The Hurry-Up: Daniel Harris Says Ohio State is “At the Top of the Board” After Official Visit, Running Backs Davion Gause and Gideon Davidson Get Offers

By Garrick Hodge on June 13, 2022 at 5:30 pm
Daniel Harris
Twitter/@h9rrisdaniel
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Four-star 2023 Florida cornerback Daniel Harris has only had an offer from Ohio State since February. But within a few months, the Buckeyes have quickly emerged as one of the main contenders for the lengthy defensive back. 

Harris took an official visit to Columbus last weekend and came away impressed with what OSU has to offer.

“It was a good experience,” Harris told Eleven Warriors Monday. “I talked to coach Tim Walton and met with coach Ryan Day. I met some of the players and checked out the campus, I was also impressed with the coaches. They have a great coaching staff and they give you a chance to play for a national championship every year.” 

The 6-foot-2, 175-pound prospect has built a strong rapport with OSU cornerbacks coach Tim Walton over the past few months, and that continued over the weekend. During his visit, Walton gave Harris a pitch on why Ohio State is the best choice for his development as a player. 

“He was talking about how he coached some of the best of the best,” Harris said of Walton. “He’s a great coach. He was also talking about coaching Jalen Ramsey and how Jalen Ramsey said he’s one of the best coaches he’s ever gotten coached by. He was talking about all the cornerbacks Ohio State has right now and how good they are. They’re starting to adapt to the scheme and the stuff they run.” 

Freshman cornerback Ryan Turner was assigned to be Harris’ official visit player host over the weekend. That pairing wasn’t a coincidence. 

“We’re both from Miami,” Harris said. “It was good, he was showing me around and telling me stuff about the school and telling me stuff about coach Walton. Especially about how he’s a great coach and will stay on top of you and make sure you know what you’re doing.” 

Following his official visit to Columbus, Harris made it clear where the Buckeyes stand in his recruitment. 

“As of right now, they’re at the top of the board,” Harris said. “They’re real high right now.”

Ringing endorsement of Ohio State aside, Harris’ recruitment is far from over. Harris took an official visit to Michigan on June 3 and will visit Georgia this weekend and Penn State on June 24. He does not envision taking any other official visit before making a decision, which he said will likely come at the end of July, though he said he’d consider taking another visit in the fall if he had to.

“Where I can feel like home, the position coach and me playing as a freshman, too,” Harris said when asked what will be the deciding factors in his recruitment. 

Gause receives offer from Buckeyes

Tony Alford put in overtime on Monday as Ohio State offered two running backs from separate classes. The more highly touted prospect was 2024 four-star Florida tailback Davion Gause.

Gause attends Chaminade-Madonna Prep High School (Hollywood, Florida), the alma mater of OSU freshmen Kenyatta Jackson and Ryan Turner. The 5-foot-11, 215-pound running back is also currently high school teammates with priority 2024 wide receiver target Jeremiah Smith. 

Gause had a breakout sophomore campaign last season, running for 1,844 yards with 17 rushing touchdowns on 251 carries. Gause, who averaged 7.3 yards per carry, also caught seven passes for 135 yards with one receiving touchdown. 

The Florida resident is considered the 173rd-best prospect and the eighth-best running back in the 2024 class, according to 247Sports’ composite rankings. He’s picked up more than 20 Division I offers, a list that includes Arkansas, Georgia, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Ole Miss, Oregon, South Carolina, Texas A&M and USC.

Davidson picks up OSU offer

Virginia 2025 running back Gideon Davidson also picked up a Buckeyes offer Monday. 

The 5-foot-11, 185-pound Davidson, who helped lead Liberty Christian Academy (Lynchburg, Virginia) to a 13-1 record last season, has received nine offers so far. The other eight are Liberty, Louisville, Penn State, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest. 

Lonergan to commit on July 5

One of Ohio State’s 2023 quarterback targets has set a commitment date. Four-star Georgia product Dylan Lonergan will announce his commitment on July 5 and will pick from a top five of Ohio State, Alabama, South Carolina, Florida and Stanford. 

Unless something drastically changes within the next few weeks, the Buckeyes are unlikely to be Lonergan’s choice. Lonergan has not scheduled an official visit to Columbus and is trending toward picking either South Carolina or Alabama. 

A look ahead to this week’s camps

The busiest week of camp season is upon us. Ohio State will host two one-day camps on Tuesday and Wednesday, then host a 7-on-7 competition on Thursday, each with highly touted recruits expected to attend.

Glenville High School has been a notable pipeline for Ohio State over the years and will have four of its best athletes in attendance at Tuesday's camp: Arvell Reese, Bryce West, Damarion Witten and Marquise Davis. Reese and West already hold Ohio State offers, while Witten and Davis are both strong candidates to earn one at camp. 

Four-star Ohio offensive linemen Luke Hamilton and Ben Roebuck are both on offer watch this week, with Hamilton camping Tuesday and Roebuck working out Wednesday. 

Premier Players International will also be swinging through Columbus as part of its yearly DreamChasers tour. Last summer was when the Buckeyes’ relationship with German-born defensive tackle Hero Kanu really began to take off, eventually leading to a commitment. The Buckeyes will evaluate more than 30 international prospects this week in hopes of finding a similar talent. The tour will bring a large number of foreign-born prospects to Ohio State, and the names we know will be in attendance are highlighted below.

Two highly touted linebackers will work out with the Buckeyes this week, with 2025 prospect Jadon Perlotte camping Tuesday and four-star 2024 linebacker Kristopher Jones slated to arrive Wednesday. 

Also on Wednesday, two high-priority offensive targets in the 2024 class who already have Ohio State offers will get work in with OSU coaches: four-star wideout Tyseer Denmark and four-star running back Stacy Gage.  

The list of prospects expected to work out with Ohio State this week:

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