The 11W Recruiting Mailbag is your one-stop shop for all things Ohio State recruiting. You have questions. We have answers.
What is the deal with running backs for 2018. Does Ohio State need to add three, or is two — including Jaelen Gill — enough? Tavion Thomas seems to be up in the air, and certain posters keep saying Master Teague III is next on the board. What are your thoughts? - Buckeye06
A lot of that depends on what starting running back Mike Weber does next offseason. He could potentially declare for the NFL Draft with a breakout redshirt sophomore season, leaving Ohio State with only two true running backs on the roster in Antonio Williams and J.K. Dobbins — Demario McCall, meanwhile, will most likely see the majority of his touches at H-Back.
Gill and Snead make a perfect one-two punch as the athletic H-Back and bruising running back, respectively. And while most programs would be lucky to have such a haul, the overall depth at the position makes it necessary to chase a third.
Being from Dayton, Thomas seems like the natural fit. He's big and has as much potential as any prospect in the country having played only six games at running back in his high school career after transitioning from defensive end. But the Buckeyes are still in the running for five-star Zamir White, so the staff can afford to slow-play Thomas a bit.
There are concerns with his grades, too, which is why things seem to be trending in another direction. Enter Teague, who covets an offer from Ohio State more than anything right now. Running backs coach Tony Alford recently stopped by his school to watch him practice, and if the Buckeyes miss out on White next month, he might find himself ahead of Thomas on the priority list.
I know recruiting is a roller coaster, but what is up with Jackson Carman? He announces Clemson as his leader and now they are 1B after his visit to Ohio State. He has also been seen wearing a lot of Ohio State gear recently. Do the good guys end up landing him in the end? - BurningRiverBuckeye
I've gotten to know Carman quite a bit over the last few months, and I believe he genuinely likes what Clemson's program has to offer and appreciates what the coaches are telling him.
He also doesn't feel as much pressure there as he does at Ohio State. But, that said, I don't see a way Carman ends up anywhere other than Columbus. He's the top-rated prospect at a position of great need, and head coach Urban Meyer isn't going to let him leave the state as a result.
Carman told me at last month's The Opening Cleveland Region he doesn't take too kindly to people just assuming he'll land with the Buckeyes, so naturally, he named the Tigers his leader to add a bit of drama in his recruitment. He's gone from being perceived as a sure thing to possibly the biggest miss of the Meyer era. Mission accomplished.
What is the actual impact on a recruit if he sees a school recruit someone else at the same position? For instance, with Brenton Cox's commitment, does this lessen our chances of landing either Tyreke Smith or Micah Parsons? - Smartone29
Ohio State is set to suffer some major losses along the defensive line with Jalyn Holmes, Tyquan Lewis, Tracy Sprinkle and Michael Hill all set to graduate following the 2017 season and redshirt junior Sam Hubbard eligible for the NFL Draft. So, of course, restocking the line is arguably the staff's biggest priority for next year's recruiting class.
The numbers have always dictated the Buckeyes take at least four defensive lineman in 2018, and there's no reason to think they won't land all three of the above-mentioned prospects in addition to five-star defensive tackle commit Taron Vincent.
This isn't the quarterback position, where you only want to take one prospect every cycle. And it's not as if the staff runs the risk of running off Smith because they're recruiting Parsons, or vice versa. Each one is among the nation's best because they're not afraid of competition.
They want to make it to the National Football League, and if they feel like defensive line coach Larry Johnson can get them there, they're not going to worry about who else will join them on the depth chart.
Who has been your favorite recruit to cover? - SFlaBuckeye13
As most of you may know, I've only been following recruiting full-time for nine months, so my list of prospects is somewhat limited. That said, my answer would be five-star cornerback Shaun Wade.
Most people assumed it was only a matter of time before he flipped his commitment to Alabama, and — though he never showed any true signs of wavering — I was continuously asked if I thought he'd stick with his pledge.
Sounds a bit like what we're going through with five-star quarterback commit Emory Jones, eh?
Well, thanks to those nonstop questions and the never-ending drama surrounding his recruitment, I got to know Shaun and his wonderful parents, Randy and Gwen, pretty well. They didn't care that I was still green behind the ears and treated me with the same dignity and respect as someone they'd known for a long time. That relationship I've built with Shaun and his family will stick with me for as long as I'm in this business.
Who is the next recruit to join Supreme '18? - @jbes23
Toledo four-star linebacker Dallas Gant is set to announce his college decision on May 16, and if nothing surprising happens between now and then, there's your answer.
It's always been a two-horse race between Ohio State and Notre Dame, and I've never bought into the narrative that he'll end up in South Bend because of the religious similarities to his high school — the only thing that gave the Fighting Irish a chance, in my opinion, was Luke Fickell's departure.
