Welcome to official visit season.
While only Austin Siereveld has committed since last month’s edition of the Heat Check was published, recruiting action is being amplified as we speak as Ohio State hosted its first slate of 2023 official visitors this weekend.
As such, in what can arguably be considered the biggest recruiting month of the year for Ohio State, I’m instituting a one-month-only rule for the Heat Check.
For a prospect to make this month’s recruiting board, they either have to have an official visit locked in or have taken so many visits to OSU that an official really wouldn’t impact a whole lot (hello, Carnell Tate).
What we are left with is a recruiting board stock-filled with talented prospects on both sides of the ball, names that will make plenty of Buckeye fans dream of the possibilities surrounding their futures.
Ohio State could see a flurry of commitments over the next few months (perhaps weeks), and it all starts with three back-to-back-to-back weekends in June of the Buckeyes hosting official visits. With a big month comes big changes to the board, as four new names have been added to the list since last month.
| PROSPECT | POSITION | RANK | PREV. | RATING | OTHERS IN THE MIX |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BRANDON INNISS | WR | 1 | 1 | ★★★★★ | USC•Alabama•Georgia |
| OLAUS ALINEN | OL | 2 | 2 | ★★★★ | Alabama•Georgia•Miami |
| TACKETT CURTIS | LB | 3 | 6 | ★★★★ | Wisconsin•USC |
| CALEB DOWNS | S | 4 | 8 | ★★★★★ | Clemson•Alabama•Georgia |
| CARNELL TATE | WR | 5 | 1 | ★★★★★ | Tennessee•Notre Dame |
| KAYIN LEE | CB | 6 | 6 | ★★★★ | Miami•Nebraska•Tennessee |
| MATAYO UIAGALELEI | DE | 7 | NA | ★★★★★ | USC•Oregon |
| DARRON REED | DL | 8 | 9 | ★★★★ | Auburn•LSU•Miami |
| NOAH ROGERS | WR | 9 | NA | ★★★★ | North Carolina•North Carolina State |
| TROY BOWLES | LB | 10 | NA | ★★★★ | Georgia•Oklahoma•Alabama |
| JUSTICE HAYNES | RB | 11 | NA | ★★★★ | Georgia•Florida•Alabama |
Brandon Inniss
With an official visit locked in for next weekend and Ohio State still ahead of the pack in Inniss’ recruitment, the top-rated wideout in 2023 keeps his place atop the board. The Buckeyes have built an identity around a high-flying passing attack, and Inniss is the perfect prospect to get the most out of that philosophy in Columbus.
Don't believe me? Just ask 2023 commit Ty Lockwood.
"We need Inniss,” Lockwood told reporters at Ohio State's recruiting camp on June 7. “He’s a dog, man. He’s a beast.”
Inniss has seemed to go back and forth on when exactly he’ll make a decision, but for now, a fall commitment seems the likeliest outcome.
Olaus Alinen
By now, you’re probably sick of hearing how critical it is for Ohio State to land an impact offensive tackle in the 2023 cycle. Nevertheless, this is the Buckeyes’ greatest chance to do just that and the Buckeyes appear to be getting the last crack at Alinen when he takes his official visit on June 24-26.
If OSU can fend off Alabama, Miami and Georgia, Justin Frye will get the recruiting win to start his tenure that would go a long way in appeasing fans.
Tackett Curtis
Either Jim Knowles loves Many, Louisiana more than he’ll ever admit, or the four-star Curtis is his top linebacker priority in this cycle. Gonna go ahead and guess it’s the latter.
The Buckeyes appear to be the frontrunner in his recruitment as official visit season continues, but Wisconsin and USC are also high considerations for Curtis. He’ll visit Columbus on June 24-26, which Knowles hopes will be an opportunity to seal Curtis’ commitment.
Caleb Downs
There’s been lots of cautious optimism from the Ohio State camp concerning Caleb Downs, the No. 1 safety prospect in the 2023 cycle. The Buckeyes continue to feel good about their prospects of landing the Georgia product with an official visit scheduled for June 24-26.
Alabama is probably the biggest challenger for Downs, but Georgia, Notre Dame and perhaps a few others figure to be in the mix right to the very end.
Carnell Tate
There’s really nothing left to do here but wait. Tate has already said he’s made his decision and will be announcing it within the next few weeks. Ohio State will soon learn if the long relationship it built with Tate paid dividends, or if the allure of Tennessee won out in the end.
Kayin Lee
Landing Lee would give an immediate boost to Ohio State’s secondary, and the Buckeyes are the clear frontrunners to land him. If all goes according to plan, Lee could be in OSU’s class by the end of the summer.
