One of Ohio State’s top targets on the offensive line for the 2023 class had no shortage of fun on his visit to Columbus last week.
Four-star Connecticut prospect Olaus Alinen visited Columbus for the first time on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, and had a full itinerary. As expected when a recruit comes to Ohio State for a visit, Alinen toured the OSU campus and watched Justin Frye coach the Buckeyes offensive linemen, leaving him with an excellent impression of the Buckeyes.
“It was really good, I enjoyed it a lot,” Alinen told Eleven Warriors of his visit to Columbus. “It was the whole package. I was able to watch practice, watch a walkthrough and watch film with the coaches. I met all the important academic and strength and conditioning people. I saw coach Day and met some players and spent time with them also. I was able to do almost everything you need to do on a visit.”
O-H-I-O was litIll be back this summer #GoBucks @CoachJFrye @OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/5IXgS77FUV
— Olaus Alinen (@alinen_olaus) March 10, 2022
But Alinen’s time in Columbus wasn’t limited to Ohio State’s campus and the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. The 6-foot-6, 315-pound prospect, who is a native of Finland, also received a VIP tour of the Columbus Blue Jackets facilities. Alinen’s father, Klaus, is friends with Blue Jackets general manager Jarmo Kekäläinen, also a Finland native.
The Blue Jackets have two players on their roster with Finland roots, goaltender Joonas Korpisalo and forward Patrik Laine, and Alinen was able to speak with both of them.
“I was able to go there and meet some of the players and all that,” Alinen said. “It was a really nice experience to get to meet the guys and see how they like Columbus. (Talking to them) was really helpful. It’s good to talk to some people who have been there from your country and have experienced this before, it’s really helpful.”
Apparently, Alinen left an impression on them, too.
“That’s a big, big boy,” Laine told The Athletic. “Hopefully he comes (to school) here so we can get a little more Finnish presence in this town. It would be fun going to the games now and then to see a Finnish guy play. He’s in a great position where he can choose wherever he wants to go. If he decides to come here, I could try to help him out, if he has any questions.”
As for Ohio State, Alinen met with Day in person, his second time meeting the Buckeyes head coach after previously meeting Day when he visited The Loomis Chaffee School (Windsor, Connecticut) in January.
“It was a good conversation for sure,” Alinen said. “The coaching staff thinks I’m a good fit for their program the way I am as a person and as a football player.”
Alinen also broke down film with Frye. The pair have been in constant contact since Frye was hired in January, and last week was a good opportunity for Alinen to see his potential future offensive line coach in action.
“I was able to see how he coaches and what type of things he coaches and how he interacts with his players,” Alinen said. “There’s some really good players out there, man. But I think they all enjoy working together as a group. There’s a great spirit they have as a team. I think they have a really good culture there and really good values on the team. You can really see how the players enjoy the place, there’s a family atmosphere in the facility.”
The Finland prospect also was impressed by Ohio State’s offensive linemen that he observed in practice.
Alinen will take an official visit to Columbus during the last week of June. His only other scheduled official visit as of this point is to Alabama, and Alinen has not yet decided which schools will be getting the other three visits. Despite locking in official visits to two schools, Alinen insists there are “no leaders” in his recruitment right now. A decision is likely to be made sometime this summer after he takes his official visits.
Burrell puts OSU in top 11
Three-star Texas linebacker S’Maje Burrell has trimmed his school list down to 11 teams, with Ohio State making the cut. The 6-foot-1, 215-pound Burrell put the Buckeyes on his list Sunday along with Texas, Florida State, Utah, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Baylor, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and USC.
AGTG !! My recruitment is still open. pic.twitter.com/cm3rwA06Kj
— SMaje DOne Burrell (@Smaje18) March 13, 2022
Burrell had originally intended to visit Ohio State for the spring game on April 16, but has since moved up his visit date to the weekend of April 1-3. Burrell is ranked as the 493rd-best player and the 41st-best linebacker in the 2023 cycle, according to 247Sports' composite rankings.
“I’m looking forward to getting to know the culture and seeing how everything is run for them,” Burrell told Eleven Warriors in February. “And overall just see the program in general.”
OSU envisions Burrell as either a Mike or Sam linebacker at the collegiate level. He is currently planning on a commitment sometime this summer.
Bonsu to visit OSU next week
A 2023 safety target is planning a visit to Ohio State for later next week. Three-star 2023 New Jersey safety Jayden Bonsu announced he’ll be visiting Columbus on March 25 and 26, which is next Friday and Saturday.
I will be visiting the Ohio State University March 25th-26th!#GoBuckeyes pic.twitter.com/kQFbP5uNg0
— Jayden Bonsu (@JaydenBonsu) March 14, 2022
The 6-foot-2, 190-pound Bonsu is ranked as the 367th-best player and the 33rd-best safety in the 2023 cycle. He currently holds 19 offers, including Alabama, Arkansas, Clemson, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, Tennessee and USC.
Bonsu was offered by Ohio State on Dec. 2. In 12 games for St. Peters Prep (Hillside, New Jersey) last season, Bonsu recorded 62 total tackles (7.5 for loss), 2.5 sacks, two interceptions and eight pass deflections.