Even then, the Buckeyes replaced him with Bill Davis, and the two have hit it off in the months since his arrival. Gant is comfortable in Columbus and with the staff, and the Buckeyes' knack for sending linebackers to the NFL gives them the advantage.
We've been hearing that Teradja Mitchell may be deciding this month, does he have a date picked out? Do you think we can keep Florida State at bay? - BuckeyeGrownFloridaLiving
Ohio State already has one win over Florida State this offseason in the aforementioned Vincent, and I believe Mitchell will make it two. He doesn't have a date picked out yet — just that he will make his decision known after his trip to Tallahassee this later month — so his pledge could come at any time.
The Seminoles have always recruited Hampton Roads well, which is why they were considered the favorite in his recruitment forever. But something changed around the time of his visit to Columbus last month, and after talking to some of my sources back in Virginia Beach — where I lived for two years — I feel confident in my Crystal Ball prediction.
Such a move doesn't come without precedent, either, as Norfolk's Jalyn Holmes spurned Florida State for Ohio State back in 2013.
Will there be a push to sign another tight end besides Jeremy Ruckert? If so, who do you think that will be? - NHBuckeye
After going without a tight end in this year's recruiting cycle, the staff has always planned on taking two tight ends in the Class of 2018. Ruckert is the obvious first choice, and he plans to make a commitment after his high school baseball season ends in a few weeks.
Now I know he's trending toward Michigan at this point in time, but I've always been a fan of Texas four-star Mustapha Muhammad. He doesn't play for powerhouse schools or put up some of the same numbers as some of the other top-rated tight ends, but that's because he's used as a blocker more often than not. Put on the tape and you'll see he's just as good with the ball in his hands as Ruckert, Brevin Jordan, Zack Kuntz and so on.
Muhammad has been on campus before, and the staff is pushing for a return trip. If that happens, the tides could certainly shift in the Buckeyes' favor.
Obviously, we can't get them all and no one can predict the future. Who's the one in-state 2018 prospect you think that if Urban doesn't offer him, we'll end up looking back and wishing he had? - IowaBuckeyes
Along those same lines, I think Meyer may eventually regret not offering a scholarship to Cincinnati LaSalle's Josh Whyle earlier on in the process. If the Buckeyes don't land Ruckert and/or Muhammad, the focus will undoubtedly go to Whyle, the second-rated tight end in the state — Springfield's Leonard Taylor will mostly likely end up along the defensive line.
The only issue? He's committed to the Bearcats and has taken a leadership role in Fickell's first class in the Queen City.
The natural response, of course, is to think Ohio State can steal any prospect it wants later on in the process, but I'm not sure Meyer will do that to his former assistant this early in his head coaching career.
Is Kamryn Babb the only receiver on the board right now, and where do things stand with him? - OSU2002Grad
Ohio State remains firmly in the lead for Babb, though Missouri has really been pushing to keep all of its in-state talent home. If prospects like Michael Thompson, Daniel Carson and Trevor Trout commit to the Tigers sooner rather than later, maybe Babb gives it some real consideration.
Michigan, for what it's worth, is also making the same pitch — "From the Lou to the Mitten" (rolls eyes).
There are a couple other big targets who remain high on the Buckeyes, including Houston five-star Brennan Eagles and Alabama four-star Justyn Ross. Eagles is the good friend of top cornerback target Anthony Cook, so the two could become a potential package deal, while Ross is someone Jones has repeatedly said he'd like to play alongside.
If neither of those happen, Xenia's Meechi Harris jumps to the front of the line for an offer and likely commits on the spot.
If the Buckeyes were to lose their commitment from Jones, what quarterback would they pursue the heaviest? - OH2MD
Let me get this out of the way: I don't think Jones is going anywhere. He continues to say all the right things and has seemingly taken his rightful place as leader of Ohio State's recruiting class. He was instrumental in helping the Buckeyes land Cox and was attached at Parsons' hip during the Spring Game last month.
But if I must answer this question... I'd honestly be pulling from a hat. There's not a single quarterback in the state of Ohio ranked in the Top 50 of his position and all but one of the signal callers the Buckeyes have offered are committed — and he's set to make a decision between Louisville, Mississippi State and Tennessee later this month.
There's potential for a flip later on in the process, though, with Texas four-star dual-threat commit Casey Thompson, who included Ohio State in his Top 10 last month ahead of his commitment to the Longhorns. Tom Herman landed a pro-style quarterback just a few days later, and though Thompson said he understood that going into his own pledge, that seems destined to become an issue at some point.
Would Meyer swoop in if necessary? Absolutely.
