Heat Check: Reshuffling the Buckeyes' Recruiting Board After July's Fireworks

The month of July is nearing its end, and Friday Night Lights saw the Buckeyes bring in a pair of top 2017 targets. Larry Johnson landed his top defensive end target Friday night when Chase Young made the call. While most were eventually expecting the nation's third-ranked weak-side defensive end to commit to the Scarlet and Gray, it was good to see this one go down as soon as it did. 

Less than 24 hours later, Amir Riep – a top target at cornerback – followed suit when he committed to Ohio State from the Colerain High School gymnasium. Ohio State had been battling Michigan State and Alabama for his services, but Kerry Coombs and Co. were once again victorious.

With the two new additions to the 2017 class, we take an updated look at the top targets left on the board. 

* This board will be updated over the next several months as we try and monitor the ups and downs of the 2017 class.

* Last month's version can be found HERE.

Cam Akers' ascension to the top is for a couple reasons. First of all, I personally am not all that confident in Ohio State's chances of hanging on to J.K. Dobbins. He's mostly been saying all the right things, but there's some chatter in the Lonestar State – from people who would know – that gives me a bit of an uneasy feeling regardless of what happens with Akers.

Secondly, with the addition of Amir Riep, we felt it necessary to drop Jeffrey Okudah just a few spots. Yes, he's a five-star and he may be the best defensive player in the country, but we are sitting pretty in the secondary right now so missing on another defensive back wouldn't be a lethal blow by any means. Though the question marks surrounding Shaun Wade continue to make this an interesting situation.

Okudah announced his top six schools earlier in the month and Ohio State will have to continue fending off Oklahoma, Georgia, USC, Clemson, and Florida State. Right now the Sooners appear to be the lone threat for the services of the nation's No. 5 overall prospect.

Rivals.com recruiting analyst Marc Givler caught up with Lamont Wade earlier this week. The nation's eighth-ranked corner stated that he's sticking with his plan and still going through the recruiting process. Initially, it appeared that depth wouldn't be much of an issue due to his competitive nature, but it's looking like that is something weighing on the mind of the Clairton, Pennsylvania, star who many have pegged to Penn State.

"If any school, not just Ohio State, whether it's Penn State or West Virginia, Pitt, UCLA, Tennessee, if they get all of their guys they want, then we've got to go to the next school." Via ($)

Darnay Holmes is back on the board after returning to Columbus for Friday Night Lights. We still expect him to end up in the Pac 12 or possibly in Lincoln, but he's someone that would be nearly impossible for Urban Meyer to turn down. The five-star has been to Columbus multiple times and wants to get back this fall, so the Buckeyes remain an option even if they are running third at best. 

No big changes at wide receiver. Barring something unforeseen, Trevon Grimes and Tyjon Lindsey are both going to commit to Ohio State within the next month. That will give Zach Smith one of the nation's top outside targets as well as the top-ranked slot wideout.

Jaylen Harris resurfaces on the board, but right now that one continues to be up in the air. Alabama, Michigan State and Tennessee continue to be three other realistic options for the four-star who doesn't appear to be in any hurry to decide. Many reports listed Harris as one of the more impressive players at Friday Night Lights before he went down with an injury.

The recruitment of Donovan Peoples-Jones is interesting because he has shown up in Columbus so many times and continues to be right up there with Trevon Grimes' on the staff's board. That being said, Ohio State is probably running third here, trailing both Michigan and Florida.

The Buckeyes definitely appear to be looking for another linebacker. For a while, it was thought that Antjuan Simmons could be the lone true backer in the class given the potential for position switches for guys like Isaiah Pryor and Brendon White. However, two of Texas's top prospects continue to receive a ton of attention from Tim Beck and the Ohio State staff. Both Baron Browning and Anthony Hines were in Austin last weekend, but Hines also was decked out in Ohio State gear while in Oregon for The Opening. 

From 90 to 10....dreams to reality!! S/o to the boy @Hayesfawcett3 !! My Top 10 schools in the link below!! https://t.co/7RkpG18OYo

— Anthony Hines III (@TheAntHines_Era) July 7, 2016

Browning has been at the center of much of the linebacker discussion, but it may be time to start paying a little more attention to Hines. He is projected as more of an inside guy, and right now there's a great need for someone to man the middle after Raekwon McMillan is gone. Both players are expected to return to Columbus this summer.

Jay Tufele's recruitment is a mysterious one. In May, Ohio Sate was named his leader seemingly out of nowhere. Now it would appear that Ohio State, Michigan, and Utah are the most likely destinations. Both the Buckeyes and Wolverines currently have a pair of defensive tackles committed, but both definitely seem to be looking to add another. Tufele has been relatively quiet throughout the process, so we likely won't know much on this one until the visits start to take place. 

So, July has been pretty fun, right? The good news is that it's not over yet and we are still expecting one more to hop on board very soon — possibly before the end of the work week. As for the next 2017 commitments, August should be yet another exciting month as the Buckeyes' top wide receiver targets are both set to decide. 

Oh, and camp will be getting underway – F I N A L L Y.

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