You couldn't have asked for a bigger boom two days before the fourth of July.
And Larry Johnson couldn't have bounced back any bigger from last cycle than he did on Sunday.
One cycle after Ohio State missed out on several premier five-star defensive end targets, the Buckeyes have bounced back in a major way, landing a dominant player in the trenches in five-star defensive lineman Justin Scott, giving OSU its first defensive lineman commitment in the current recruiting class.
The Scott File
- Class: 2024
- Size: 6-4/310
- Pos: DT
- School: St. Ignatius (Chicago, Illinois)
- Composite Rating: ★★★★★
- Composite Rank: #14 (#3 DL)
Scott took his official visit to Ohio State on June 23 and picked the Buckeyes over the likes of Michigan, Notre Dame, Georgia and Miami. The Chicago prospect originally planned on making a commitment in January, but stretched out his recruitment into the summer.
That turned out to be great news for Ohio State.
Per On3, Scott was close to committing to Michigan after his official visit with the Wolverines in June. That changed a few weeks later on his OSU official visit after Johnson, Ryan Day, Parker Fleming and other OSU football staffers successfully convinced him to commit to the Buckeyes after an all-out full-court press.
“Going into the visit, my fam was heavily set on Michigan," Scott told On3. "Throughout the (Ohio State) visit they were really still set on Michigan. But towards the end of it, coach Johnson sat us down and went over an in-depth plan that they had for me.”
Per 247Sports' composite rankings, Scott is considered the 14th-ranked prospect nationally and the third-ranked defensive lineman in the 2024 class. He picked up his OSU offer on Sept. 5, then visited Columbus for the first time a month later when he attended the Buckeyes' victory over Rutgers on Oct. 1.
Scott is the fourth five-star commit the Buckeyes have landed so far and the first one on defense, joining Air Noland, Jeremiah Smith and Mylan Graham. The 6-foot-4, 310-pound prospect is the seventh five-star defensive lineman Johnson has gotten to commit to Ohio State in his tenure, joining Jack Sawyer (2021), J.T. Tuimoloau (2021), Zach Harrison (2019), Taron Vincent (2018), Chase Young (2017) and Nick Bosa (2016). With a 247Sports composite rating of .9939, Scott has the 19th-best rating for an OSU commit since 2000 and is the Buckeyes' highest-rated defensive tackle commit and the sixth-best among defensive linemen in the modern recruiting era.
With Scott in the fold for OSU, the Buckeyes will have a legitimate shot at landing the No. 1 class in 2024 considering they're very much still in the race for premier defensive players such as Eddrick Houston, Dylan Stewart, KJ Bolden, Marquise Lightfoot, Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, Aaron Scott, Kobe Black and more.
| Pos | Name | Rating | Rank | Size | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WR | JEREMIAH SMITH | ★★★★★ | #2 NATL | #1 WR | 6-3 | 198 | Chaminade-Madonna Prep (Opa Locka, Florida) |
| DT | JUSTIN SCOTT | ★★★★★ | #14 NATL | #3 DL | 6-4 | 310 | St. Ignatius (Chicago, Illinois) |
| WR | MYLAN GRAHAM | ★★★★★ | #19 NATL | #6 WR | 6-1 | 170 | New Haven (New Haven, Indiana) |
| QB | AIR NOLAND | ★★★★★ | #34 NATL | #4 QB | 6-3 | 195 | Langston Hughes (Fairburn, Georgia) |
| CB | BRYCE WEST | ★★★★ | #45 NATL | #4 CB | 5-11 | 177 | Glenville (Cleveland, Ohio) |
| RB | JAMES PEOPLES | ★★★★ | #76 NATL | #5 RB | 5-10 | 192 | Veterans Memorial (San Antonio, Texas) |
| OT | IAN MOORE | ★★★★ | #117 NATL | #8 IOL | 6-5 | 295 | New Palestine (New Palestine, Indiana) |
| LB | GARRETT STOVER | ★★★★ | #141 NATL | #10 LB | 6-0 | 195 | Big Walnut (Sunbury, OH) |
| RB | JORDAN LYLE | ★★★★ | #169 NATL | #12 RB | 6-0 | 180 | St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Laderdale, Florida) |
| LB | PAYTON PIERCE | ★★★★ | #174 NATL | #16 LB | 6-1 | 225 | Lovejoy (Lucas, Texas) |
| S | JAYLEN McCLAIN | ★★★★ | #239 NATL | #20 S | 6-0 | 185 | Seton Hall Prep (West Orange, New Jersey) |
| TE | MAX LEBLANC | ★★★★ | #269 NATL | #14 TE | 6-4 | 222 | Baylor School (Chattanooga, Tennessee) |
| OT | DEONTAE ARMSTRONG | ★★★★ | #323 NATL | #27 OT | 6-6 | 280 | St. Edward (Lakewood, OH) |
| OL | DEVONTAE ARMSTRONG | ★★★★ | #345 NATL | #22 IOL | 6-4 | 265 | St. Edward (Lakewood, OH) |
| TE | DAMARION WITTEN | ★★★★ | #347 NATL | #17 TE | 6-4 | 215 | Glenville (Cleveland, OH) |
| OL | MARC NAVE | ★★★ | #623 NATL | #40 IOL | 6-5 | 315 | Central Catholic (Toledo, OH) |
| RB | SAM WILLIAMS-DIXON | ★★★ | #733 NATL | #78 ATH | 5-11 | 203 | Pickerington North (Columbus, OH) |
| Prospect Rating Data: 247Sports | |||||
Scott brings dominant inside force to Ohio State's defensive trenches
It's been a long time since Ohio State landed a defensive tackle with Scott's potential as a playmaker.
What's more, Scott is so physically gifted, he'd probably be a five-star offensive lineman too, if that's where he'd like to play. For someone of Scott's build, he's exceptionally quick off the line of scrimmage and dominates with both speed and power. His size gives him a rare ability to deflect passes at the line of scrimmage, but his length doesn't hinder his pad level either.
Scott lined up at multiple defensive line spots for St. Ignatius, and also played left guard on offense. The Chicago product sometimes rushed off the edge in high school, but will make his living on the interior at the next level. Scott diagnoses plays quickly, and is a disruptor in the backfield, often clogging up running lanes and sacking quarterbacks with minimal effort. His motor is relentless, and Scott feasted on often overmatched competition in his league, tossing running backs and quarterbacks around like rag dolls.
Johnson hasn't been afraid to play freshmen defensive linemen that earn playing time in their first year, and it wouldn't be out of the question to see Scott be a contributor in meaningful snaps in year one at Ohio State.
