The Hurry Up: Five-Star Wide Receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown Eyes Official Visit While Rasheed Walker Emerges As Possibility at Offensive Tackle

TOGETHER AGAIN?

Yesterday, Ohio State four-star linebacker target Solomon Tuliaupupu received his honorary U.S. Army All-American Bowl jersey. So did his teammate at Santa Ana, California, Mater Dei — four-star wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown.

Headed into the 2018 Army Bowl w/ the most players from any single team. #MaterDei Amon-Ra St. Brown, Chris Murray and Solo Tuliaupupu. pic.twitter.com/Nbt5YurFiI

— #D1Bound Nation. (@SportsRecruits) September 21, 2017

"It feels great to represent the people who put their lives on the line for us every day," St. Brown told CBS Sports. "To represent them is an honor and go play in the Army Bowl has always been a dream of mine."

The 6-foot, 191-pound St. Brown — considered the second-best wide receiver and No. 11 prospect overall prospect in the Class of 2018 — also talked about his recruitment. He mentioned the Buckeyes as one of six schools pressing him the hardest and how he plans to take an official visit to Columbus this fall, though the date is still unknown.

“I would say UCLA, USC, Stanford, Notre Dame, Michigan and Ohio State,” St. Brown said.

The Buckeyes are certainly looking up at the other schools at this point in time. After all, St. Brown's brothers — Equanimeous and Osiris — play for the Fighting Irish and Cardinal, respectively; he lives in Los Angeles; and he's never been to campus.

But an official visit is something St. Brown has eyed for a long time, especially as he's continued to grow closer to head coach Urban Meyer and wide receivers coach Zach Smith. The three text back and forth regularly.

“Ever since they offered me, we've been building a good relationship,” St. Brown told Eleven Warriors at Nike Football's The Opening Finals in July.

St. Brown recently dealt with a hand injury that put his season on hold and his recruitment on the backburner, but he returned last weekend and had three touchdowns receptions for the top-ranked Monarchs. He plans to take all five official visits before making a decision at the Army Bowl.

Does Ohio State have a chance? Sure, anything can happen when a program of such magnitude gets a top-rated prospect on campus. But it's highly, highly unlikely he leaves Southern California.

Instead, the Buckeyes are — and have long been — focused on pairing St. Louis four-star Kamryn Babb with L'Christian “Blue” Smith at the wideout position. Though he's yet to establish a timetable for his own decision, it's entirely possible Babb is in the fold by the time St. Brown makes it to campus.

EVER-CHANGING PRIORITIES

In late April, four-star offensive tackle Rasheed Walker narrowed down his list of more than 30 scholarship offers to six — Maryland, North Carolina, Ohio State, Penn State, Rutgers and Virginia Tech. And though the Nittany Lions have remained the overwhelming favorite to land his pledge, there's a growning confidence in Columbus that the Buckeyes are right in the thick of things, too.

With Max Wray already in the fold and the staff continuing to court prospects like Jackson Carman, Nicholas Petit-Frere and William Barnes, the 6-foot-5, 280-pound Walker is often forgotten. He's been on campus a handful of times over the last year, though, and is in constant contact with offensive line coach Greg Studrawa and defensive line coach/area recruiter Larry Johnson.

“We talk a lot. Like every day or every other day,” Walker told Eleven Warriors The Opening Finals. “They're one of the first schools to recruit me early on. I just have a real good relationship with them. I've been able to get down there a couple of times and I really like what I saw.”

Walker admitted the distance between campus and his home in Maryland isn't ideal, and the eight- to nine-hour drive has stopped him from visiting more often. That's the biggest reason Penn State was assumed to be his eventual landing spot.

But with Penn State already holding commitments from 23 prospects, three of which are offensive tackles, sources close to the program indicate the Nittany Lions are focused first on the potential wealth of talent they could bring in on the defensive line — namely Micah Parsons, Tyreke Smith and Jayson Oweh. It's long been believed Penn State would have room for only one of them, but the staff seems willing to miss out on Walker if that means they'll be able to land two.

The Nittany Lions still aren't recruiting at the same level as the Buckeyes, but this is surely a sign that they're closing the gap.

As for Walker's interest in Ohio State and visa versa, it's there. In fact, the staff would accept his comment right now if that's what he decided he wanted to do.

“I just get good vibes every time I go down there,” Walker said. “The times I've been down there, I've enjoyed myself and had a real, real good time.”

Walker has no timetable for a decision, but I do anticipate he'll take an official visit for the Oct. 28 game against Penn State. There should be a bit more clarity by that time, too.

ANOTHER POTTER

Though tomorrow's game against UNLV will surely lack the atmosphere and overall excitement of a game against a highly ranked opponent — or pretty much any other team, for that matter — several prospects will still be on hand.

Among them, Mentor three-star defensive end Noah Potter, the younger brother of basketball Buckeye Micah.

I'll be at Ohio state tomorrow!!!

— Noah Potter (@noah_potter10) September 22, 2017

The 6-foot-6, 240-pound Potter is considered the 30th-best strong-side defensive end and No. 410 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, as he recorded 37 tackles, 16 quarterback hurries and one sack for the Cardinals last season. He holds offers from Boston College, Bowling Green, Iowa State, Kent State, Minnesota, North Carolina, North Carolina State and Toledo.

This marks the sixth trip to campus in the last year for Potter, who most recently attended a one-day camp in June and Friday Night Lights in July. There, he spent a lot of time with defensive line coach Larry Johnson.

“It was like he was my actual coach,” Potter told Eleven Warriors following the visit. “[I] got to see his coaching style and I learned a ton. The way he coaches [stands out]. He doesn't swear; I don't swear. He doesn't yell; he coaches you. I lost a rep and he told me one thing to fix, and then I won the next five reps. He really simplifies pass rushing and makes everything easier.”

Much like it has been for his brother Micah, who plays on the Ohio State basketball team, landing an offer from the Buckeyes would be a dream come true for the younger Potter. There's a chance that could finally come this weekend, so long as Johnson has seen a marked improvement on tape in different aspects of his game.

“[Johnson] said fix two really easy things: which foot I burst out of and to swipe up to get my hips flipped to take a better route to the quarterback, and I'll be scary good,” Potter said.

ON THE DOCKET

It's once again Friday night — Week Six already!? — so most of Ohio State's 19 commitments are back in action this evening. 

Running back Brian Snead, defensive tackle Taron Vincent and cornerback Sevyn Banks will each see their first action in over two weeks, as Hurricane Irma forced nearly ever school in Florida to postpone or cancel its games. Jeremy Ruckert and Brenton Cox will get a well-deserved week off, while Master Teague III and K'Vaughan Pope are both set to return from ankle injuries forced them to the sideline in recent weeks.

A full list of games:

Several games will be broadcast online, and as always, I'll tweet the links as they come in. So far, I know Teague's game will be streamed here. And stay tuned to Eleven Warriors on Sunday morning for the Supreme '18 Tracker, which will recap the weekend's events.