Another Buckeye commit is leaving Ohio – but only temporarily.
Derek Funderburk Jr., a 2016 OSU pledge, announced his intentions to transfer from St. Edward in Lakewood, where he won a state title in his sophomore season. According to Cleveland.com, Funderburk Jr. is headed to a prep school.
"I really think that I'll develop. Regardless of where I go, I'll develop," Funderburk told Cleveland.com. "It wasn't anything about exposure. I have enough exposure."
As for where, specifically, he'll land? He doesn't know. For those Buckeye fans who didn't understand the context, this tweet may have frightened you. Don't worry, he's still committed:
No I do not know what school I am attending for everyone asking.
— Derek Funderburk (@TooEvsy4) August 12, 2015
Prep Hoops Ohio's Zach Fleer reports Funderburk will visit Montverde Academy in Florida, Friday. That would be an interesting destination for several reasons. One, because of D'Angelo Russell's massive success there. More relevant to Funderburk, however, is fellow 2016 commit Micah Potter – he recently transferred to Montverde from Mentor.
Buckeyes Offer Carter
Ohio State is not done pursuing recruits for their 2016 class to supplement Funderburk and Potter. Currently, OSU doesn't have room in that class. Perhaps it is an issue that will solve itself later on.
The latest offer went out to Tyson Carter, a four-star wing from Starkville, Mississippi. His recruitment is blowing up of late. In addition to the Buckeyes, he recently received offers from Indiana, Illinois, Baylor and the school in his hometown, Mississippi State.
He felt honored to receive an offer from Ohio State.
"I know that they are a very successful program," Carter told Eleven Warriors. "It meant a lot to get an offer from OSU."
According to Future150, Carter's best attribute seems to be his three-point shooting.
"Tyson is a crafty and smooth combo guard on the floor. His skills have improved immensely since we saw him last in 2013," his scouting report reads. "He is capable of knocking down jump shots anywhere on the floor."
Like Funderburk Jr., Carter is a state champion. Unlike him, Carter is just now overwhelmed with offers heading into his senior season.
It means he has to, potentially, travel around the country this fall to decide where he wants to go next year.
"I haven't set up any official visits yet but I plan to do it before long," Carter told 247Sports. "I'm not sure about all five visits and if I will take all five in the fall. But I would like to go see Arizona State, Miami, Ohio State and Mississippi State."
Simmons Schedules Visit
Covering a bit of news which occurred while the notebook was on a brief hiatus:
2016 PG Kobi Simmons will take an official visit to Ohio State on September 18th, source told @CBSSports. Top-10 player in class.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) August 5, 2015
The Buckeyes continue to make a push for the five-star guard from Alpharetta, Georgia despite, again, no open scholarships. OSU isn't the only high-major program interested – Arizona, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina and, a surprising candidate, Xavier comprise the rest of his top six.
As I covered in the last notebook, Simmons interest in Xavier partially stems from a former teammate who now plays for the Musketeers, and he plans to visit Cincinnati Sept. 4. Since then, he also scheduled a visit to Kentucky during the final weekend of August.
So, even if Simmons doesn't end up in Scarlet and Gray, there's still a strong chance of him moving to the region. At the very least, he would also have a chance to see a game at Ohio Stadium, as the defending national champs host Northern Illinois the weekend of Simmons' visit.
