In a move that many deemed inevitable from the first time he stepped on campus for Friday Night Lights one year ago this week, Lindenhurst, New York, four-star tight end Jeremy Ruckert announced his commitment to Ohio State on Twitter Monday afternoon.
5-star TE Jeremy Ruckert races to his commitment #BRCommitmentWeek pic.twitter.com/Bc41A6COrJ
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) July 17, 2017
The 6-foot-6, 238-pound Ruckert is considered the top-rated tight end and No. 52 prospect overall in the Class of 2018. He picked Ohio State over finalists Michigan, Notre Dame and Wisconsin.
Ruckert has been to campus numerous times over the last year, including the double-overtime win over Michigan and Junior Day in late January. The Buckeyes were widely believed to have been his leader through the process, but he made trips to Ann Arbor, Madison and South Bend this spring, too, bringing a little bit of uncertainty to the process in recent months.
In the end, though, Ohio State's Real Life Wednesdays program — as it has done with so many other recruits — gave the Buckeyes the edge.
The Ruckert File
- Class: 2018
- Size: 6-foot-6, 238 pounds
- Pos: TE
- School: Lindenhurst (NY)
- Composite Rating: ★★★★
- Composite Rank: 1 (TE)
"Wherever I go, there's going to be national attention. We're going to be all over TV. They're going to develop you to be the best player you can be," Ruckert told Eleven Warriors earlier this month at The Opening Finals. "But the biggest thing is [life] after football. You can't play your whole life — the average career in the NFL is 3 1/2 years, so you're about 27 or 28 when you're done. Then you have to start over again. Whatever school I want go to, I want to make sure I'm comfortable with having an out after football and being successful."
Well, that plus his relationship with head coach Urban Meyer, who seemingly went above and beyond in his efforts to land the highly sought-after Long Islander.
"Coach Meyer texts me every day," Ruckert said. "He doesn't just text me, either. He texts my family and my girlfriend and sends letters to my girlfriend's mom. He really goes the extra mile to make sure my parents and my family after comfortable being with him the next four years, which is the most important thing."
Ruckert becomes the 15th member — and first tight end — of Ohio State's Supreme '18 recruiting class, thus bringing an end to his recruitment altogether.
“The way I was raised, once I make a commitment, that's going to be it. I'm not going to take any visits to other schools," he said. "I'm going to start recruiting other guys. Where I'm from, the way I was raised by my dad and my mom, once I'm committed I have to finish it."
Eleven Warriors will have more on Ruckert's pledge shortly.
