The future stars of Ohio State football officially begin their college careers, as standouts from all over the country put pens to their National Letters of Intent.
Amir Riep is one of those players who had his recruitment spread like wildfire. Once Ohio State took notice and Riep dominated his conference as a member of the Colerain Cardinals in Cincinnati, the Buckeyes extended a scholarship offer and remained near the top of his list for its duration.
Riep's offer from Ohio State came on Jan. 31, 2016 and only added more fuel to the fire that he is one of the best defensive back prospects in the country. When it was all said in done, the four-star talent fielded nearly 50 offers from any and all top programs.
Riep unofficially visited Ohio State in April 2015, months before his junior season at Colerain. Already a key contributor for Colerain, scholarship offers filled his inbox as he hit the camp circuit.
The Riep File
- Class: 2017
- Size: 5-11/185
- Pos: Defensive Back
- School: Colerain (Cincinnati)
- Composite Rating: ★★★★
- Composite Rank: 23 (CB)
The Buckeyes became involved but did not extend an offer immediately, instead pursuing other defensive backs in Jeffrey Okudah, Lamont Wade, Shaun Wade and others. In the meantime, the 5-foot-11, 185-pounder continued to blow up. Riep attended a one-day camp at Ohio State on July 24, 2015, with coaches from all over at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. He then set his sights on his junior season.
Riep put forth a terrific year and more schools came calling. Kentucky, Indiana, Purdue, Tennessee, Iowa State — the list is extremely long of programs that wanted a piece of the Cincinnati talent during fall 2015. Teams hardly threw his way that year, as the stud corner essentially took away half the field.
Riep's popularity grew as he shot up recruiting rankings and he headed to Ohio State's Junior Day at the end of January 2016. He watched Thad Matta's Ohio State men's basketball team fall to No. 8 Maryland 66-61 on Sunday afternoon at Value City Arena.
Though the basketball Buckeyes fell on the court, the weekend was a victory for Riep. Ohio State finally extended the scholarship offer he had been waiting on.
Once that happened, the floodgates opened even more — if that was possible. Alabama, Auburn, Georgia, LSU, Florida, Michigan, USC and Notre Dame all sent offers to Riep, who took his time. Michigan State was long considered the front-runner for his services for the simple fact that they were one of the most prominent programs to first extend an offer. The Spartans reached out in October 2015, shortly after Riep made his second unofficial visit to campus.
But Ohio State continued to gain steam. Then Urban Meyer invited students, families and other Ohio State fans to the Woody Hayes Athletic Center for the program's annual Student Appreciation day in early April. Riep surprised the various recruitniks and other reporters on site by attending.
The Saturday was one of two final days in his spring break, and he spent most of his time free from school in SEC country. Riep visited both Georgia and Florida and received a scholarship offer from the Bulldogs in the days before coming to Columbus.
Still, he made it a point to return to Columbus for Student Appreciation Day and spent the majority of the morning with Carl Hilliard, the father of current Buckeye linebacker Justin Hilliard. With his high school coaches alongside him, the conversations undoubtedly revolved around Riep wanting to know what it is like to play for Meyer and how he would fit in at Ohio State.
“It went well,” Riep said of the trip to Ohio State. “Everything was good and I had a great time. I'm just enjoying the moment.”
While his popularity nationally was already growing, Riep further cemented himself among the elite prospects at his position in Chicago a few weeks later at The Opening regionals.
From Scout.com's Allen Trieu:
He has the size you want in a cornerback, but he also had some of the best feet in attendance. His ball skills were excellent and he was also a competitive kid who took on the best receivers at the camp. He ran down the field with Jeff Thomas, which is not something many in the country can do. We knew Riep was good, but judging off of this one camp, he's probably better than we thought.
Riep made a couple more treks up I-71 to campus as spring bled into summer, first stopping by on June 17 for a one-day positional camp at the WHAC. He then returned for Friday Night Lights at Ohio Stadium on July 22, mere days after canceling trips to Michigan State and Alabama.
With that in mind, the Spartans offered another 2017 cornerback. Riep's long-awaited and scheduled commitment ceremony was set for July 23. The fact it came just a day after Friday Night Lights all but made the ceremony a formality — Riep was all Buckeye.
“I'd like to thank all of the coaches at the universities and the fans who wanted me to keep my academics and play the sport I love at their university,” Riep said from the podium at the ceremony. “With all of that being said, after my senior year at Colerain high school playing with my brothers, I will continue my academic and football career at the Ohio State University.”
Riep's decision gave Ohio State a ridiculous haul at defensive back for 2017, and that was before Jeffrey Okudah announced his decision to be a Buckeye in December. Shaun Wade Marcus Williamson and Isaiah Pryor were already in the fold.
Riep added another essential (and Ohio) piece to the puzzle. He committed a day after five-star defensive end Chase Young did, which at the time helped the Buckeyes continue to boast the best class in the country.
With the commitment out of the way, Riep all but shut his recruitment down and turned his focus to his senior season at Colerain. With his help, the Cardinals did what they always do — win the Greater Miami Conference.
Riep recorded an interception (his third of the year) early in a 31-0 victory over Lakota West on Oct. 21 and Colerain eventually secured its 17th straight conference title.
An Ohio kid, Riep always had an interest in Ohio State and Meyer. Once the other side of the equation felt the same way about the player, all it took was some time for Riep to become a part of Select '17.
