Brian Hartline has done it again.
After finishing off his 2023 wide receiver class by landing arguably the most talented wideout group in the nation, one of college football’s best recruiters has already started off his 2024 class with a bang.
Five-star Indiana wide receiver Mylan Graham became the eighth commit to Ohio State’s 2024 class after he pulled the trigger on Tuesday. He becomes the second wideout to commit to OSU in the 2024 cycle, joining fellow five-star Jeremiah Smith.
Buckeye Nation im home https://t.co/SnQaOpmhWZ
— Mylan Graham (@MylanGraham) April 4, 2023
Graham visited Ohio State multiple times last fall for gameday visits and followed up by taking two spring visits to Columbus, most recently on Saturday. Shortly after his second spring visit, Graham felt comfortable enough to pull the trigger.
Graham’s story is a little bit different than most recruits who ultimately end up committing to the Buckeyes. Ohio State was actually his very first Division I offer, which is a rarity in the recruiting industry. But that’s how much Hartline believed in his ability after seeing him dominate an Ohio State recruiting camp on June 1, leading to him receiving his offer.
"He was blown away," Graham's high school coach, Kyle Booher, told Eleven Warriors last fall of the wideout's first offer being Ohio State. "He knew he was getting some looks by then, Notre Dame had talked to him and Indiana had came in and talked to him. He had seen some other places with him looking and searching around, but when the OSU offer came through, he was in disbelief a little bit. But he also tried to say it makes sense because everyone has been talking to me so let’s roll with it."
The Graham File
- Class: 2024
- Size: 6-1/170
- Pos: Wide Receiver
- School: New Haven (New Haven, Indiana)
- Composite Rating: ★★★★★
- Composite Rank: 27 (5 WR)
A flurry of offers followed after that. But after building a connection with Hartline early and seeing Ohio State’s wide receiver developmental track record the past few seasons, he decided to pull the trigger and commit to the Buckeyes this spring.
According to 247Sports' composite rankings, Graham is considered the 27th-best player and the fifth-best wideout in the 2024 cycle.
With Smith and Graham in the fold, Ohio State will continue to pursue other targets such as Jeremiah McClellan, Terrance Moore, Elijah Moore, Joshisa Trader and others. By the time all is said and done, Hartline’s 2024 class could be as talented as the one he brought in for the 2023 cycle. OSU would like to take three wideouts in the current cycle, but could expand that number to four.
| Pos | Name | Rating | Rank | Size | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | JEREMIAH SMITH | ★★★★★ | #2 NATL | #1 WR | 6-3 | 198 | Chaminade-Madonna Prep (Opa Locka, Florida) |
| WR | MYLAN GRAHAM | ★★★★★ | #27 NATL | #5 WR | 6-1 | 170 | New Haven (New Haven, Indiana) |
| RB | JAMES PEOPLES | ★★★★ | #69 NATL | #5 RB | 5-10 | 192 | Veterans Memorial (San Antonio, Texas) |
| OT | IAN MOORE | ★★★★ | #88 NATL | #4 IOL | 6-5 | 295 | New Palestine (New Palestine, Indiana) |
| LB | GARRETT STOVER | ★★★★ | #139 NATL | #12 LB | 6-0 | 195 | Big Walnut (Sunbury, OH) |
| OT | DEONTAE ARMSTRONG | ★★★★ | #313 NATL | #25 OT | 6-6 | 280 | St. Edward (Lakewood, OH) |
| OL | DEVONTAE ARMSTRONG | ★★★★ | #354 NATL | #23 IOL | 6-4 | 265 | St. Edward (Lakewood, OH) |
| OL | MARC NAVE | ★★★★ | #549 NATL | #31 IOL | 6-5 | 315 | Central Catholic (Toledo, OH) |
| Prospect Rating Data: 247Sports | |||||
Graham is the second Indiana resident to commit to OSU in 2024, joining four-star offensive tackle Ian Moore.
Other players OSU has landed from the Hoosier State in past cycles include Joshua Mickens in the 2023 cycle, Caden Curry in 2022, Zen Michalski in 2021, Josh Fryar in 2020 and Craig Young and Dawand Jones in 2019.
The 6-foot, 170-pound wideout picked Ohio State over the likes of Alabama, Notre Dame, Auburn, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, Purdue, Tennessee, Florida A&M, Miami (OH), Toledo and Western Michigan.
Graham gives Ohio State yet another playmaking wideout
Every time an elite wide receiver prospect commits to OSU, Hartline's recruiting track record becomes all the more impressive. Since the 2019 recruiting class, Ohio State has landed 16 top-100 wide receiver prospects, by far the most in that timeframe and double the next closest school (Alabama with eight).
Graham had a terrific junior season for New Haven High School (New Haven, Indiana), catching 48 passes for 1,149 yards with 13 touchdowns. But Booher realized Graham's potential impact much sooner than this season.
"He definitely showed signs as a freshman when he played for us, he started on varsity toward the end of the season," Booher said. "We knew as a freshman he was already leaving people behind and people had to game plan for him. By the end of his sophomore season, he was as tough as one of our seniors graduating at the time. When you have a sophomore coming in and doing as well as some seniors, you know he’s going to be pretty good. Then you watch him develop more over the summer, and he just stands out. His speed, quickness and change of direction is just something that’s different. A coach that used to coach here for 20-something years before I took over (last year) has told me he’s special. So you get other people telling you that, it confirms what you already see."
New Haven deploys Graham both as an outside and slot receiver, and can get open wherever he lines up. Graham is an exceptional route runner mostly because of how quick he can change direction and excels at finding holes in defensive zones.
Between Smith and Graham, the Buckeyes have the makings of the most dangerous one-two wide receiver tandem in the Big Ten for years to come.
