The Hurry Up is your nightly dose of updates from the Ohio State football recruiting trail, keeping tabs on the latest from commits and targets from around the country.
PLUS-ONE
Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer has been keeping tabs on Saint Simons Island, Georgia, teammates Jaylin Simpson and Jashawn Sheffield since he offered the duo earlier this summer.
Just talked to @EronHodges and @OSUCoachMeyer can't wait to get up there and visit. #Buckeyes
— Jaylin Simpson (@jaylinsimp) September 13, 2016
“He just talks about my playing style, and me coming up to visit,” Simpson told Landof10. “He tells me that I play like a 2018 kid. That's a pretty good compliment.”
Simpson, a 5-foot-11, 165-pound sophomore corner, is not yet ranked by major recruiting sites, but Sheffield is considered the top-ranked wide receiver in the Class of 2019 by 247Sports. The pair is set to take an unofficial visit to Columbus next month.
“Me and Jashawn are planning on coming up in October,” he said. “I'm not sure which game yet.”
Simpson told Eleven Warriors shortly after he was offered that the pair have always dreamed of playing together at the next level, so Ohio State has an early chance to make a lasting impression next month.
“We left middle school together and came to Frederica [Academy] together, so you never know,” he said.
Simpson and Sheffield will take an unofficial visit to Florida this fall, while Florida State is expected to be the main threat to Ohio State's chances to land the pair.
NICE NAME
One player to keep an eye on in the coming weeks is Plantation, Florida, American Heritage defensive end Andrew Chatfield. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound junior has played extremely well for the Patriots so far this season, and recently told Maize n Brew that he expects the Buckeyes to offer soon.
Ohio State is talking to 2018 DE Andrew Chatfield "a lot." He believes the Buckeyes will offer soon. https://t.co/tbG3diBQJE
— Evan Petzold (@EvanPetzold) September 14, 2016
Chatfield is considered a four-star prospect by 247Sports, but surprisingly has a rather thin list of offers from schools like Bowling Green, Iowa State, Mississippi State, Syracuse, Temple, Wisconsin and USF. He's visited Florida State and Miami, so it's only a matter of time before other top programs begin to take notice.
HOOK, LINE AND SINKER
New Castle, Pennsylvania, safety Marcus Hooker was supposed to be in attendance for Ohio State's season-opening win over Bowling Green, a game in which his brother, Malik, made a pair of spectacular interceptions.
Travel arrangements fell through so he didn't make it, but that hasn't stopped the Buckeyes from keeping in touch.
“I've been talking to coach [Luke] Fickell and coach [Urban] Meyer,” Marcus told 247Sports ($). “I texted him before the Tulsa game.”
The 6-foot, 185-pound junior is considered the eighth-best prospect in the state of Pennsylvania and the No. 28 cornerback in the Class of 2018.
He has offers from Bowling Green, Temple, Toledo and West Virginia, but would have a lot to live up to if he ultimately chooses to play at Ohio State — especially since the brothers have quite the sibling rivalry.
“I'm better,” Malik told Eleven Warriors with a smile on his face.
Hooker has been to Columbus numerous times with his older brother already on campus, and that, quite frankly, gives the Buckeyes a leg-up in his recruitment.
ILLEGAL TRANSFER
High school students transferring to another school with sports as the primary factor is nothing new, but few are as obvious or as high-profile as four-star offensive tackle Thayer Munford's move from Cincinnati La Salle to Massillon.
On Wednesday, the Ohio High School Athletic Association upheld its August ruling which makes Munford ineligible for his senior season and the Tigers' head coach unable to coach the team in the playoffs.
OHSAA denies eligibility appeal of Massillon transfer Thayer Munford. https://t.co/X6TtNmRDVQ
— Matt Goul (@mgoul) September 14, 2016
“The investigation involved several student-athletes who were recruited to attend Massillon Washington by its head football coach, Nate Moore, along with other Massillon Washington assistant football coaches and boosters,” the ruling said.
Moore coached at La Salle before taking the job in Massillon in January 2015.
The Massillon Independent reported that Munford moved in with Moore and his wife after they assumed legal gardianship arlier this summer, claiming it would offer the 6-foot-5, 339-pounder a better life on and off the field.
“As Thayer's grades continued to fall, I feared he was in danger of falling into the crime and drugs in our neighborhood of Lincoln Hieghts,” MeLisa Thompson said. “After my son was held at gunpoint, and a family friend was killed by our apartment, I did what I never imagined I would have to do. I reached out to Becca [Moore], asking her and Nate to rescue my son and give him a chance to succeed.”
OHSAA Bylaw 4-9-4.8 states that a coach cannot have any contact with students from his or her former schools, which is why the governing body upheld its ruling on Wednesday.
Munford is considered the 19th-best player in the state for the Class of 2017, but does not have an offer from Ohio State.
Stock rising fast for OT Thayer Munford, who had a good camp at #OhioState on Friday: https://t.co/ivbUVDrY5E pic.twitter.com/RfBzhYMbry
— Allen Trieu (@AllenTrieu) July 25, 2016
He recently attended the program's Friday Night Lights recruiting camp, but with two other tackles — Jake Moretti and Josh Myers — already in the fold, the chances Munford ultimately becomes a Buckeyes are extremely thin; Pittsburgh seems to be the destination.
