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.
JAYLEN HARRIS TALK
Cleveland Heights' Jaylen Harris has had a Buckeye offer for almost a year now, but to the surprise of many, he's still on the recruiting board and doesn't seem to be in any hurry at all to make a college choice.
I talked to Harris on Saturday afternoon and that theme – taking his time – was the primary takeaway. The four-star prospect told me that he's been talking to Tony Alford and the Buckeyes almost every day, but that right now, he's just not ready to make a decision. He wants to visit a few other schools and told me that two SEC schools – LSU and Ole Miss – were among the programs he wishes he heard more from.
"I don't think people know there's a lot of pressure," Harris said about his recruitment. "Ohio State stays on me, they let me know what their situation is."
"Their situation" of course, is a lack of scholarships available and because of that, a decision from an in-state player like Harris could help them know exactly where they're going. Talking to a few people on Saturday, there's some thought that perhaps this particular wide receiver may be looking at schools that will feature him a bit more in their offense, a more wide-open passing system.
Interestingly, I've been told in recent weeks two things to pay attention to, from two different sources. First, the Buckeyes may be looking to only take two wide receivers in 2017 if they're the right two, and secondly, Harris remains a player they'd like to leave a spot for, if he wants it.
I don't know how long that he'll have that opportunity, but if Harris wants to be a Buckeye, it may behoove him to try and make a move on that situation sometime soon.
BLAINE SCOTT GETS BUCKEYE VISIT
The Buckeyes have offered one in-state 2018 offensive lineman (Fairfield's Jack Carman) but they continue to look closely at another, Portsmouth East's Blaine Scott.
"Great visit from (Greg) Studrawa today," East head coach James Gifford told 11W. "He's excited about Blaine. He's looking forward to him performing well at camp."
Scott has been blowing up lately. He's picked up offers from Purdue, Indiana, Rutgers, NC State, Kentucky and others while making stops at Duke, Notre Dame and others this spring. He's trimmed down and his frame - now at 6-foot-5 and a svelte 300 pounds - is beginning to look the part of a big-time college offensive lineman. Gifford said he's not sure what's holding back some schools back, but that the level of competition at East shouldn't be a problem because it didn't hold Ohio State back from his former teammate, Tyler Gerald.
"I'm not sure what the hold up is on Blaine," Gifford said. "He's the complete package."
Gerald earned his Ohio State offer the summer before the start of his junior season and committed immediately. Scott, if he's able to earn that offer next month, may follow a similar path.
MORE SATELLITE CAMPING FOR OHIO STATE
It's going to be a very busy June for the Buckeyes' coaching staff.
Not only will the Scarlet and Gray be hosting a week's worth of their own camps, but it appears their satellite camp experience will go from an exception to almost a rule.
We know the Buckeyes will host a satellite camp at Central Gwinnett High School in Georgia, we know they'll host a camp at St. Thomas Aquinas in Fort Lauderdale, we know they'll be a part of the Sound Mind/Sound Body camp in Detroit.
Monday three different camps announced they're also expecting Ohio State, including more stops with Sound Mind/Sound Body.
UPDATE: Ohio State will be in attendance at the Atlanta, Houston, Detroit & Tampa #SMSBFootball Academies! pic.twitter.com/AEOPzW72wp
— SoundMind SoundBody (@SMSBFootball) May 9, 2016
This will be 1 of the biggest camps cleveland have ever seen. Osu,Mich,MSU,IU,Purdue,Iowa, Maryland,Rutgers ect.. pic.twitter.com/Q7Qb0LcbKD
— raw talent (@MarkMharris36) May 9, 2016
Come join us at the best camp on the East Coast. Get coached by 3 great coaching staffs. pic.twitter.com/wzVv4k2dVB
— Chris Ash (@CoachChrisAsh) May 9, 2016
Ohio State will be all over the map it seems and the last camp listed there puts the Buckeyes roughly 30 miles from Michigan – who will be at Paramus Catholic – in New Jersey on June 8. That is an interesting sidenote to the developing satellite camp stories. Even with all that running around, if you compare Ohio State's schedule to that of their rivals up north, it seems like the Buckeyes are taking an early vacation.
Willie Taggart's USF event gives Jim Harbaugh 26 satellite camps in the month of June. June only has 30 days. https://t.co/d3gfrxboxi
— Nick Baumgardner (@nickbaumgardner) May 9, 2016
The rivalry isn't dead and even something as trivial as these camps show exactly how much the Wolverines are trying to work themselves back into national relevance.
KANSAS ATHLETE ENJOYS TRIP TO COLUMBUS
Without any offers to his name, Derby, Kansas, wide receiver/tight end Kenyon Tabor made his way to Ohio State this weekend to camp with Nike and to check out the Buckeyes' program.
"That's the reason I made the trip," Tabor, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound athlete, said. "It's two great opportunities at once."
Tabor has been talking with Ed Warinner, the Buckeyes' tight end coach, and he got a chance to see the school twice, once on Friday and once on Saturday.
"It was for sure the nicest place I've visited," he said of Ohio State. "They have a great coaching staff and they showed me a lot of attention, I met five different coaches. I went after the Nike event and Coach Warinner took us around the facilities. He wants me at an Ohio State camp. They said the only downside is my size, because I'm not built like a true tight end and am a little slower for a wide receiver. I had a great time and will try to make it to camp."
On Saturday, Tabor ran an electronically-timed 4.67 40-yard-dash and chucked the power ball almost 42 feet, so he's not slow and he's got good upper-body strength. The key is to put on weight and develop into a pure tight end. Still, he's not sure what has kept him from gaining an offer at this point.
"I honestly can't seem to figure it out," he said. "I talk to like, eight schools on a regular basis, and I hear from Kansas State, Oklahoma State or Michigan the most. I've got to put on a lot of weight or become faster."
