WESTERVILLE - Jaelen Gill stood at the podium in the Westerville South auditorium on Wednesday afternoon, surrounded by family, friends, coaches and teammates anxiously awaiting his college decision. And with a demeanor that would make even the best public speakers envious, he thanked each one for their role in getting him to this point in his career.
But when Gill mentioned his late grandfather, Eddie Bennett, it was hard for him to hold back his emotions.
"He meant the world to me. And if you know how close I was with him, when he passed, it hurt me. I was down for a really long time," Gill said, barely able to push the words past the lump in his throat. "I feel like God took him from us too soon, but it's obviously what he needed.
"I wish we had more time to go fishing and all of the stuff that we used to do, but I considered him one of my best friends," he continued. "I don't think he missed any of my football games since I was in middle school. He was always there, and I'll forever appreciate and cherish the moments that I got to spend with him. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think about him."
Gill is one of the most sought-after prospects in the Class of 2018, holding offers from big-time programs such as Florida, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, UCLA, USC and Virginia Tech, among a host of others. But it was the last conversation he had with Bennett before he passed last April that kept him from going anywhere other than Ohio State.
"My last moment with my grandfather, I told him where I was going to school. He's known longer than anyone else, and I kept my word," Gill said. "That was his school. I always talked to him growing up about how I was going to be a Buckeye, and he told me, 'Prove it. Show me you're going to be a Buckeye.' And so I did.
"It means a lot because I kept my word and I kept my promise with him," Gill continued. "He was a really big part of my life, so I'm just excited that I was able to do that."
Gill's interest in UCLA was sincere — the beautiful weather and bright lights of Los Angeles are certainly attractive. But every time he would start think about playing for the Bruins, Gill would hear his grandfather's voice in the back of his mind.
"Every time I walk down the tunnel, whether it's going to a game or [I'm] just hanging out, I can see myself walking right next to him," Gill said. "There's nothing more that he would have wanted than to see me at Ohio State."
