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.
OFF THE BOARD
Though he took an official visit to Ohio State last month, Riverside, Missouri, Park Hill South three-star defensive tackle Etinosa Reuben committed to Clemson on Sunday afternoon.
COMMITTED#ALLIN pic.twitter.com/JiP7bUMTxm
— Etinosa Reuben (@etinosa_r) July 29, 2018
The Buckeyes offered the 6-foot-3, 275-pound Reuben — who is actually considered the 27th-best strong-side defensive end and No. 430 player overall in the Class of 2019 — back in May, and he made his first and only trip to Columbus in late June. He also took official visits to Georgia and Wisconsin and subsequently narrowed his list of nearly 20 offers to just those four schools.
Defensive tackle is not a significant need for Ohio State this cycle, as the staff signed three of the nation’s best last year in Antwuan Jackson Jr., Tommy Togiai and Taron Vincent. The Buckeyes typically try to sign at least one prospect at each position in every class, though, and they were looking for quality rather than quantity in their search.
That said, Hawaii five-star Faatui Tuitele is at the top of the staff’s list of priorities, but eventually landing his pledge seems unlikely at this point in time. He showed interest by taking an unofficial visit on his own dime this spring, but Alabama is the heavy favorite because he is the cousin of quarterback Tua (and commit Taulia) Tagovailoa.
Ohio State also has interest in Florida four-star Tyler Davis, but reported concerns about his weight has allowed Florida State to creep back into his recruitment as of late. He still plans to take an official visit with the Buckeyes this fall, though.
That seemingly leaves Maryland three-star D’Von Ellies and New York three-star Jared Harrison-Hunte, both of which camped with Ohio State last month. The former also appears to be close to a decision after he included the Buckeyes in his Top 4 earlier this month — and with Reuben off the board and the chances of landing Tuitele or Davis dwindling, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the staff give Ellies the green light to commit.
STEALING FROM THE TEAM UP NORTH
Ohio State hosted several of the nation’s top underclassmen for unofficial visits this weekend, including Detroit Martin Luther King four-star wide receiver Rashawn Williams, who made the trip to campus with his mother and sister.
What Yall Think??? #GoBuckeyes pic.twitter.com/NEBuUoa7be
— Rashawn Trouble Williams (@troule19) July 28, 2018
“It was amazing,” Williams told Eleven Warriors. “[My family was] very impressed with everything that was said and how highly they preached about academics.”
The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Williams — who is considered the 21st-best wide receiver and No. 147 prospect overall in the Class of 2020 — has been to Columbus numerous times since the Buckeyes offered him a scholarship during a one-day camp last summer. That means there isn’t much left for him to see at this point, but the visit still gave him the opportunity to meet and spend time with interim wide receivers coach Brian Hartline, who made quite the first impression.
“He’s a very interactive person who cares about his players and helping them reach their goals on and off the field,” Williams said, explaining how the two watched film together. “He was giving me pointers on how I can better myself with my routes and catching the ball.”
Williams — who holds nearly two dozen scholarship offers from programs such as Boston College, Cincinnati, Indiana, Kansas State, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Missouri, Pittsburgh, Purdue and Syracuse — hasn’t been shy about his interest in the program, and sources close to him told Eleven Warriors he contemplated committing this weekend. It didn’t happen, of course, but is something worth monitoring moving forward.
“I plan on making my decision whenever I feel the time is right, or I feel as if it’s the best opportunity for me to succeed in life after football,” Williams said, explaining how he had a very in-depth discussion with his mother about the Buckeyes’ Real Life Wednesdays program on the car ride home. “I loved it, and so did my family.”
MAKE THAT TWO?
Bay City, Michigan, Central three-star wide receiver Devell Washington also made the trip to Columbus on Friday afternoon.
I had a great time at Ohio State today, cant wait to come back!! @OhioStateFB @brianhartline @taverj @OSUCoachMeyer #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/f38KQmAvF7
— Devell Washington (@DevellWashingt2) July 27, 2018
“It was sweet,” Washington told Eleven Warriors. “I can’t wait to come back.”
This marked the second time on campus for the 6-foot-4, 200-pound Washington, who earned an offer from the staff following a strong performance at Friday Night Lights last month. He, too, spent a considerable amount of one-on-one time with Hartline, who is stepping in for the recently departed Zach Smith.
“I don’t really have words to say how great he was,” Washington said. “He was teaching me things about how to think about the game on a whole new level. We talked mechanics, route running, academics and respect. It was game-changing for how I’ll go about playing football.”
Washington, who is considered the 77th-best wide receiver and No. 399 prospect overall in the Class of 2020, was accompanied on the visit by his mentor. They toured campus, met with academic advisors and hung out with Meyer and cornerbacks coach/area recruiter Taver Johnson.
“They stressed how important it was to be competitive and show respect in the classroom,” Washington said. “They talked about graduating players, even the ones who go to the league and come back to finish.”
Washington also holds offers from Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Eastern Michigan, Michigan and Toledo, but there’s no doubt Ohio State is the leader in his recruitment early in the process.
“[The Buckeyes are] still at the top, for sure,” Washington said, noting he plans to return for the season opener against Oregon State. “I just love it there. It feels like home.”
INSTANT PIPELINE
A trio of elite prospects from Washington D.C. St. John’s College also made their long-anticipated visit to Columbus, which includes five-star linebacker Mekhail Sherman, four-star wide receiver Rakim Jarrett and four-star defensive tackle Tre Williams. They arrived on Friday and stayed through Saturday afternoon.
#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/QFEshW9yDU
— TGroovy (@_TreWilliams) July 28, 2018
“It was amazing,” Williams told Eleven Warriors. “Just seeing how much coach Meyer cares about his players as people, all the connections they have for after college and breaking down film with coach [Larry] Johnson. He changed my stance so I could get off the ball better and add different pass rush moves.”
This marked the first trip to campus for the 6-foot-3, 308-pound Williams, who is considered the ninth-best defensive tackle and No. 124 prospect overall in the Class of 2020. He grew up rooting for Ohio State — because of the scarlet on the Buckeyes’ uniforms — and included the program in his Top 10 last month alongside Alabama, Clemson, Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas A&M and Virginia Tech.
While on campus, Williams and his teammates got the red-carpet treatment. They toured the university and the athletic facilities; met with Meyer; and had breakfast with defensive coordinator Greg Schiano, linebackers coach Bill Davis and the aforementioned Johnson.
“They just basically told me that if I wanted to get developed by the best defensive line coach in the country and play for a head coach who cares for his players outside of football, Ohio State is the place,” Williams said.
Williams isn’t particularly close to making a decision on his future, but admitted the Buckeyes are tied with another school at the forefront of his recruitment — he wasn’t willing to name the other, however.
“They check all of the boxes that are important to me,” Williams said. “[That includes] national championship chances, family, a great culture, a head coach who cares about his players as people, a good business school and historically great defensive line play.”
Williams plans to return to campus again in November for the annual rivalry game against Michigan, which he aptly referred to as "the team up north." He'll mostly likely be accompanied by Jarrett and Sherman, but we'll have more on them in the days to come.
