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.
MOND-AY UPDATE
Sunday night, we mentioned that Baylor quarterback commitment Kellen Mond, the country's fifth-ranked dual-threat at the position, would visit Ohio State this weekend.
Mond has been committed to Baylor since last June, but as a lot of recruits do these days, he's checking out other schools to make sure that he's in the right fit for him long-term. Ohio State, where his family is from, is the first of those schools.
"I just want to see what Ohio State is about," Mond told Eleven Warriors. "I have been talking to (Tim) Beck for a while and have been trying to plan a date to visit.
That visit is this weekend. Mond's teammates at IMG, Marcus Williamson and Isaiah Pryor, have been trying to prep him for the visit.
"I have a few teammates on my team committed," Mond added. "They talk about Ohio State a lot."
As Mond noted, he's been talking to Tim Beck for a while now and he's anxious to meet the rest of the Buckeyes' coaching staff.
"I look forward to seeing the facilities (at Ohio State)," Mond said. "That, and building a relationship with the coaches because I've only talked to (Tim) Beck."
MIRANDA'S RIGHT?
We've talked at length over the course of the last few months about which–if any–Ohio offensive linemen could end up in the Buckeyes' 2017 class. We've focused, to this point, on the trio of Joel Honigford, Matt Sichterman and Matt Carrick but, lo and behold, another name has emerged as one to pay attention to.
Stow's (Stow-munroe Falls) Mike Miranda, an offensive guard, has 19 scholarship offers, including opportunities from Penn State, Missouri, Pittsburgh, Northwestern, Nebraska and more. This past weekend, Miranda was in Columbus for the Rivals Camp Series and walked away earning the title of Offensive Line MVP.
Congrats to our Columbus #RivalsCamp OL MVP Michael Miranda (@bigmike2178)! pic.twitter.com/NFlLQsIKPT
— Rivals Camp Series (@RivalsCamp) April 9, 2016
Miranda, 6-foot-4 and 285 pounds, may have an advantage over the linemen listed above because both of the Buckeyes' 2017 line commits are likely tackles in college and he is true interior line prospect.
Miranda was pegged by Rivals as one of the players that stood out on Saturday thanks to his ability to win with his hands.
The offensive and defensive line one-on-ones finished with a best-on-best showcase and that was where Miranda sealed his MVP award. The 6-foot-4, 285-pound offensive guard prospect has a great frame for the position and carries little bad weight. He shows a strong initial punch, locks on with a strong pair of hands and controls well.
For a player like Miranda, summer camp at Ohio State is going to be an important piece of the puzzle. He's expected though, to make a decision before the summer begins and he hopes to enroll early at the college of his choosing, so that's another aspect to pay attention to if he ends up receiving an offer from the Buckeyes.
URBAN MEYER, RECRUITS TAKING ON THE NCAA
The national outcry about the piss-poor decisions made by the NCAA on Friday afternoon has not subsided.
Monday morning, Urban Meyer addressed the changes to satellite camps and electronic communication, finding–like most reasonable people–that each of these decisions make exactly zero sense.
"The texting thing is the most ignorant thing I've ever heard in my life," Meyer said Monday. "Because they can't manage the coaches, they can't police the coaches. Fire the coaches that do it. Fire them. And make the penalty so absolutely out of control that they won't do it. (Make it so) you'll never coach again in major college football if you on purpose text someone."
The deregulation of text messages and other communications are only one part of the conundrum caused by the governing body of collegiate athletics. The bigger issue is the outright termination of satellite camps–and bigger still–the ability for a college coaching staff to assist/be a part of another program's camp. Those opportunities are absolutely one of the major recruiting forces for mid-majors and FCS teams, etc. That's where Meyer got his start, and he knows how detrimental it will be to schools around Ohio not named Ohio State and to prospects–including one that lives under his roof–that aren't necessarily going to be Buckeye-caliber college football players.
"I just hate to see it," Meyer said. "Probably hundreds of scholarships come out of here to those young players and I know my son is getting recruited a little bit so what camps do you send them to? Not many kids can play at Ohio State so don't send them or send them but ... Now Bowling Green won't have a chance to watch him play."
Aside from impacting just major college camps like the ones at Ohio State, the new policies are also going to keep the Buckeyes–and a host of other major college programs–from being a part of camps like Detroit's Sound Mind/Sound Body, which has turned into one of the country's most respected and well-attended camps. Every summer, hundreds of college coaches descend of Detroit for the event, created years ago by Curtis Blackwell, and every year hundreds of scholarships are handed out because of the opportunity to see and coach players from all corners of the US. Blackwell, now the director of player personnel at Michigan State, is no longer the principle party involved with SMSB, but he's still involved. He told the Detroit Free Press that it's still on his mind.
All the way around this is less opportunity for young people,” Blackwell said. “Think about the part where you take Johnny to Michigan camp and he doesn’t get offered by Michigan because Michigan takes the five stars from California who came out. But because he was there he got noticed by Eastern Michigan, or Youngstown State or Central Michigan and they offered him a scholarship and he goes on to be Ben Roethlisberger or somebody. Because little schools don’t have camps.”
Led by five-star wide receiver Donovan Peoples-Jones, a number of recruits are hoping that by keeping attention on these new regulations, things can get back to normal.
Retweet to spread this: #ChangeNCAA pic.twitter.com/HDimVUW9HE
— Donovan P. Jones (@dpeoplesjones) April 10, 2016
As we discussed on Friday, these changes are not going to affect five-stars. They're not going to hurt Ohio State, or Michigan, or the upper-crust schools. There are not guarantees that anything will change with the NCAA, but if you pay attention to recruiting and want to try and help overturn these baffling decisions, sign this petition and let your voice be heard.
SAMUEL INCLUDES BUCKEYES IN EARLY TOP 10
Ohio State has made the Top 10 for one of the country's top-ranked 2018 cornerbacks.
Four-star Asante Samuel Jr., who lines up for St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, released his preferred schools via Twitter this afternoon.
Blessed pic.twitter.com/nc3jjB27jn
— Asante Samuel (@godschild3_) April 11, 2016
The Buckeyes offered Samuel last July, but right now it seems that they're trailing a couple teams, including Florida State and Miami. His father starred at Central Florida and played 11 seasons in the NFL.
