Even though Ohio State and Georgia haven’t played each other in football in 30 years, Ryan Day and Kirby Smart are familiar with many of each other’s players.
That’s because they both attempted to recruit – and in some cases came close to landing – many of the players who will be suiting up for the opposite team when the Buckeyes and Bulldogs meet for just the second time ever in the College Football Playoff semifinal at the Peach Bowl on Saturday.
“A lot of their players we recruited and tried to sign and I’ve enjoyed watching them mature and play for (Day) and become really good football players,” Smart said earlier this month. “Most of these kids, they all know each other, they got recruited by the same schools, they went to the same all-star games, they're very familiar with each other.”
Twenty-nine of Ohio State’s players received scholarship offers from Georgia as high school recruits and 31 of Georgia’s players received scholarship offers from Ohio State before they became Bulldogs.
Those lists include some of the biggest stars on both squads. C.J. Stroud, Paris Johnson Jr., Donovan Jackson, TreVeyon Henderson and Julian Fleming are among the Buckeyes who were also heavily recruited by Georgia, while Kelee Ringo, Christopher Smith and Kendall Milton are among the noteworthy Bulldogs who were pursued by Ohio State.
As the Buckeyes and Bulldogs prepare to do battle in Atlanta on Saturday, we take a look back at some of the biggest recruiting battles that took place between the two sides for players who they’ll see on the field this weekend.
Georgia was “second” for Stroud
If Ohio State hadn’t opted to add a second quarterback to its recruiting class of 2020, C.J. Stroud may very well be Georgia’s quarterback right now.
Stroud took an official visit to Georgia less than a month before he signed with the Buckeyes, and he told reporters at the Heisman Trophy ceremony earlier this month that Georgia was the runner-up in his recruitment.
“Georgia was honestly my second school right after Ohio State. It was really close,” Stroud said, according to Bucknuts’ Patrick Murphy. “But at the end of the day, I chose to go to Ohio State and if I had it again, I'd probably choose it again.”
The Bulldogs haven’t missed Stroud too much over the past two years, as Stetson Bennett led Georgia to a national championship in 2021 and was a Heisman Trophy finalist alongside Stroud this year. Nevertheless, Georgia will get a glimpse at what could have been when it goes up against Stroud on Saturday.
Johnson came “very close” to becoming Bulldog
Since Paris Johnson Jr. is an Ohio native, it would have come as a surprise if he had signed anywhere other than Ohio State. But the Cincinnati native told reporters at The Opening in 2019 that there was a time when he thought he was going to become a Bulldog instead.
“It was very close,” Johnson said regarding Georgia, according to DawgNation’s Jeff Sentell. “There were moments where I felt like ‘this right there’ was where I was going to be at.”
After missing out on Johnson, the No. 1-ranked offensive tackle in the class of 2019, the Buckeyes ended up signing both the second- and third-ranked tackles in the class, Broderick Jones and Tate Ratledge. Both of them have helped make Georgia’s offensive line one of the best in the country as Jones is the Bulldogs’ starting left tackle and Ratledge is the Bulldogs’ starting right guard, but Johnson will play a massive role in Ohio State’s efforts to contain Georgia’s defensive front.
11 Buckeye starters held Georgia offers
In addition to Stroud and Johnson, other Buckeyes who are expected to start in the Peach Bowl that received offers from Georgia are wide receivers Emeka Egbuka and Julian Fleming, guards Donovan Jackson and Matt Jones, defensive end Zach Harrison, defensive tackle Taron Vincent, linebacker Steele Chambers, cornerback Cameron Brown and safety Lathan Ransom.
Among the key Buckeyes who gave real consideration to Georgia were Fleming and Jackson, as Fleming included Georgia in his top six schools and Jackson featured the Bulldogs in his final 12. Another Buckeye who likely would be starting against the Bulldogs if he was healthy, running back TreVeyon Henderson, included Georgia in his top nine before committing to Ohio State.
