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.
Cody Simon, Darrion Henry Commitments
Just over week after landing two commitments in Clark Phillips and Jayden Ballard, Ohio State landed two more Saturday in linebacker Cody Simon and defensive tackle Darrion Henry.
Simon is the first linebacker commit Ohio State has landed, and he is expected to be a true outside linebacker in Columbus. For a linebacker, he has a lot of athleticism too. His agility and top-end speed is good enough for him to have wide receiver experience at the high school level.
Ohio State didn’t offer him until May because the staff had assumed he’d be a guarantee to Notre Dame, where his brother Shayne plays as a safety. That wasn’t the case, though, and Notre Dame didn’t even make Simon’s top-three – Ohio State, Nebraska and Penn State.
Simon’s lateral speed and closing speed are what make him so impressive as a linebacker prospect at this point. Ball carriers don’t have much time to find space before Simon is on them, which is a crucial attribute to have for a Big Ten linebacker. Simon is also one of the best in the country at finishing tackles, which combined with his speed results in a lot of tackles for loss. He had 13.5 as a junior.
Henry is a name that is familiar to the Ohio State fan base. Getting an official commitment can put much anxiety at ease, but it was a long way to get to this point since the beginning of 2019. Obviously, Henry’s commitment has been pointed toward Ohio State for well over a year, but as he took visits with Paris Johnson Jr. and Jaheim Thomas and was attached as a package deal for a while, Buckeye fans had reason to worry. Now, the trio seems to be separated, but Henry is very good friends with Johnson, which should nearly cement Johnson’s commitment to Ohio State at this point.
Typically, versatility is a tag placed on prospects that have a long way to go before becoming contributors, but Henry can be a difference-maker soon and is versatile at the same time. His size – 6-foot-5, 280 pounds – lends itself to both the tackle and end positions, and he said after his commitment that he would play as a 3-technique under Larry Johnson, who is aiming at bringing in linemen that play well in a 3-technique style.
You can read more about Simon’s commitment here and about Henry’s commitment here.
Who is next?
Ohio State fans and media alike were expecting more commitments to the Buckeyes by this point after the June 21 barbecue, but it has only been one week since the event. Commitments like Jack Miller and Lejond Cavazos have been posting on social media about how more commitments will continue to come, including an Instagram video from Cavazos about how at least three more are coming soon.
So as this next week begins, there are several recruits on commitment watch for the next couple of weeks.
Joe Royer
The Cincinnati tight end was expected to commit at some point late last week or this weekend, but he never officially pulled the trigger. He is definitely expected to commit to Ohio State, it’s just a matter of when. At this point, it could be any day.
Mitchell Melton
Following Cody Simon’s commitment to Ohio State on Saturday, the Buckeyes have just one linebacker commit in a class that haven’t produced many linebackers Ohio State would take at this point. Melton really enjoyed his official visit to Michigan last weekend, but during that weekend, the Wolverines added two more linebacker commits on top of the three they already have. His commitment date is set for Wednesday, and I’d expect him to choose the Buckeyes.
Josh Fryar
The No. 2 Indiana prospect needs to decide whether or not he will stay home or go to a school like Ohio State or Oregon. Fryar was in town for Ohio State’s spring game and again for the barbecue last weekend, and his interest is high in Ohio State. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him pull the trigger soon, and if he does, it will be between Ohio State and Indiana, where his father is a beloved offensive tackle from the 1980s.
Cam Martinez
The three-star Michigan athlete has seemed like he might pull the trigger any day now, and, while Northwestern, Minnesota and Penn State have has interest, he seems closed in on the Buckeyes after the barbecue visit boosted his already high interest.
Kourt Williams
The safety-turned-linebacker has made all of his official visits and is now in his decision process, which he has said will take some time. Even though it seems like he leans Ohio State because of the team’s new bullet position, it wouldn’t be surprising to see him commit anywhere in mid-July. Lathan Ransom is in the same position and will likely make his decision around mid-July as well.
