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.
CARRYING ON THE WINNING TRADITION
Having zeroed in on Houston St. Pius X four-star quarterback Grant Gunnell as its top target for the current recruiting cycle, Ohio State has seemingly shifted its focus to the signal callers in next year’s class.
On Monday evening, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Ryan Day offered a scholarship to Santa Ana, California, Mater Dei four-star quarterback Bryce Young.
Happy Birthday Dad! Blessed to have received an offer from THE Ohio State University #GoBucks #Zone6 pic.twitter.com/7ubTzKarGi
— Bryce Young (@_bryce_young) May 2, 2018
The 6-foot, 176-pound Young is considered the top-rated dual-threat quarterback and No. 38 prospect overall in the Class of 2020, as he threw for 3,431 yards and 41 touchdowns and rushed for 287 yards and eight more scores at Los Angeles Cathedral last season. He transferred to Mater Dei in January, and he’ll have some pretty big shoes to fill with Gatorade National Player of the Year, four-star quarterback J.T. Daniels, off to USC.
Daniels, you may recall, played so well as a junior that he reclassified and will join the Trojans one year early.
Young — who holds nearly two dozen offers from programs such as Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas and USC — is widely expected to follow in Daniels’ footsteps to Troy. But I said the same thing following yesterday’s offer to St. John Bosco four-star pro-style quarterback D.J. Uiagalelei, as well.
I highly doubt the Trojans are able to snag two of the top-rated quarterbacks in the same cycle, so an opportunity will surely present itself for the Buckeyes to make a move for one or the other if they can get them on campus for a visit in the next year or so.
That said, matching offers to Uiagalelei and Young only add another wrinkle to the heated rivalry between the Monarchs and Braves. The two programs have faced off in the state championship in three of the last five state championships games — the first two went in favor of St. John Bosco, though Mater Dei got its revenge with a 49-24 win.
Young becomes the fifth quarterback in his class to land an offer from Ohio State, joining the aforementioned Uiagalelei; Arizona four-star Jack Miller II; Georgia four-star Harrison Bailey; and Texas four-star Hudson Card.
THE ECHOES WERE CHEERING HIS NAME
On Monday — nearly two months after he included Ohio State in his Top 6 alongside Minnesota, Notre Dame, Penn State, Virginia Tech and Wisconsin — Minneapolis Edina Senior four-star offensive tackle Quinn Carroll pledged his services to the Fighting Irish.
Here am I. Send me! pic.twitter.com/vfhmqiGVro
— Quinn Carroll (@q_ocarroll) May 2, 2018
“It was a very difficult decision, and each school offered something unique for me,” Carroll told the Star Tribune. “When it boiled down to it, I felt called because of these three things: the faith-based school, the unique academic experience and the fact that I could go to Minnesota like my father, and that would be awesome, or I could go to Virginia Tech like by brother, but I could create a new experience for myself, my friends and my family.”
The 6-foot-6, 295-pound Carroll is considered the 12th-best offensive tackle and No. 87 prospect overall in the Class of 2019. As mentioned, his father, Jay, played tight end for the Golden Gophers and his brother, Collin, was a long snapper for the Hokies.
Though the Buckeyes were the first team eliminated during the local television broadcast of his announcement, sources close to the family indicated they were a close second in his recruitment. The program would have welcomed his commitment, too, given the need at the position.
With four-stars Doug Nester and Ryan Jacoby the only ones in the fold thus far, players like Illinois’ Trevor Keegan, Michigan's Devontae Dobbs, Rhode Island's Xavier Truss and West Virginia's Darnell Wright become that much more important moving forward.
PATIENCE PAYS OFF
Ohio State co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach Alex Grinch was in Georgia on Wednesday, at which time he extended a scholarship offer to Alpharetta Milton four-star offensive tackle Paul Tchio.
BLESSED TO HAVE JUST RECEIEVED AN OFFER FROM THE HIO STATE UNIVERSITY!! #gobuckeyes pic.twitter.com/WcmBA3JEq1
— Paul Tchio (@paul__taco) May 2, 2018
“It’s a great feeling because I’ve been waiting on this offer for some time now,” Tchio told Eleven Warriors. “Just their history and the fact that they put a lot of people in the NFL [stand out].”
The 6-foot-5, 325-pound Tchio is considered the 19th-best offensive tackle and No. 127 prospect overall in the Class of 2020, as he anchored an offensive line that paved the way for the Eagles to average more than 200 yards rushing per game. He holds double-digit offers from programs such as Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Georgia and Tennessee, but just last week named the Crimson Tide his leader.
That said, it’s clear addressing the lack of depth along the offensive line with continue to be a priority for the staff. The Buckeyes already landed a commitment from Georgia four-star Jake Wray, while Tchio’s offer is the eighth to an offensive tackle in his class — the most of any position other than running back.
HERE TO STAY
My colleague Dan Hope wrote a fantastic article this morning detailing Ohio State’s success in recruiting the state of Texas under head coach Urban Meyer. And despite Longhorns head coach Tom Herman’s best efforts to keep the Buckeyes away, it doesn’t appear he’ll put a fence around the Lone Star State anytime soon.
With that, Ohio State offered a scholarship on Monday evening to Duncanville four-star safety Chris Thompson Jr.
#AGTG Im honored & blessed to say that Ive received an offer from THE Ohio State University! #GoBucks @Duncanville_Fb @Duncanville_TF pic.twitter.com/JHoSYZyD7S
— ChrisThompsonJr (@cdotcaash_) May 1, 2018
The 6-foot-2, 180-pound Thompson is considered the second-best safety and No. 51 prospect overall in the Class of 2020, as he was named the district’s sophomore of the year after leading the Panthers to the second round of the state playoffs last fall. He also holds offers from Alabama, Baylor, Missouri, Oklahoma State, Purdue, SMU, Texas, Texas A&M and TCU.
THE TELLER
Keeping with the theme, Ohio State also extended a scholarship offer on Monday night to Houston Dekaney three-star cornerback Marcus Banks.
Extremely Blessed to receive an offer from THE Ohio State University #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/NC6hWYyZGF
— Marcus Banks (@MarcusBanks1k) May 2, 2018
The 6-foot, 170-pound Banks is considered the 36th-best cornerback and No. 398 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, as he recorded 28 tackles and eight pass break ups for the Wildcats last season. He holds more than 20 offers from programs such as Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Stanford, Texas and Texas A&M.
