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.
ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER LIST
Marietta, Georgia, four-star wide receiver Ramel Keyton trimmed down his list of more than two dozen offers to six on Friday afternoon, listing Ohio State alongside Auburn, Miami, Ole Miss, Penn State and Tennessee.
Top 6 pic.twitter.com/cOWrcFF645
— Ramel Keyton (@Wlmel10) March 30, 2018
“We talk like every day, maintaining [a strong] relationship,” Keyton told Eleven Warriors when asked why the Buckeyes made the cut.
The 6-foot-3, 186-pound Keyton is considered the 27th-best wide receiver and No. 165 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, as he hauled in 59 passes for 1,294 yards and 16 touchdowns to help the Blue Devils to the state quarterfinals last season. He was clocked at 4.82 seconds in the 40-yard dash and added a vertical jump of 32.9 inches at The Opening Atlanta Regional earlier this month, though the rain and cold temperatures made for slower times across the board.
Former Ohio State assistant coordinator and area recruiter Kerry Coombs was the one who offered Keyton a scholarship back in October, but new co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Alex Grinch has seamlessly filled that void. Keyton has also built a strong relationship with wide receivers coach Zach Smith, though he’s never been to campus.
“Even though I haven’t been down there, they still make sure to show me all the different types of things at Ohio State,” he said. “They show me some of the training they do with the wide receivers in practice and some of the videos of the team.”
Keyton plans to take an official visit during the season, but hasn’t set a specific date just yet. I anticipate he’ll be joined by several of his teammates, including four-star quarterback Harrison Bailey, four-star offensive tackle Jake Wray and four-star defensive end Arik Gilbert. All three sophomores hold an offer from the Buckeyes.
Keyton’s slower timeline certainly gives Ohio State a chance to sort out its wide receiver board before he even arrives on campus, as well. The Buckeyes remain in the hunt for several top wideouts — including Indiana four-star David Bell; Texas four-star Jalen “Boobie” Curry and Garrett Wilson; St. Louis four-stars Marcus Washington and Jameson Williams; and Tennessee four-stars Trey Knox and Lance Wilhoite — an only four or so spots available in the class.
QUITE THE IMPRESSION
Ohio State continues to leave the doors at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center wide open for any prospect who wants to check out a practice this spring, which is why the staff has another loaded visitor list for this weekend that includes Cincinnati St. Xavier four-star offensive tackle Paris Johnson Jr.; Michigan four-star defensive end Bryce Mostella; Texas four-star wide receiver Dylan Wright; and Virginia four-star athlete Hakeem Beamon, among others.
But that said, I want to take a moment to catch up with someone who was on campus for the first time last Friday — Malvern, Pennsylvania, Prep three-star linebacker Keith Maguire Jr.
Had a great weekend at Ohio State! Thank you to the coaches for having me! #gobuckeyes pic.twitter.com/sraeehPQ9g
— Keith Maguire Jr. (@Keith_Mag) March 23, 2018
“I had a great time,” Maguire told Eleven Warriors. “We got a nice tour of all the facilities and talked with the coaches. I was really impressed. They have a ton of experience and really know how to prepare someone for the next level.”
The 6-foot-2, 215-pound Maguire is considered the 28th-best outside linebacker and No. 427 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, though he earned first-team all-conference honors at both linebacker and wide receiver after he recorded 170 tackles, three interceptions and five sacks and hauled in 19 passes for 278 yards and five more scores for the Friars last season. The Buckeyes offered him a scholarship back in early February.
While on campus, Maguire watched practice and spent a considerable amount of time with head coach Urban Meyer, defensive coordinator Greg Schiano and linebackers coach Bill Davis.
“It was great talking with them,” he said. “I was really able to sit down and get to know them more on a personal level and a football level. It was great.”
Maguire holds more than 20 offers from programs such as Alabama, Clemson, Michigan, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech and West Virginia, and he’s hoping to commit sometime this summer. But if he were to trim down his list before then, Ohio State will definitely make the cut.
“I think they have definitely cemented themselves in my Top 5 — and probably Top 3,” Maguire said.
Since he’d like to make a decision in the coming months, it’s unclear if Maguire will make it back to campus for an official visit. It’s something he’s at least considering, though.
ANOTHER HOMEGROWN TALENT
As first reported last month by Eleven Warriors, Ohio State welcomed Ventura College offensive tackle Jacob Gamble to campus on Thursday afternoon.
Great Visit to @OhioStateFB today!!! #BuckeyesNation pic.twitter.com/mZ24m9K138
— Jacob Gamble (@JacobGamble_) March 29, 2018
“It was incredible,” Gamble told Eleven Warriors. “[We] toured all the football facilities, talked to the coaches and toured the campus a little bit — like the library and some of the other buildings.”
The 6-foot-7, 325-pound Gamble graduated from Doylestown Chippewa in 2015 — and was named third-team all-state after leading the Chipps to the state semifinals that year — but was not highly recruited and opted to take the junior college route after a few years away from the game.
Gamble has been to campus to cheer on the Buckeyes from inside Ohio Stadium numerous times, but Thursday’s visit was an eye-opening experience because he was able to sit down and talk with Meyer, offensive line coach Greg Studrawa and director of player personnel Mark Pantoni.
“They all said they loved my film and that they might be out to watch my spring practices,” Gamble said. “[They also] invited me to come to a camp over the summer.”
As a freshman last season, Gamble helped the Pirates to the playoffs and was named first-team all-conference as a result. He now holds offers from Akron and UAB, but it goes without saying an offer from Ohio State is what he covets above all else.
For now, Gamble is simply looking forward to keeping in touch with the staff and plans to attend a one-day camp in June to “show them that I am worth the scholarship.”
SENDING WELL WISHES
On a similar note, Baltimore St. Frances Academy three-star quarterback Jalon Jones was also supposed to be on campus Thursday. He was unable to make it, though.
“I had a family emergency,” Jones told Eleven Warriors.
The 6-foot-3, 180-pound Jones is considered the 10th-best dual-threat quarterback and No. 436 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, as he threw for 1,162 yards and 10 touchdowns and rushed for 1,087 yards and nine scores to lead the Panthers to the Maryland Association A Conference championship last season. He holds offers from more than a dozen programs such as Alabama, Florida, Michigan State, North Carolina State, UCLA, Virginia and Virginia Tech.
This was supposed to be Jones’ second trip to Columbus this month, as he was also on campus on March 2. It was then that Meyer offered him a scholarship in person.
"It's an honor to get an offer from coach Meyer," Jones said at the time. "I grew up watching the teams he coached at Florida, so that was a big reason I fell in love with football. It's just an honor to get an offer from the school he coaches.
“He's one of the best that has ever coached in college, so just for him to offer me face-to-face meant a lot. I was trying not to get starstruck. Being with him was just an overwhelmingly positive experience for me."
The Gators remain the overwhelming favorite to land Jones’ pledge, as he was once committed to head coach Dan Mullen when was at Mississippi State. The Buckeyes, meanwhile, have several quarterbacks above him on the priority chart, including Texas four-star Grant Gunnell and North Carolina four-star Sam Howell.
Jones has not yet rescheduled the visit.