Matayo Uiagalelei
Uiagalelei is wrapping up an official visit with the Buckeyes this weekend, and from all indications, things have gone very well on that front.
@OhioStateFB sure know how to feed us. pic.twitter.com/x43LnTQxh3
— Big Dave Uiagalelei (@DUiagalelei) June 11, 2022
Its been an amazing journey with my son Matayo yet its just the beginning. My son decided to rep our family college Mt Sac Jr College @the_front54 pic.twitter.com/l0EKd7DAe4
— Big Dave Uiagalelei (@DUiagalelei) June 11, 2022
#1 Edge Rusher in the country. Matayo Uiagalelei @ THE OHIO STATE BUCKEYES official visit @the_front54 #TheFrontTraining pic.twitter.com/xZaVnQ4gde
— Big Dave Uiagalelei (@DUiagalelei) June 10, 2022
Uiagalelei will now take officials to USC and Oregon, two schools OSU will have to fend off if it wants to land the five-star talent. No decision appears to be imminent, so the Buckeyes still have plenty of work to do here. But they’ll have a puncher’s chance of landing the dynamic defensive end when all is said and done.
Darron Reed
Sticking with defensive linemen, Reed is another high-priority target on the Buckeyes’ list. As we wrote last month, Ohio State likes where it stands with Reed. But with a July 4 decision date approaching, knocking his official visit out of the park from June 24-26 will be critical.
Noah Rogers
It’s a bit surprising the four-star wideout hasn’t already committed by now considering how much momentum there was between Rogers and Ohio State in May. Nonetheless, OSU is still a heavy favorite to land the North Carolina product ahead of his official visit with the Buckeyes next weekend.
The goal for Ohio State on that visit will be doing enough to convince him to end his recruitment there and not make it to later official visits planned for North Carolina and North Carolina State.
Troy Bowles
Bowles has long been a coveted target for Ohio State, but news connecting him to the Buckeyes seemingly evaporated for months after OSU’s defensive staffing changes. Well, Bowles locking in an official visit on June 24-26 indicates there’s still significant interest from the Florida product in OSU.
Potentially landing both Tackett and Bowles in the same class would be an absolute coup for Knowles and Matt Guerrieri, who assists in plenty of linebacker recruiting efforts. Prying Bowles from the likes of Georgia, Alabama and Oklahoma won’t be easy, though.
Justice Haynes
Considering the Georgia product’s affinity for his hometown Bulldogs, Haynes may be the least likely on this list to commit to Ohio State. But the four-star talent is the Buckeyes’ best remaining chance to pair another top running back with Mark Fletcher in the 2023 class. His official visit from June 24-26 will be a critical last-chance effort to make up ground in his recruitment.
Honorable mentions
Considering he’s not taking an official visit to Ohio State, longtime target Richard Young is no longer on the board, as the five-star running back is likely headed elsewhere. While he still claims Ohio State will be in his final group of schools, it seems all momentum has cooled on the Young front.
Five-star offensive tackle Samson Okunlola would leap into the top five immediately if he schedules an official visit, but that has not materialized as of now. The same logic applies to fellow top-100 offensive tackle Monroe Freeling.
Ohio State recently offered two four-star quarterbacks in the 2023 class: Austin Novosad and Brock Glenn. Either would be great gets for the Buckeyes, but with the current quarterback room and the commitment of 2024 five-star Dylan Raiola, quarterback simply isn’t as pressing of a need as other positions.
Riley Williams seems to be Ohio State’s highest-priority remaining target to join Ty Lockwood at tight end in the 2023 class, and he’s been on campus for an official visit this weekend. No other tight end has scheduled an official visit with the Buckeyes this summer as of yet. Still, there’s a bit more momentum needed here before he makes the board.
Miles Walker and Oluwatosin Babalade are both talented offensive tackle prospects taking official visits to OSU, but the Buckeyes probably have a few prospects ahead of them on their preference list.
Four-star offensive lineman Ian Reed recently committed to Clemson, so he’s off the board after making the top 11 last month. Longtime offensive tackle target Chase Bisontis left Ohio State off his top schools list, so he likely is headed elsewhere. There also just doesn’t seem to be much momentum with OSU and AJ Hoffler at the moment, with Clemson surging in that recruitment.
Linebacker Arvell Reese and cornerback Jermaine Mathews are the top two remaining in-state targets for Ohio State in the 2023 cycle, and either would make a wonderful addition to the Buckeyes’ recruiting class.
