The Cincinnati game was widely seen as one of Ohio State's biggest recruiting weekends of the year, just behind the Virginia Tech game. While the game did not bring immediate dividends, it did leave a positive impression on the prospects who attended.
Over a dozen recruits, some of them among the best in the nation, were in town to see the Buckeyes bash the Bearcats. We caught up with a few of them as they discussed their visit to Columbus.
NOTHING HAS CHANGED FOR BAKER
One of the biggest recruits on campus this weekend was Florida commit Jerome Baker, who took an unofficial visit to Columbus. After the game, the Benedictine standout said nothing has really changed with his recruitment, although he enjoyed the experience as a whole.
"I had a lot of fun," Baker told Eleven Warriors. "I did have a lot of fun and the visit went well, but it didn't really change anything for me. It did not make the decision to choose Florida any tougher."
Before the game, Baker said he was "all Florida" and that he was taking the visit to enjoy the process, which is exactly what Baker did. Like I said on Friday, I believe that Baker would only flip to the Buckeyes if Will Muschamp and the coaching staff at Florida are fired.
KRAEMER UNABLE TO ATTEND
Birm had a bit of bad news to share about class of 2016 OT Tommy Kraemer: because of an injury, the Cincinnati native was unable to attend the game. I have no doubt he is disappointed, as is the Ohio State coaching staff. Without this visit, the odds that Kraemer goes to Notre Dame have gone up.
Kraemer is set to visit South Bend on Oct 4 for Notre Dame's home game against Stanford. There are many who believe that Notre Dame has a sizable lead in the recruitment now and that Kraemer could commit to the Fighting Irish this weekend. The Cincinnati game was OSU's chance to keep that from happening, but now the coaching staff has little control over the situation. The staff would be disappointed if an Ohio prospect like Kraemer committed to Notre Dame without them getting him on campus first.
HASKINS ENJOYS BUCKEYES' TAKEDOWN
In sunnier news, class of 2016 quarterback Dwayne Haskins took an unofficial visit to Columbus and enjoyed the trip. When asked what his favorite part of the visit was, Haskins said it was watching strength and conditioning coach Anthony Schlegel's emphatic takedown of the fan who ran onto the field. (I thought Haskins would focus on Big Ten Co-Freshman of the Week J.T. Barrett, but each to his own.)
Little has changed; Haskins favors Ohio State, so much so that I can't really name a second team with a viable shot at landing him. I think he is going to commit to Ohio State after this season.
WILLIAMS LEAVES WITHOUT OFFER
Before this weekend there was some buzz about class of 2015 safety Mykelti Williams receiving a scholarship offer during his weekend visit. I spoke to Williams before the visit, and he said although he was hoping for an offer, he did not want to speak too soon. It was a wise decision, as the coaching staff did not offer him.
Even though Williams did not get the news he hoped for, I do think the Buckeyes are interested in him. OSU already has five defensive backs in the 2015 class, and all the smoke around this one makes me less confident that Carlton Davis' commitment sticks. If Williams is offered by his main recruiter (Kerry Coombs), I think he will be part the 2015 class.
