Some of the top high school recruits in the country — and, perhaps, a few future Ohio State players — will be inside Ohio Stadium on Friday evening for the Buckeyes’ premier camp event of the summer.
Friday Night Lights is back.
The camp, which Urban Meyer and director of player personnel Mark Pantoni brought to Ohio State from Florida, begins 6 p.m. Friday, and the list of those expected to be in attendance is quite impressive. Players from all over the country will come and work out with the Buckeyes’ coaching staff inside the team’s stadium.
It truly is quite a spectacle and it’s one Ohio State has obviously used to its advantage in the world of recruiting. Friday will be the fifth version of the camp in Columbus, and each has had its own unique case of storylines, new scholarship offers and commitments.
That last part is what we’re breaking down today as we take a look back at the previous four versions of Friday Night Lights and those who pledged to Ohio State. Then, we’ll put some prospects who are expected to be in attendance this year on commitment watch.
In 2012, the first Friday Night Lights at Ohio State, Timothy Gardner committed to the Buckeyes the day after the event. Gardner signed with the Buckeyes the following February to be part of their 2013 recruiting class, but he was dismissed from the team before ever playing a game.
The 2013 version of Friday Night Lights had some big-name prospects in attendance — Raekwon McMillan, Curtis Samuel and Marshon Lattimore to name a few — but Ohio State did not land any commitments. Those would come, however, in the next two years as Friday Night Lights really started to blossom.
The Buckeyes landed a pair of commits in 2014 as they got verbals from tight end Josh Moore — who later decommitted and now plays at Kansas — and current Ohio State redshirt freshman defensive tackle Josh Alabi. In 2015, the Buckeyes got two more commitments: one from 2016 tight end Luke Farrell and the other from 2017 kicker Blake Haubeil.
Ohio State will obviously look to continue that trend Friday, and there’s a decent chance that happens as several of the Buckeyes’ top targets in both the 2017 and 2018 classes will be in attendance. Who pulls the trigger, though? That’s tough to call right now, but here are some names to keep an eye on:
If there are to be any commits, the chance is greater those come from the 2018 class. Ohio State already has 14 commits in 2017 and is really squeezed when it comes to available spots remaining. Some of the Buckeyes’ top targets will be in attendance — Tyjon Lindsey, Trevon Grimes, Amir Riep — but all three have scheduled commitment dates. Riep is slated to announce his college decision Saturday, the day after Friday Night Lights, and he’s thought to be a heavy Ohio State lean.
If there’s one player in 2017 who could pull the trigger Friday night, though, it might be four-star defensive end Chase Young. Many believe the Buckeyes are the favorite to land the Hyattsville, Maryland native, but Young doesn’t necessarily seem to be in a rush to make a decision and he’s coming off a recent trip to Alabama that reportedly made a strong impression.
If Ohio State is to land a commitment, it seems more likely that will come from the 2018 class. The Buckeyes don’t currently have any pledges in that group, and Friday night would be a great time to start as several of their top 2018 targets will also be in attendance.
Four-star quarterback Emory Jones and four-star linebacker Christopher Oats seem like the two candidates who would be the most likely pull the trigger, though again, a commitment is far from a sure thing. Jackson Carman, Dallas Gant and Jaelen Gill could be three additional names to watch, as well, in the 2018 class.
With four total commitments in the last two years, it’s starting to become somewhat of a tradition for Ohio State to land pledges at its annual camp. Will that continue this year?
Stay tuned.
