In a class that currently sits at thirteen commitments, seven of those thirteen are on the defensive side of the ball. We've known for a while that defensive back and defensive tackle are likely to be the most critical position groups in the 2017 class, and fortunately for the Buckeyes, both of those groups are already pretty loaded.
On Thursday we looked at nine players we expect Ohio State to sign on offense. While these educated guesses are bound to be adjusted every few months, it's fun to go back and track how much things change between early 2016 and February of 2017. Today, we are looking at how we think things could transpire on the defensive side of the ball.
DEFENSIVE BACK • CURRENT COMMITS: 4 • PROJECTING: 5
The Buckeyes currently have the nation's top defensive back class, and it's only going to get better. Yes, the possibility still remains that Isaiah Pryor or Brendon White could end up at linebacker, but we are keeping them in the secondary for now.
I guess we can start with the bad news, focusing on a pair of Wades. Shaun Wade, who has been committed to Ohio State since January of 2015, continues to say all the right things about his standing with the Buckeyes. All of those words are grand, but he hasn't been to Columbus in what seems like an eternity. He's also taken a number of visits to other schools, including Florida, Florida State, and Alabama. Crimson Tide fans already have a Twitter page dedicated to bringing Wade to Bama because of course they do.
Come on home Shaun!! #BringWadeHome pic.twitter.com/ttfZsJGW5X
— ShaunWadeToBama (@ShaunWadeToBama) April 22, 2016
Trips to the Florida schools and even Tuscaloosa are understandable given the proximity, but what about the treks to USC and UCLA? It just doesn't make much sense that those trips are feasible but the five-star hasn't made it back to the school in which he's committed. A number of crystal ball picks to Alabama have been submitted recently, and whether it's the Tide or one of the in-state schools, it looks like the Army All-American is continuing to trend elsewhere. Of course, a return trip to Columbus could change that.
As for Lamont Wade (Clairton, PA), that one is a bit tougher to get a read on. We've talked about his somewhat strange comments while in Columbus last month for the Rivals Camp Series. Yes, Wade wants to enroll early and there was some discussion as to whether or not that will be possible at Ohio State. It seems like things have been smoothed over, but this one just has a bit of a strange feel to it all of the sudden. There's obviously still plenty of time to get things turned around, especially with a critical May visit looming.
Things continue to look positive for both Amir Riep and Jeffrey Okudah. Riep continues to take visit across the country but he recently canceled a trip to LSU in order to attend the Buckeyes' spring game. The Spartans and Gators appear to be the main competition, but we look for this one to end in Ohio State's favor, probably sometime before the end of summer.
Okudah, the nation's top safety, wasn't able to make the trip up for the spring game, but that doesn't seem to have changed the way he feels about the Buckeyes. Last weekend at the Under Armour headquarters in Baltimore, the five-star was raving about Ohio State to Mike Farrell of Rivals.com. Okudah has roots in New Jersey and Greg Schiano figures to be a prominent figure as the recruitment goes on. Last week, one of the Longhorn insiders submitted a crystal ball pick for the good guys, so that was also nice to see.
- Projection: Marcus Williamson, Isaiah Pryor, Brendon White, Amir Riep, Jeffrey Okudah
LINEBACKER • CURRENT COMMITS: 1 • PROJECTING: 1
Kerry Coombs had been leading the charge for Ann Arbor's very own Antjuan Simmons, the second-ranked linebacker in the state of Michigan. The four-star is one of the hardest hitters in the class despite being a bit undersized.
Simmons' somewhat surprising commitment to Ohio State in March may very well have signified the end of linebacker recruiting for the 2017 cycle. First of all, it isn't really a position of need. The Buckeyes have signed six linebackers over the last two recruiting classes and have a number of underclassmen poised to take on bigger roles. Secondly, depending on how things go with Mickey Marotti, the aforementioned Isaiah Pryor and Brendon White could grow into linebackers at the next level.
Four-star LB Antjuan Simmons (and his hair) are coming to Ohio State.
IMG Academy's Santino Marchiol was a name that we had discussed early on in the process. However, Ohio State's efforts seemed to focus more on Simmons and now it's looking like Marchiol will end up at Tennessee or Texas A&M. The Buckeyes may continue to shoot for the stars for a player like Baron Browning – who recently included Ohio State in his top ten – but it's looking like the five-star is going to end up playing his college ball in his home state of Texas.
