NFL Draft.
While Watson is a bit on the slim side at just 215 pounds and may be lacking in the arm strength department, virtually every NFL Draft site considers him to be one of the top two or three quarterbacks for next year's draft. Needless to say, Luke Fickell, Greg Schiano, Larry Johnson and Kerry Coombs will have a lot of work to due between now and New Year's Eve.
Despite J.T. Barrett's struggles this year, Ohio State too has been blessed with strong quarterback play since Watson's arrival in Clemson. Stephen Collier was expected to compete with Joe Burrow for the backup role this season. However, the redshirt sophomore suffered a torn ACL last spring which has forced him to miss the 2016 season. Thus far in his career, the former three-star prospect has not thrown a pass in a regular season game.
