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.
PARIS LOBBIES FOR COLUMBUS
This past weekend's recruiting visits at Ohio State have been well documented. The Buckeyes hosted tons of prospective talent as they beat Indiana 49-26 to move to 6-0. However, what may not have been discussed is how current commits made an impression on the program's recruiting targets; namely Ohio State's top 2020 commit Paris Johnson.
After helping St. Xavier (Cincinnati, Ohio) beat La Salle 42-7 Friday night, Johnson was in Columbus Saturday for yet another visit. While he and his mother Monica made their rounds during pregame warm-ups, he made it a point to stop and talk with 2019 four-star tackle Trevor Keegan (Crystal Lake, Ill.) and 2019 four-star all-purpose back Wandale Robinson (Western Hills, Ky.). According to Johnson, both would be great fits at Ohio State.
"Wandale and Trevor are great people, and they definitely could make a huge impact at Ohio State," Johnson told Eleven Warriors. "I definitely hit it off with both Wandale and Trevor, because we all have the same goals and aspirations as collegiate student-athletes."
The simple fact that Johnson made it a point to introduce himself to Keegan and Robinson says a lot about his commitment to the Buckeyes. He's expressed his loyalty to Ohio State in many ways since committing, but his impact on recruiting could be the biggest sign of allegiance yet.
As for Keegan and Robinson, either would be giant pickups for the Buckeyes. Keegan is the top-rated prospect in Illinois while Robinson is ranked as the sixth-best in Kentucky.
Also, for your viewing pleasure, check out this block from Johnson during last week's win.
5 @ParisJohnsonJr is putting on a clinic tonight.#FridayNightStripes
— All-American Bowl (@19AllAmerican) October 6, 2018
pic.twitter.com/X7gRwewTCG
R-E-L-A-X
Running back Sampson James (Avon, Ind.) was once a Buckeye. As of yesterday, he flipped to Indiana and became a Hoosier. And ... believe it or not ... the sky hasn't fallen.
Much has been said about Ohio State's Dynasty '19 recruiting class, which now ranks 14th nationally after James' decommitment — a drop of four spots — with 14 total commits.
The Buckeyes have yielded top-five recruiting class in each of the last three years, so No. 14 sticks out like a sore thumb. However, there's reason to believe not all is lost just yet.
Urban Meyer addressed Ohio State's recruiting during his Monday morning presser.
"It's been great. We're working our tails off recruiting," Meyer said. "We had a big visit weekend this weekend. The team's playing very well. So recruiting is going very good."
In other words, have patience. Meyer hasn't produced a recruiting class that's turned out to be a bust yet. He's 76-8 overall and 4-2 in bowl games with the Buckeyes. It'll be OK.
2020 DEFENSIVE END MAKING VISIT
When the Buckeyes take on Minnesota this weekend, you can be sure another handful of recruits will be in the Shoe. That list will definitely include Lake Forest's (Ill.) Rylie Mills.
The Ohio State this weekend #buckeyes
— Rylie Mills #99 DE LFHS (@ryliemillss) October 8, 2018
The four-star strong-side defensive end is ranked as the second-best prospect in Illinois and the ninth-best recruit at his position nationally. Currently, Notre Dame is Mills' projected landing spot. But he has offers from Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, Florida, etc.
Ohio State will certainly try and make its best impression Saturday.
JAMESON BRINGS HIS JUICE
As you may have read in yesterday's Prep Tracker, 2019 Ohio State receiver commit Jameson Williams had quite the night Friday. The four-star recruit caught nine passes for 286 yards (!!) and five (!!) touchdowns.
In effect, he was named MaxPreps Polynesian Bowl All-Star Player of the Week.
We had to name Cardinal Ritter Prep's (MO) @juicedupjameson the @polynesiabowl Player of the Week after the 2019 Ohio State commit had nearly 300 yards receiving and four touchdowns in their 40-35 dub.
— Zack Poff (@Zack_Poff_MP) October 8, 2018
: https://t.co/fQdJQTK7zC pic.twitter.com/kkz7DwQCUL
Oh ... and upon one of his trips to the end zone, he celebrated in Buckeye style. You'll love this ...
...... pic.twitter.com/rrnQld99kd
— juiceman (@juicedupjameson) October 8, 2018
FRIDAY NIGHT LIGHTS
| NAME | POSITION | RANK | PREV. | RATING | OTHERS IN THE MIX |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZACH HARRISON | DE | 1 | 1 | ★★★★★ | Penn State•Michigan |
| DARNELL WRIGHT | OT | 2 | 2 | ★★★★★ | Alabama•Tennessee•Virginia Tech |
| WANDALE ROBINSON | WR | 3 | 9 | ★★★★ | Kentucky•Alabama•Nebraska |
| TREVOR KEEGAN | OT | 4 | 8 | ★★★★ | Michigan•Penn State•Georgia |
| PEYTON POWELL | DB | 5 | 11 | ★★★★ | TCU |
| TOMMY EICHENBERG | LB | 6 | NA | ★★★ | Boston College (Committed) |
| KAIIR ELAM | CB | 7 | 7 | ★★★★ | Florida•Georgia |
| ELIJAH HIGGINS | WR | 8 | 5 | ★★★★ | Florida•Stanford•Texas |
| D'VON ELLIES | DT | 9 | 10 | ★★★ | Penn State•Virginia Tech |
| TYLER DAVIS | DT | 10 | NA | ★★★★ | Clemson•Florida State•Miami |
| NICK BROEKER | OT | 11 | NA | ★★★ | Ole Miss (Committed) |
If you read Andrew Ellis' October Heat Check, you know who Ohio State's top targets are. Here's a look at how some of those names performed this past Friday.
In a 35-34 loss to Olentangy last Friday, Olentangy Orange's Zach Harrison recorded four tackles, two for a loss, and a sack alongside five catches, 46 yards and a touchdown.
Wandale Robinson had another career day, posting 200 rushing yards, 37 receiving yards, 64 passing yards, 14 tackles, five total touchdowns, three forced fumbles and a 98-yard interception return for a score. I can't even begin to make this up. Absolutely ludicrous.
Peyton Powell, who's being recruited by Ohio State as a defensive back, completed 11-of-14 passes for 169 yards and rushed for 90 yards and a score on 11 carries in a 56-0 win. Powell is scheduled to visit Texas this weekend.
Meanwhile, Cleveland St. Ignatius linebacker Tommy Eichenberg helped his team pitch a shutout as well, a 45-0 win over West Toronto Prep. The Benjamin School's (Palm Beach Garden, Fla.) Kaiir Elam had two tackles and picked off a pass in a 47-13 win while defensive tackles D'Von Ellies (Owings Mills, Md.) and Tyler Davis (Apopka, Fla.) also performed well in a loss and a win, respectively.
Bowie (Texas) receiver Elijah Higgins and offensive linemen Trevor Keegan, Darnell Wright (Huntington, W. Va.) and Nick Broeker (Springfield, Ill.) also all aided their teams to wins.