- Projection: Antjuan Simmons
DEFENSIVE TACKLE • CURRENT COMMITS: 2 • PROJECTING: 3
After missing on a number of top targets for 2016, there's no question that defensive tackle recruiting is going to be heavily scrutinized for the 2017 cycle. Thankfully for Larry Johnson and the Buckeyes, two of the nation's best are already part of the class and things are looking pretty good for a few other top prospects.
We think the class is going to end up with three interior defensive linemen. Haskell Garrett and Jerron Cage are both going to have to be recruited for the long haul, but right now things look pretty solid on both fronts. The Buckeyes recently offered the nation's top tackle, Bellaire, Texas' Marvin Wilson, but other than a few nice comments we haven't really seen much to get excited about. If a visit takes place – preferably over the summer and again in the fall – then there may be some reason for optimism.
Haskell Garrett made his first trip to Columbus in late March.
The main player to watch may continue to be Lake Taylor, Virginia's Darnell Ewell. The four-star says the Buckeyes are at the top of his list and he's planning a visit for this coming June. It remains to be seen exactly where the 6-foot-3, 300-pounder currently stands in the staff's eyes, but right now he appears to be the most likely to round out the defensive tackle group. It's tough to ignore the Buckeyes' connections with Lake Taylor and Ewell's friendship with 2016 signee Wayne Davis. Michigan, Alabama, Clemson, and Auburn are also in consideration.
There's also a Columbus native to keep an eye on, but it looks like a decision could come before the Buckeyes even extend an offer. Derrius Mullins (St. France De Sales) is a player that the staff is probably going to want to see work out in person before making the move. Mullins has met with Luke Fickell to discuss his current standing and the three-star knows that numbers are tight right now. Depending on what happens with some other targets, the 6-foot-5, 315-pounder could potentially be in line for an offer if he is willing to wait things out a bit.
- Projection: Haskell Garrett, Jerron Cage, Darnell Ewell
DEFENSIVE END • CURRENT COMMITS: 0 • PROJECTING: 1
Unlike defensive tackle, the need for edge rushers in 2017 is pretty minimal. Over the last few months, the search has primarily focused on a pair of five-stars who hail (originally) from Maryland.
Joshua Kaindoh was thought to be a Buckeye lean for a few weeks or so, but things swung in the favor of Maryland and Notre Dame. Not long ago, the 6-foot-6, 260-pound end listed a top four of Ohio State, Penn State, Michigan, and Notre Dame. The troll was strong – and obvious – on that one as the IMG Academy star neglected to include the Terps, the team most everyone thought he was leaning toward.
Yesterday he made things official, announcing his commitment to Maryland. Still a long way to go and other teams will obviously continue to recruit him, but right now there's no reason to think he ends up elsewhere; other than the fact that Maryland isn't exactly good at hanging on to high-caliber commitments.
Chase Young recently achieved five-star status on the 247Sports composite rankings, and he continues to be the focal point of the Buckeyes' defensive end recruiting efforts. While Kaindoh has the look of more of a strong-side defensive end, Young is built more like Jalyn Holmes was in high school days.
A number of crystal ball picks for the Buckeyes have come in lately, including a few that are definitely worth paying attention to. Young hasn't been shy about his relationship with Larry Johnson, but the Terps and potentially the Crimson Tide aren't going to make things easy.
- Projection: Chase Young
SPECIAL TEAMS • CURRENT COMMITS: 1 • PROJECTING: 1
Buffalo's Blake Haubeil (Canisius) has been committed to the Buckeyes since last July, and we are expecting the nation's 2nd-ranked kicker to be the lone special teamer in the 2017 class. There's no need for a punter after signing Drue Chrisman in February.
- Projection: Blake Haubeil
As mentioned on Thursday, we are setting the magic number at 20 signees for the time being, but that is going to be tricky to reach. We've talked about the lack of available scholarships and commitments being asked to grayshirt, and it would be no surprise if similar requests are made between now and next February.
It's reasonable to expect some big changes in the not-so-distant future.
