Florida 2028 quarterback Neimann Lawrence hasn’t played a snap of high school football yet. But that didn’t stop him from picking up an Ohio State offer regardless earlier this month.
Attending the Buckeyes’ recruiting camp on June 11, Lawrence threw in a group that featured a pair of five-star quarterbacks, Ohio State commit Tavien St. Clair and Dia Bell, a 2026 Texas commit. Nonetheless, Lawrence held his own that day on the field and caught the eye of Ryan Day and Chip Kelly. Lawrence, who’ll be a freshman at Ransom Everglades School (Miami, Florida) in the fall, became the first quarterback OSU has offered in 2028 and the second player overall (wide receiver Eric McFarland) after an impressive workout.
O-H !! WOWW!! AFTER A GREAT CAMP, I AM EXTREMELY BLESSED TO RECEIVE AN OFFER FROM THEE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY!! #GOBUCKS@BozemanFootball @ryandaytime @brianhartline @bzdebski
— Neimann Lawrence (@NEIMANLAWRENCE1) June 11, 2024
@CoachRLarkin pic.twitter.com/Ez7ObY1y2a
“Getting the offer was great,” Lawrence told Eleven Warriors. “I had the mindset to come out there and compete with some of the best guys, like Dia Bell and Tavien St. Clair. (Coach Day) told me that I have a lot of potential and that I’m only a rising freshman but there were a lot of good things that caught his attention. Honestly, it’s a big deal (to get an offer as a freshman), I can see just from the views and things like that from the past two hours (of getting the offer). It’s truly a blessing.”
One of the players Lawrence threw to repeatedly on the day was McFarland, a fellow Florida resident. McFarland and Lawrence, the only two players in the 2028 class with Ohio State offers, are familiar with each other. Both have competed in camps alongside each other this summer and both play on the same seven-on-seven team.
“Eric and I are boys, we’ve been communicating with each other for a couple of months now,” Lawrence said. “He and I both being Florida guys and having offers from Ohio State, it’s pretty cool.”
Ohio State was Lawrence’s third Division I offer. He’s since picked up five since then and has eight total, including Miami, Arkansas, Florida State, Nebraska, TCU, UCF and West Virginia. His trip to campus earlier this month was his second time in Columbus, as the 6-foot-2, 190-pound product visited for a spring practice in March. He met offensive coordinator Chip Kelly on that visit, who invited him to compete in the camp in June.
“I talked to him when I visited in March and he really wanted to see me throw,” Lawrence said. “He wanted to see me compete with these other guys. He was very impressed with what he saw at the camp.”
Lawrence said he wants to compete for a state title in his freshman season if possible, but above all is committed to being a better player than he was the year before.
“I’m a pro-style quarterback, sitting back in the pocket, making strikes and making all kinds of throws on the field,” Lawrence said of his playing style. “But if needed I can also use my legs.”
Lawrence said he hopes to return to campus sometime this season for a gameday visit, but is unsure of the exact date.
“I like the quarterbacks that they’ve developed,” Lawrence said of OSU. “And they’ve really got some good things going on there. I can see myself there in the future, but my recruiting process is just starting. I have a long way to go.”
