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.
TOGETHER AGAIN
As mentioned in last night’s edition of The Hurry Up, Orlando Jones three-star linebacker Marcus Tillman Jr. was on campus Thursday for a one-day unofficial visit. He made the trip with his parents and sister.
Had a great time at The hio State University pic.twitter.com/lZBeYkQqBv
— MJ (@MarcusTillmanJr) March 23, 2018
“It was amazing,” Tillman told Eleven Warriors. “[I got to] watch practice, talk about academics, hang out with Sevyn [Banks], talk with coach [Urban] Meyer and try on the uniform.”
This marked the second time on campus for the 6-foot-2, 220-pound Tillman — who is considered the 38th-best outside linebacker and No. 561 prospect overall in the Class of 2019 — as he also attended the Buckeyes’ 39-38 win over Penn State last October with Banks, his former teammate.
Ohio State was holding its annual Pro Day during Tillman’s visit Thursday, but NCAA rules prevent recruits from attending the event. The Buckeyes promoted the fact that nearly 150 NFL personnel were in attendance, though, and introduced him to New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick.
Tillman — a one-time Gators commit — is currently in the midst of a seven-school tour that includes trips to Alabama, Florida, Miami, North Carolina, South Carolina and USC. He plans to narrow things down sometime in April after he concludes all of his visits, but there’s no doubt Ohio State is at or near the forefront of his recruitment.
THE TIEBREAKER
Ohio State has had mixed results at Bellflower, California, St. John Bosco in recent years. After signing five-star offensive lineman Wyatt Davis in 2017, the Buckeyes landed a commitment from 2018 four-star safety Jaiden Woodbey, only to watch as he flipped his pledge to Florida State during the Early Signing Period.
That hasn’t stopped the staff from targeting one of the Braves’ best players this recruiting cycle, though. They offered a scholarship last month to four-star tight end Jude Wolfe, and he reciprocated the interest by including Ohio State in his Top 8 on Thursday night alongside Alabama, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oregon, UCLA, USC and Washington.
Here is my top 8 as of now. Huge thank you to all the coaches who have recruited me. pic.twitter.com/s5llHzHdma
— Jude Wolfe (@judewolfe25) March 22, 2018
The 6-foot-6, 244-pound Wolfe is considered the eighth-best tight end and No. 246 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, despite the fact that he caught just nine passes for 113 yards and three touchdowns for St. John Bosco last season. His talents were on display at The Opening Los Angeles Regional earlier this month, though, as he finished with a SPARQ score of 106.53 — which was tops among all tight ends in attendance.
If you’re wondering, a SPARQ score takes into account height, weight and workout scores. At The Opening, prospects are tested in the 40-yard dash, pro-agility shuffle, power ball toss and vertical jump.
Wolfe has never been to Ohio State, while the Trojans are considered the early favorite in his recruitment. I have a hard time seeing the Buckeyes ramping up their pursuit unless they fall out of favor with Chicago four-star Jahleel Billingsley and/or Arizona three-star Brayden Liebrock.
BEST NICKNAME EVER
Aledo, Texas, four-star cornerback Jeffery “Scooby” Carter also remains high on Ohio State from afar, as he included the Buckeyes in his Top 10 on Thursday evening alongside Alabama, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oregon, Penn State, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas Tech and USC.
Sorry for the wait.. pic.twitter.com/dVOipBOEDw
— scooby (@jcarter2133) March 22, 2018
The 6-foot, 180-pound Carter is considered the 16th-best cornerback and No. 138 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, as he recorded 28 tackles, three pass breakups and two interceptions to help the Bearcats to the state championship game last fall. He also added 10 catches for 232 yards and one touchdown on offense.
Ohio State offered Carter last month, but — as mentioned — he’s never been to campus. The Buckeyes’ knack for sending defensive backs to the NFL has to be intriguing, but his interest in the program isn’t likely to blossom without a trip to Columbus this spring or fall.
MARK IT ON YOUR CALENDAR
Hollywood, Florida, Chaminade-Madonna four-star wide receiver John Dunmore told Eleven Warriors earlier this month he was hoping to visit Ohio State for the first time sooner rather than later. Now, he has a date set in stone.
“[I have an] unofficial visit April 3-5,” Dunmore told Eleven Warriors on Friday morning. “Just going to check out spring practice and see how they do things at Ohio State.”
The 6-foot-2, 172-pound Dunmore is considered the 22nd-best wide receiver and No. 121 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, as he hauled in 26 catches for 272 yards and six touchdowns for Delray Beach American Heritage last season. He transferred schools over winter break and has seen his stock rise considerably on the camp circuit this spring.
Dunmore — a one-time Florida commit — has already punched his ticket to the Rivals Five-Star Challenge and The Opening Finals, and now holds more than 30 offers from programs such as Auburn, Florida State, Georgia, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oregon, Penn State, UCF, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
As with most prospects from South Florida, wide receivers coach and area recruiter Zach Smith is leading Ohio State’s pursuit of Dunmore — who is very fond of current Buckeyes wide receiver Binjimen Victor, who grew up about a half hour away in Coconut Creek.
Dunmore has several other unofficial visits lined up, as well, including Gainesville on March 30 and Tallahassee on March 31. He’ll travel to Los Angeles to check out UCLA and USC April 6-8 before heading north to Ann Arbor for his first and only scheduled official visit April 13-15.
CHANGE OF PLANS
Ohio State was expected to welcome Chicago Phillips Academy four-star tight end Jahleel Billingsley for an unofficial visit this weekend. But as first reported last night by Land of 10’s Ryan Donnelly and since confirmed by Eleven Warriors, he won’t be making the trip to Columbus.
It will be rescheduled for another date instead.
The 6-foot-4, 220-pound Billingsley — who is considered the ninth-best tight end and No. 264 prospect overall in the Class of 2019 — recently included the Buckeyes in his Top 7 alongside Florida, Illinois, Michigan, Ole Miss, Penn State and TCU. As I mentioned above, he’s among the staff’s top targets at the position.
“He’s got high interest in Ohio State, as does any kid,” Billingsley's father, Charles, told Eleven Warriors shortly thereafter. “They’re a winning school, [and] the diversity and the relationships you’re going to have after [you’re done] playing football, all of that matters.”
On the same note, Miami South Dade five-star wide receiver Frank Ladson Jr. and four-star cornerback Tyrique Stevenson were also supposed to visit this weekend, as first reported by 247Sports' Luke Stampini.
“Not no more,” Stevenson told Eleven Warriors. “It’s still up in the air [when we’ll make it].”
Ohio State offered the 6-foot-4, 170-pound Ladson earlier this week. He is the third-best wide receiver and No. 15 prospect overall in the Class of 2019. The 6-foot, 190-pound Stevenson, meanwhile, does not yet have an offer from the Buckeyes despite his rankings as the eighth-best cornerback and No. 88 prospect overall this cycle.
Both are former Florida commits who — like Tillman above — reopened their respective recruitments shortly after the Gators hired Dan Mullen.
