The Hurry Up is your nightcap of Ohio State recruiting news, catching you up on the day’s events with an ear on the ground for what’s next.
RECAPPING THE WEEKEND'S OFFICIAL VISITS
Ohio State hosted two official visitors this weekend, both defensive backs, and while there are limited updates on the visits from Carlos Becker and Louisville commit Rodjay Burns, here's what I've been hearing.
Let's get started with Becker, the four-star cornerback from Kissimmee, Florida.
First and foremost, an important part of Becker's visit to note is that his mother did not make the trip to Ohio, and she's a driving force in his decision. Both of Becker's parents are deaf, and him making his way to Ohio State alone isn't a great sign if you're keeping score at home.
Ohio State feels they gave themselves a shot with Becker, although they realize the odds are long that he'd end up up signing with the Buckeyes come February 3rd. He was yet another player that spent a lot of time with Matt Burrell, Jr. who has quickly become one of the go-to recruiters on the team.
Just cause lil bro just left, be safe getting home fam!! @beckercarlos5 #shh pic.twitter.com/WTJQXBu5da
— Matthew Burrll Jr!! (@majiiinbuu) January 24, 2016
Florida State is the team to beat and he visited Tallahassee last weekend and while the Seminoles added a commitment from another defensive back today (Clifford Chattman, who, depending on how things break down could be their fourth defensive back), it'd be a major surprise for the Buckeyes to pull this one in.
As for Burns, things are heating up and a decision is likely to come down the pike soon and it definitely looks like this is a chase the Buckeyes could win. He will reportedly make his final decision between Louisville and Ohio State this week.
Ohio State has been very active in their pursuit of the Louisville commitment since they offered him, and it's been primarily a Kerry Coombs-led endeavor. If you pay attention to Buckeyes' recruiting, you know that means two things: Burns is getting two barrels of excitement from Coombs and Ohio State is going to be right in the thick of things.
Burns is another versatile athlete who could play wide receiver or defensive back in college, but the Buckeyes are absolutely recruiting him for defense.
Louisville, like Pittsburgh, is a unique area that breeds a lot of hometown "pride" so while there is a lot of smoke that Burns could flip to Ohio State, there's a part of me that thinks he's going to stick with the Cardinals, even though the consensus is that the Buckeyes put themselves in a very good position this weekend. I have not personally spoken to Burns, just sources with the Buckeyes, at this point so it's admittedly just a gut feeling even though all the momentum seems to be trending in the Buckeyes' favor.
Maybe I just need to eat a Snickers?
KEYSHON CAMP REOPENS RECRUITMENT, CAN BUCKEYES SWOOP IN?
On Friday morning, as the Buckeyes' coaching staff was waiting to hear what decision Rashard Lawrence would make, a new scholarship offer was extended at defensive tackle to Lakeland, Florida's Keyshon Camp, which we discussed on Friday afternoon.
Was Offered By The Ohio State Buckeyes!! pic.twitter.com/cfdFy2xpjF
— Mr.Tackle4Loss (@Camp_thatdude) January 22, 2016
Camp, a four-star prospect who was–until Saturday night–committed to USC.
— Mr.Tackle4Loss (@Camp_thatdude) January 24, 2016
The timing of his decommitment, combined with the Ohio State offer, has quickly made Camp a hot topic of discussion, but should he be?
When I spoke to a source close to the Buckeyes on Friday morning, I was told that the Ohio State offer was a preemptive strike in the event that Lawrence picked LSU, but that Urban Meyer's coaching staff would have a lot of homework to do on Camp and would need to do it quickly. He's never visited Columbus and has only one official visit left (he's at Pitt this weekend) and the Buckeyes are going to have to convince him to come to Ohio next weekend instead of going to Missouri, where that final official is currently scheduled for.
What makes Missouri appealing, or at least part of the puzzle, is that Chris Wilson, the Tigers' new defensive line coach, was a Trojans' assistant coach and was recruiting Camp while he was at USC.
Recruiting, as we know, is about relationships and the Buckeyes have not had much time to build one with Camp. Michigan, where the 6-foot-4, 275-pounder visited twice this past season, is not interested in recruiting him and multiple sources that I've spoken to in Florida were a bit surprised at the news of a Buckeye offer, highlighting the stark differences in opinion in Camp's evaluation.
Ohio State will have little time to finalize their own evaluation on the country's 27th-ranked defensive tackle. They'll make a visit to Florida to see him this week and hope to convince him to make an official visit, but at this point, unless that official visit is scheduled very soon, there's little to no reason to consider him a real, viable option.
BRUCE SITUATION CLOSE TO A RESOLUTION
On the flip side of the Keyshon Camp situation, where the Buckeyes have had almost no time to evaluate, lays the Curious Case of Sam Bruce.
Anyone who has paid any semblance of attention to the 2016 recruiting cycle knows who Bruce, the 5-foot-8, 180-pounder from St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, is. He's the country's 11th-ranked wide receiver, but if he was three inches taller, he probably would find himself a Top 10 player nationally, regardless of position.
So, why are the Buckeyes and Urban Meyer, with an offensive system that fits Bruce with absolute perfection, still on the fence? Why, knowing full well that Bruce wants to commit to Ohio State, are we unsure of what is going on?
Bruce committed to Miami in July of 2014, so it's been a while, and the truth is that he's always been a homebody and people in South Florida never imagined he'd leave the region until recently. As we've discussed, the decision by Mark Richt to not retain Kevin Beard as the wide receiver coach in Coral Gables opened the door wide for the Buckeyes and now the question has become a simple one: is there room?
As of right now, my feeling is that Ohio State would not take Bruce which admittedly is crazy to say and think, but a decision is coming down the pike–it could be tonight or tomorrow for the four-star–and he spent this weekend at Miami to see how he'd fit in with the new staff. The question from here is if Ohio State will take him (and again, it's crazy to me to think that Urban Meyer would ever pass on a player like Bruce, yet here we are speculating about it) did the Miami trip change his mind?
I can't believe I'm going to say it but, right now–especially if a decision comes tonight or tomorrow from Bruce–I think Ohio State will pass and he'll reaffirm his commitment to Miami.
