There’s not much change at the top of the board in the second edition of the 2024 Heat Check, but there’s plenty at the bottom.
As always, the criteria when used to select the top 12 for Eleven Warriors’ Ohio State recruiting board editorial is based on many factors, including roster needs for the Buckeyes in future seasons, the caliber of the player and how likely that player is to come to Columbus on National Signing Day.
Two targets from last month’s board have committed elsewhere (Christian Betancur and Kam Pringle), and one simply doesn’t make sense to keep in the top 12 anymore, so three new prospects have been added to the board. It likely won’t surprise anyone that two of those three are in-state, which is partly taking into account general manager Mark Pantoni’s declaration that the Buckeyes may pivot from national players primarily seeking NIL in their recruitments to Ohio-based and Midwest players.
Meanwhile, Ohio State is still at three commitments for 2024. We’ll see if that changes by next month.
| PROSPECT | POSITION | RANK | PREV. | RATING | OTHERS IN THE MIX |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KJ BOLDEN | S | 1 | 1 | ★★★★★ | Alabama•Georgia•LSU•Oregon•Clemson |
| BRYCE WEST | CB | 2 | 2 | ★★★★★ | Michigan•Michigan State•Penn State |
| JORDAN MARSHALL | RB | 3 | 3 | ★★★★ | Michigan•Tennessee•Wisconsin |
| SAMMY BROWN | LB | 4 | 5 | ★★★★★ | Alabama•Tennessee•Georgia•Clemson |
| JORDAN SEATON | OL | 5 | 6 | ★★★★ | Alabama•Clemson•LSU |
| CHARLES LESTER III | CB | 6 | 4 | ★★★★★ | Alabama•Florida State•Florida•Georgia |
| JOSHISA TRADER | WR | 7 | 7 | ★★★★★ | Florida•Florida State•Miami•Tennessee |
| MYLAN GRAHAM | WR | 8 | 8 | ★★★★ | Alabama•Notre Dame•Tennessee•Purdue |
| GUERBY LAMBERT | OT | 9 | NA | ★★★★ | Notre Dame•LSU•Michigan•Georgia |
| ELIAS RUDOLPH | DE | 10 | NA | ★★★★ | Pittsburgh•Michigan•Tennessee•Cincinnati |
| DAMARION WITTEN | TE | 11 | NA | ★★★★ | Michigan•Kentucky•Iowa State•Michigan State |
| NIGEL SMITH | DE | 12 | 12 | ★★★★ | Oklahoma•Texas A&M•Texas |
KJ Bolden
For the second straight month, Bolden remains in the top spot of Ohio State’s targets in 2024. There’s not much of an update from last month’s edition on Bolden, but no news can be good news, too. Ohio State still remains firmly in the running for the country’s top safety target, who would bolster Jim Knowles’ safety-driven defense instantly. The usual suspects, Alabama and Georgia, are likely the biggest challengers here.
Bryce West
Similar to Bolden, not a whole lot new to report here. West continues to be a priority for the Buckeyes as the top-rated player in Ohio and would be a game-changing addition to the OSU secondary. The Buckeyes remain in a good position with West, who is not in any rush to make a decision.
Jordan Marshall
The race is narrowing down for Marshall, as he released a top four of Michigan, Tennessee, Wisconsin and Ohio State. There’s no reason to believe OSU isn’t in a favorable spot with Marshall, as he’ll visit Columbus in the spring again before making a decision sometime this summer.
Sammy Brown
It’s going to be incredibly hard pulling Brown away from Clemson, as the Georgia product appears infatuated with the Tigers. But the No. 1-ranked linebacker isn’t a total long shot for OSU. Brown remains close with Jim Knowles, and also formed a close relationship with James Laurinaitis while he was coaching at Notre Dame. Now that Laurinaitis is back at his alma mater, it’s another weapon OSU will be able to deploy in Brown’s recruitment. Brown is likely going to visit OSU again, it’s just a matter of whether it will it be in the spring or summer. He's expected to make his commitment somewhere around July.
Jordan Seaton
Seaton is the highest-rated interior offensive lineman in the 2024 cycle, and Ohio State just might be the favorite to land the Washington, D.C. product. A host of OSU coaches visited Seaton at his school in January, showing the talented prospect how much of a priority he is to the Buckeyes. OSU will continue to prioritize Seaton as offensive line remains one of its biggest needs.
