The Hurry Up: Linebacker Shammond Cooper Includes Ohio State Among Top Schools While Safety Lejond Cavazos Sets Spring Game Visit

By Andrew Lind on March 15, 2018 at 6:50 pm
Lejond Cavazos
Lejond Cavazos
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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.

INCOMING BOOM?

Although there’s more than a month until the Spring Game, a number of top prospects have already made known their intentions of attending the annual intrasquad scrimmage. Among them, Bradenton, Florida, IMG Academy safety Lejond Cavazos, who told Eleven Warriors he’ll be on campus April 13-15.

The 6-foot-1, 190-pound Cavazos is not yet ranked by any major recruiting sites, but holds 20 offers as a sophomore from programs such as Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Miami, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma Oregon, UCLA and USC. He recorded just eight tackles and one interception for the Ascenders last season, but will surely see his role expand next year with the departure of Sooners four-star defensive back signee Brendan “Bookie” Radley-Hiles.

This won’t be the first time on campus for Cavazos, as he also attended last year’s spring game and the 39-38 win over Penn State in the fall.

“I’ve seen everything basically, so I’m just going up there to enjoy my time this time,” Cavazos said.

Cavazos — who is originally from Cibolo, Texas — has quite the connection with the Buckeyes. His father, C.J., has known Urban Meyer for more than 20 years, dating back to when the head coach was an assistant at Notre Dame and recruited players at Dallas’ famed Carter High School, where the the elder Cavazos coached the wide receivers. He’s also quite familiar with recently hired cornerbacks coach Taver Johnson, who was a graduate assistant with the Fighting Irish in 1999.

“[My relationship with Ohio State] has been great, especially with coach Johnson,” Cavazos said. “[I’ve] known him forever.”

The Crimson Tide and Bulldogs have made quite a push in Cavazos’ recruitment over the last few months, but there’s no doubt the Buckeyes lead heading into the visit. Could he potentially become the first commitment for the Class of 2020?

“I feel like I’m going to close it whenever I feel it’s right,” Cavazos said. “I’m going to go spend time with coach Johnson, and if that happens, it happens. If not then, I’ll just keep patience.”

ST. LUNATICS

On Thursday, a little over a week after St. Louis Trinity Catholic four-star wide receiver Marcus Washington included Ohio State in his Top 10, his teammate — four-star linebacker Shammond Cooper — did the same thing. He listed the Buckeyes alongside Clemson, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and Texas A&M.

The 6-foot-2, 190-pound Cooper is considered the seventh-best inside linebacker and No. 246 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, as he’s recorded 336 tackles, 13 tackles for a loss, six sacks, four pass break ups, three fumble recoveries, two forced fumbles, two interceptions and one blocked punt in his three-year varsity career with the Titans.

Ohio State offered Cooper, Washington and their teammate, five-star athlete Isaiah Williams, last spring. To say it was a big deal would be an understatement.

"It's my dream school," Cooper told Eleven Warriors, acknowledging the role played by former Buckeye running back Ezekiel Elliott. "Seeing a St. Louis guy go down there and do well has a lot to do with it."

The trio made their first and only trip to campus for Friday Night Lights last July with their former coach Cory Patterson, who has since been hired as the tight ends coach at Illinois. That’s a big reason why the Illini made the cut for Cooper and Washington and are considered the favorite to land Williams, who would be their first five-star pledge in more than a decade.

Ohio State also offered Trinity Christian four-star running back Teriyon “Mookie” Cooper, one of the top-rated sophomores in the country. He’s is not related to Shammond, though the two joke with people that they’re cousins.

EARLY RETURNS

247Sports unveiled its first rankings for the Class of 2020 on Wednesday afternoon, and though Ohio State is still looking for its first commit in that recruiting cycle, the list features dozens upon dozens of prospects with an offer from the Buckeyes. 

With that said, keep in mind these are not the 247Sports Composite Rankings, which combine scores from 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals. These spots will fluctuate and expand as the recruiting services evaluate more film and prospects attend camps this spring and summer.

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