Mr. Frankenstein makes his trip to ColumbusThe rain may be pouring down in Columbus, but the weekend is sure to brighten up the city and it won't only be a result of the 83 degree weather forecasted for Saturday's Spring Game. Every April the annual Buckeye Spring Classic brings in the nation's top recruits who want to check out the possibility of playing for the Ohio State Buckeyes and 2009's version of the game is no different.
While various sources have listed different prospects as being confirmed for the weekend's visit, anything can happen and recruits that plan to be in town Saturday may cancel last minute, and prospects that are trying to figure out their plans may or may not end up in the Horse Shoe this weekend. All we can do here at 11W is gather a list of the possible prospects that will be attending the game and give you a little bit of a heads up of who to be looking for on the sidelines. Now that you know not to beat me down for being wrong about some of the recruits visiting, we can start your 2009 Spring Game visitor list.
The easiest way to start this is to begin with the class of 2009 recruits who are already signed and delivered to the Buckeyes. WR Duron Carter and RB Jaamal Berry will be making the trip to Columbus from the Sunshine State and will watch some of their fellow classmates perform in the game. These are the only two members of the '09 class I have seen confirmed, but I would have to imagine some of the Ohio kids will make the trip as well. It will be good to see Berry and Carter in Ohio Stadium as official members of the team and it will certainly help to have them chatting with recruits on the sidlines.
The 2010 class is the class of focus right now so naturally there are a lot of players that will be coming to check out OSU. Starting at the top of everyone's wishlist is St. Thomas Aquinas DB Lamarcus Joyner. Joyner is a consensus top 10 player in the nation and I'm not shy to say I have a man crush on "Mr. Frankenstein". LJ currently lists the Buckeyes as a slight favorite over Florida State, his childhood dream school, but after a weekend visit to Alabama and Tennessee, it appears the Buckeyes will have to fight to the end for this super prospect. Joyner likes the SEC swagger and weather and his uncle has posted on boards that OSU must beat out (not remain even) with those two schools to gain Joyner's services. Coming with Joyner is STA teammate Cody Riggs who is another star defensive back in the class. WR Chris Dunkley is another Florida prospect who is high on the Bucks and while he is not sure if he will make the trip to C-bus, an offer may be waiting for him if he comes now that Tai-ler Jones committed to Stanford. To wrap-up the Sunshine State visitors is Delvin Jones who is an athletic TE/DE prospect and is a teammate of Jaamal Berry's at Miami Palmetto High School.
The other out of state prospects that are thinking about coming to the Spring Game are Washington (PA) Trinity DE/LB Kenny Wilkins, Detroit Cass Tech CB Dior Mathis, Atlanta Douglass Garrison Smith, Lithonia (GA) King RB Mack Brown, Springfield (PA) Cardinal O'Hara RB Corey Brown, Warren (MI) Mott DE CJ Olaniyan (unlikely, because he visited this weekend), Brownsburg (IN) WR Charles Torwudzo, and West Lake Village (CA) Oak Hills Christian QB Nick Montana. It will be interesting to which of these out of state prospects attend, as it will really show the staff who is serious about becoming a Buckeye and give the players a chance to see what is so special about playing at Ohio State.
Moving onto the in state prospects, verbal commitment OT Andrew Norwell (Anderson) will be in attendance, but it is unknown if his fellow classmates DE Jamel Turner (Youngstown Ursuline), and DL J.T. Moore (Youngstown Boardman) will make the trip. Uncommitted prospects St. Xavier OL Matt James, St. Ignatius LB Scott McVey, and Princeton ATH Spencer Ware are the next group of stars to be excited about. James is deciding between OSU, Notre Dame, and Cincinnati and if the Bucks can reel him in tis weekend it would be a big win for the staff. McVey is the most likely to give a verbal commitment this weekend, as it has been assumed for a while he will commit to the Buckeyes. Ware is unsure if he will attend the game, but this super athlete, who plays QB for Princeton, can be a phenominal running back at the next level.
Rounding out the rest of the 2010 prospects from Ohio are Glenville teammates DE Jayrone Elliot and DB Christian Bryant, Washington Court House Wayne OT Andrew Donnal, Johnston-Monroe OL Skyler Schofner, Cardinal Mooney OL Eric Franklin, Edgewood OG Taylor Miller, Avon Lake teammates OG Christian Pace and TE Dan Schneider, East Cleveland Shaw WR Tyrone Williams, Hoover RB and Mr. Ohio Erick Howard, and St. Ignatius TE Brandon Carrozini. None of these players currently hold an offer from OSU, but all are top targets to land one as the recruiting process drags on.
Finally to wrap things up, the 2011 prospects who could be in attendance are Huber Heights QB Braxton Miller and Strongsville TE Ray Hamilton. Both players are top talents in the state of Ohio for 2011 and are highly coveted by the OSU staff. Miller has been on the Buckeyes radar for a while and if Nick Montana doesn't up in Columbus next year, Braxton is likely to be the heir to Terrelle Pryor behind center.
Which players are you excited to see this weekend? Who do you want to see attend this game that is not on this list? Who do you hope rounds out the 2010 recruiting class? Which prospect is most likely to commit to OSU at the game?
