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.
Cameron Martinez sets official visit
Michigan 2020 athlete Cameron Martinez has decided on an official visit with Ohio State, scheduling his next visit for June 21-23.
Martinez is a prospect that Ohio State saw a spiked interest in since February, and their relationship has developed a rapid pace, warranting many to believe Martinez will commit to the Buckeyes this summer.
The composite three-star athlete received visits from both secondary coach Jeff Hafley and wide receivers coach Brian Hartline in the last couple of weeks, on two separate occasions. It was the first time either coach had made it up to Muskegon, and they both made the trip specifically for Martinez.
“They just said how much they like me and how they can both use me,” Martinez told Eleven Warriors. “Just catching up really. We talked a lot about football when I was up there. I’ve always been interested in them – and a strong interest.”
The reason both Hafley and Hartline visited was to discuss Martinez’s decision to play either wide receiver or safety. The Buckeyes are giving him the choice of either position. As of now, Martinez leaning toward safety.
Martinez was an early favorite to go to Michigan, but as time passes and his relationship with Ohio State grows, signs are beginning to point toward Ohio State as the favorite. Sending two of their top recruiters within a week of each other to visit the Muskegon star also shows the interest the Buckeyes have in the budding Michigan standout.
Besides his scheduled Northwestern official visit this weekend, Martinez has only scheduled an official visit with Ohio State. Though he is likely going to schedule officials with other schools down the road, getting the Ohio State visit on the calendar first could mean a lot for a recruit’s interest.
Angelo Grose has explosion, serious looks from Ohio State, Penn State
Mansfield cornerback Angelo Grose is one of the most explosive recruits in the state of Ohio. In track and field, he long jumps 23 feet and high jumps 6 feet, 7 inches. For a 5-foot-10, 170-pound body, that is elite level explosion for a high school athlete. And schools are taking notice, Ohio State included.
Running backs coach Tony Alford – one of a few Ohio State recruiters Grose has been in contact with in the last couple weeks – made his way to Mansfield to visit Grose on Monday.
“He said he liked how I moved, and I’m explosive and can run,” Grose said about Alford. “He said to come to the camp they are having on June 6 so the DB coach can see me live.”
Ohio State isn’t the only school taking notice though. Last week alone, Grose added three more offers from non-Power Five programs and Indiana and Penn State made visits to see him. He’s visiting Penn State this Saturday.
Grose credits a lot of the increased interest to his performance in track and that he updated his tape to show more defense than offense. Most programs are leaning toward recruiting him defensively versus offensively, where he had initially been gunning for.
When asked if the transition to be recruited defensively was a tough decision to make, Grose said no.
No, not really,” he said. “I love defense and hitting people.”
What to watch for moving into weekend
Maryland 2021 center Ryan Linthicum will be visiting Ohio State this weekend, he announced via Twitter. Linthicum is a big offensive line target for the Buckeyes and is the teammate of 2020’s top overall prospect Bryan Bresee from Demascus High School. There aren’t many visits happening at this point in the year unless they are official visits, but Linthicum is attending a rescheduled visit that was postponed in January because of weather.
Columbus this weekend!! pic.twitter.com/kGeOOfZjD0
— Ryan linthicum (@RyanLinthicum2) May 15, 2019
Michigan three-star athlete Ian Stewart is committing Saturday. Classified as a wide receiver by 247Sports, Stewart is seen as more of a safety by Ohio State, and at 6-foot-3, he’d be a big one. He made two visits to Columbus during spring practices and has leaned in a few different directions throughout his recruitment, the strongest being Michigan and Michigan State. Right now, Stewart appears headed to Michigan State, but Ohio State is included in his top-seven, so there’s a small chance he could still pick the Buckeyes since he liked his potential role so much.
Five-star running back Kendall Milton announced via Twitter that he will be releasing his final cut list Friday at 7 p.m. EST. Milton visited toward the end of Ohio State’s spring, as he made visits to ultimately determine where he would like to take his officials. Ohio State proved to be good enough for Milton, as he’s working on getting an official visit scheduled. It wouldn’t be surprising if Ohio State was included in that list Friday.
I will be releasing my TOP SCHOOLS this Friday at 4 pm PST!
— Kendall Milton (@_KendallMilton) May 15, 2019