Other Buckeyes who held Georgia offers as recruits include running backs Dallan Hayden and Evan Pryor, wide receivers Kojo Antwi and Caleb Burton, offensive lineman Ben Christman, defensive ends Omari Abor, Tyler Friday and Kenyatta Jackson, defensive tackles Hero Kanu and Tyleik Williams, linebacker Teradja Mitchell, cornerbacks Jyaire Brown, Jordan Hancock and Ryan Turner and safeties Josh Proctor, Kye Stokes and Kourt Williams.
Georgia’s star DBs were pursued by OSU
One of the most familiar names on Georgia’s roster to those who follow recruiting closely will be Kelee Ringo, who was ranked as the No. 1 cornerback and No. 4 overall prospect in the 2020 class. Ohio State was among a great many schools that pursued him heavily; the Buckeyes finished in his final five, but ultimately lost out to the Bulldogs in the battle for his commitment.
Georgia’s other star defensive back, unanimous first-team All-American safety Christopher Smith, also gave real consideration to Ohio State during his recruiting process, as the Buckeyes made his top six. But the four-star recruit from Atlanta ultimately decided to stay home and play for Georgia.
The Bulldogs’ secondary depth chart also includes the only player on either team who decommitted from the other school: Jaheim Singletary, who was committed to Ohio State for seven months before reopening his recruitment and ultimately signing with the Bulldogs. The five-star prospect from the 2022 class isn’t likely to see action in the Peach Bowl, though, as he has appeared in only two games as a true freshman.
Buckeyes were in the running for Milton, McIntosh
Out of all of Georgia’s players, there might not have been one that Ohio State wanted more during the recruiting process than Kendall Milton. In a class where the Buckeyes missed out on several highly ranked running backs before eventually signing Miyan Williams, Milton was one of the highest priority targets along with eventual Texas signee Bijan Robinson.
Ohio State made the top four for Milton along with Alabama and LSU, but Milton chose to play for Georgia, where he’s now one of three running backs who sees regular playing time. Although he’s not yet a starter for the Bulldogs, the Buckeyes will still need to be well-prepared for him, as he’s rushed for 533 yards and six touchdowns on just 72 carries this season and is coming off a 113-yard performance in the SEC Championship Game against LSU.
Kendall Milton was a major Ohio State recruiting target before he committed to Georgia. (Photo: Brett Davis – USA TODAY Sports)
The Bulldogs’ starting running back also gave consideration to Ohio State during the recruiting process. Kenny McIntosh said “I love Ohio State” and declared that the Buckeyes would make his top five in an interview with Eleven Warriors in 2018. The Buckeyes seemingly never made a bigger push from there, though, as the four-star running back from Florida ended up signing with Georgia, where he’s now emerged as one of the top all-purpose backs in the country by running for 709 yards and catching 37 passes for 449 yards this season.
10 Georgia starters were courted by Buckeyes
In addition to Ringo, Smith and McIntosh, other Georgia starters who listed offers from Ohio State as high school recruits were tight end Darnell Washington, wide receiver Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint, left guard Xavier Truss, right tackle Warren McClendon, edge rusher Robert Beal Jr., defensive tackle Nazir Stackhouse and linebacker Smael Mondon Jr. The Buckeyes made top-10 lists for both Beal and Rosemy-Jacksaint.
Other Bulldogs who had offers from the Buckeyes include quarterback Gunner Stockton, wide receivers Kearis Jackson and Dominick Blaylock, tight ends Oscar Delp and Ryland Goede, offensive linemen Earnest Greene, Aliou Bah, Chad Lindberg and Jared Wilson, defensive end Mykel Williams, defensive tackles Bear Alexander and Christen Miller, linebackers Rian Davis, Trezmen Marshall, MJ Sherman and Jalon Walker, edge rushers Chaz Chambliss and Marvin Jones Jr. and safety David Daniel-Sisavanh.
Among them, Sherman – who went by Mekhail Sherman when he was a recruit – came the closest to picking Ohio State, who made his final two along with Georgia. Bah was rumored to be close to committing to Ohio State at one point in his recruiting process – though the Buckeyes ultimately didn’t even make his top six – while Ohio State was also in it to the end with both Greene and Miller before both of them chose Georgia in the 2022 recruiting cycle.
