Back in February, as National Signing Day got closer and closer, there became a bit of uncertainty for Ohio State fans surrounding the strength of two of the Buckeyes’ most coveted prospects in the class of 2015.
Four-star running back Mike Weber and four-star quarterback Torrance Gibson were both Ohio State commits. Weber had been committed to the Buckeyes since Dec. 10 and Gibson was before that on Nov. 3. But there was speculation surrounding each individual’s recruitment and rumors began to swirl each would potentially flip on the day they were supposed to sign their National Letters of Intent.
That didn’t happen, of course, as both Weber and Gibson signed on the dotted line and will report to Columbus next month as they begin their college careers.
Weber has a chance to contribute right away for the Buckeyes. Of course, Ohio State still has Ezekiel Elliott at running back, but with Curtis Samuel’s potential move to the H-back position, Weber could step in immediately and battle with Bri’onte Dunn to be the backup running back.
Gibson, however, likely won’t have much of an impact as a freshman — not at quarterback, anyway. He enters the much-discussed situation at Ohio State as the Buckeyes have three more than capable signal callers on their roster who will battle it out for the starting job come fall camp.
But that doesn’t mean Gibson hasn’t been busy since signing to play at Ohio State.
“The biggest thing I’ve been busy doing is studying my playbook for next year at Ohio State, all the formations and everything like that,” Gibson said Thursday on his blog for USA TODAY Sports. “It’s kinda funny because we run these same formations and, in some cases, the same plays with different names. It sounds crazy, but it’s almost like high school all over again.”
The speed of the game will be different, of course, as it takes many a year to adjust to the difference between the high school and college game. But when you’re as talented of a player as Gibson is, the transition should be rather smooth. Ohio State’s coaches didn’t rule out him getting on the field early.
“If he’s a dynamic player we need to get on the field, we may need to have a package for him to get on the field as a freshman,” Ohio State wide receivers coach Zach Smith — the lead recruiter for Gibson — said on National Signing Day. “We’ve done that from (Tim) Tebow to Cam Newton. We’ve done that with a number of guys.”
Gibson likely wouldn’t object to that, though he knows what kind of situation awaits him when he arrives in Columbus.
“I’m ready to go in next season and just learn as much as possible. I’m excited about that,” Gibson wrote in USA TODAY. “I feel like we’ve got so many guys there that I can learn from. Those guys have a lot more experience than me having played in those big games and things like that so I’ll just be soaking it all up doing whatever I’m told.”
It’ll certainly be a change of pace for Gibson — it is for every player going from high school to college. But he certainly seems excited about what’s ahead.
“It’ll be an adjustment because I’m used to being the leader, but it won’t be too hard because I really respect those guys,” Gibson wrote in USA TODAY. “Cardale Jones, J.T. Barrett and Braxton Miller are all great players and great people. At the end of the day, talent respects talent.”
