When 2023 four-star defensive lineman AJ Hoffler picked up his Ohio State offer on Nov. 20, he admitted to tearing up a bit. Ohio State had been a dream offer for the 6-foot-5, 245-pound prospect, who had long dreamed of playing for Buckeyes coach Larry Johnson.
Although Hoffler has visited Columbus twice since receiving his offer, Clemson is surging in his recruitment and has likely surpassed Ohio State as the favorite to land the Georgia product. But that doesn’t mean things can’t change.
Hoffler told Eleven Warriors this week he still plans on taking an official visit to OSU, though he has not set a specific date as of yet. The Buckeyes have continued to show interest in Hoffler during the spring evaluation period; defensive coordinator Jim Knowles and cornerbacks coach Tim Walton stopped by Hoffler’s high school a few weeks ago to check in on him.
Hoffler has set an official visit to Clemson on June 3 and North Carolina on June 24-26.
Where my Clemson fans at?!? Official Visit June 3-5 #allin @WesleyGoodwin @coachski_ @CoachEason1 pic.twitter.com/0sjDQ8sRMG
— AJ Hoffler (@yungajh) May 19, 2022
Catch me in Chapel Hill June 24-26!! #goheels @CoachMackBrown @CoachGeneChizik @warriordad4 pic.twitter.com/xpeFrG0rCO
— AJ Hoffler (@yungajh) May 26, 2022
He last visited OSU on March 26 and was impressed with how the Buckeyes ran their spring practice.
“It was good, it was better than what I expected from a practice standpoint,” Hoffler told Eleven Warriors in March. “Especially from the individual periods with coach Johnson, it was probably the most efficient one I’ve seen so far. They do all these drills in a short amount of time, they fly through them with efficiency. Seeing the leadership from Zach Harrison to the younger guys was cool, and I really enjoyed watching the one-on-ones.”
Patt Henry picks up Buckeyes offer
It’s no secret the Buckeyes have searched for another tight end to pair with four-star commit Ty Lockwood in the current recruiting cycle.
Earlier today, we published a story about a sleeper candidate to become Ohio State’s second tight end in the 2023 class: Ohio three-star tight end Jackson McGohan.
Another contender entered the ring Thursday morning as four-star Florida tight end Olsen Patt Henry became the 11th tight end to pick up an OSU offer in 2023.
After a great conversation with @CoachTonyAlford i am blessed to receive an offer from Ohio State University pic.twitter.com/i2csY2B3Ym
— Olsen Patt Henry (@OlsenPatt) May 26, 2022
The offer came from Tony Alford, who is the Buckeyes’ recruiting specialist in Florida. OSU offered Patt Henry late in the recruiting process, so they’ll have to work hard if they want him to visit this summer. The 6-foot-3, 215-pound tight end already has official visits lined up for Clemson (June 3-5) and Minnesota (June 17-19). Clemson’s offer came only six days before he scheduled his official visit there, so a late start is not an impossible roadblock for OSU to navigate.
Patt Henry does not hold a composite ranking but is considered the 16th-best tight end in the 2023 class, according to 247Sports’ rankings. He’s accumulated 16 Division I offers, a list that includes Florida State, Oklahoma, Clemson, Minnesota, Alabama, Boston College, Kentucky, Ole Miss and South Carolina.
Patt Henry was the primary target in the passing attack at First Baptist Academy (Naples, Florida) last season. He primarily lined up as an outside or slot receiver and led the Lions in receptions (61), receiving yards (1,053) and receiving touchdowns (17). Patt Henry averaged 96 yards per game and 17.3 yards per catch.
Culliver puts OSU in top 7
Three-star 2023 North Carolina wide receiver Chris Culliver trimmed his school list down to seven Thursday. Ohio State made the cut along with North Carolina State, North Carolina, Florida State, Appalachian State, Maryland and Virginia Tech.
While the graphic below includes only six schools, Culliver indicated in his tweet that Maryland was also supposed to be in the graphic. Poor Terps.
Top 7 No specific order!! But these are the schools I will be focusing on And @TheMovementUMD!! @BrianDohn247 @RivalsFriedman @RyanCallahan247 pic.twitter.com/f016HmzTFv
— (@chrisculliver5) May 26, 2022
Culliver visited OSU on Nov. 2, then received an offer from the Buckeyes 28 days later. While Ohio State made the cut, it’s unlikely Culliver ends up in the Buckeyes’ 2023 class. OSU is targeting three top-100 wide receivers in Brandon Inniss, Carnell Tate and Noah Rogers to round out its current class. If the Buckeyes can land commitments from all three, their wide receiver class will be complete with Bryson Rodgers already committed to OSU.