Charles Lester III
Lester is going to be very difficult for Ohio State to land. But a player of his caliber can’t drop too far yet, especially when he’s included the Buckeyes in his top five. Should Lester start to trend elsewhere, there are plenty of other high-end caliber defensive backs capable of filling the 2024 class nicely, but it’s nice to dream of a West and Lester pairing at cornerback.
Joshisa Trader
Brian Hartline is going to have to do yeoman’s work to get Trader out of the state of Florida, but one of college football’s greatest recruiters can never be counted out. The possibility of pairing high school teammates Jeremiah Smith and Trader together on a college football field would give the newly promoted offensive coordinator limitless opportunities to create big plays, as the star-studded duo has already been an explosive tandem at Chaminade-Madonna Prep.
Mylan Graham
Ohio State remains in a good position with Graham, who is high on Ohio State along with Miami, Purdue, Tennessee, Alabama and a few others. The Buckeyes will likely take three wideouts in 2024, so if the class resembles something like Smith, Graham and a player like Terrance Moore, it would be hard to argue wide receiver recruiting is anything but a success once again.
Guerby Lambert
Ohio State is going to take four offensive linemen at the minimum in this class, but sources have indicated that number could grow to five or six if the Buckeyes can fill those spots with high-caliber prospects, especially at offensive tackle. Lambert certainly fits that bill and would be a fine pairing with already committed Ian Moore. But you could also slot in prospects such as Liam Andrews, Brandon Baker and Max Anderson and accomplish the same goal.
Elias Rudolph
In light of Pantoni’s comments of recruiting Ohio more, the Buckeyes need to land the best pass rusher the state has to offer in the 2024 class. Rudolph has visited OSU multiple times and would be a big-time get at defensive end, as the Buckeyes continue to pursue the Taft product heavily.
Damarion Witten
With Christian Bentancur’s commitment to Clemson, Witten becomes Ohio State’s top tight end target in the 2024 class as the Buckeyes remain in search of that elusive two-tight end class. The Buckeyes are in good standing with Witten, who can continue to restore the Glenville-to-OSU pipeline if the Buckeyes can land him and West.
Nigel Smith
Smith likely won’t make any visit to OSU this spring, but that’s really only because he’s already been to Columbus numerous times. He has told Eleven Warriors he’s probably going to take an official visit to Ohio State this summer, so the Buckeyes will likely be in this recruitment until the end, though it would be hard to consider them the favorite at this point.
Honorable mentions
Stacy Gage, James Peoples and Sam Williams-Dixon are all running backs who were considered for a spot on the Heat Check but just narrowly missed out on claiming a spot.
Four-star Ohio prospect Aaron Scott Jr. is a big priority for OSU at cornerback, and his name could be added to the board in future editions. Five-star cornerback Kobe Black received an Ohio State offer in January and is almost a surefire bet to crack the board if he visits OSU.
Justin Scott has been removed from the board, as he seemed all but certain to head to Notre Dame until he postponed his commitment. OSU has a lot of work to do in that recruitment if he’s to re-emerge on the board.
The board still lacks a quarterback. That certainly will change between now and signing day, but there isn’t enough momentum with Jadyn Davis, Julian Sayin or anyone else of that ilk at the moment to justify putting them in the top 12.
You’ve probably noticed the board still features two wide receivers, but Micah Hudson and fast-rising prospect Terrance Moore are other wideouts worth keeping an eye on this cycle.
Aside from Brown, other linebackers the Buckeyes remain in pursuit of include Booker Pickett Jr., Payton Pierce, Kristopher Jones, Edwin Spillman, Aaron Chiles and Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa.
We mentioned several other offensive linemen capable of finding their way onto the board when discussing Lambert, but Devontae and Deontae Armstrong, Marc Nave and Donovan Harbour are also prospects with offers who are priority targets for the Buckeyes.
On the defensive line, KingJoseph Edwards, Kamarion Franklin, Eddrick Houston, Dylan Stewart, Williams Nwaneri and David Stone are all high-end difference makers who could vault onto the list if Ohio State gains momentum in their recruitments.
