It's a Tuesday in May, which means it's time to talk about Buckeye football as if it isn't three months away.
ICYMI:
- Dwayne Haskins could be a top quarterback prospect in the 2019 draft.
- A look at the possible 2019 draft prospects on Ohio State's current roster.
- Nick Bosa and Dre'Mont Jones will be part of a historically great defensive line class.
- J.T. Barrett officially signs a contract with the New Orleans Saints.
Word of the Day: Phosphene.
TEXAS TOM TAKES THE L. You know what's sweeter than the Local Team getting a new commitment from a five-star #teen? Said teen spurning Tom Herman and the Longhorns in the process.
Five-star receiver Garrett Wilson chose Ohio State over Texas on Sunday afternoon, electing to return to Columbus, where he grew up, instead of staying in Austin, where he moved when he was 12-years old.
When asked about his decision, Wilson had some harsh, but totally valid things to say about Texas in comparison to Ohio State.
From Rivals.com:
Texas certainly would've liked to keep Wilson in Austin, as it continues to try to add playmakers to its stable of receivers, but even after putting forth a good pitch to keep him local, Wilson said that he’s 100 percent committed to Ohio State and has no plans to include the Longhorns in his future plans. Moreover, he plans on returning to Ohio State for another visit in May and is anticipating being back for no fewer than two home games in the fall.
“They were close,” Wilson said of Texas. “I’m not going to lie, the official visit made me think about them a little more. In the end, I’ve watched a lot of people go to Texas with a ton of ability and maybe not achieve what I thought they could. I didn’t want to be one of those guys.”
You certainly can't fault his logic or his decision. There hasn't been a season since Urban Meyer's arrival that Ohio State wasn't in position to compete for a national title, except for the time it literally wasn't possible. There also haven't been many – if any – starters who've left Ohio State with no chance to make an NFL roster.
Herman has Texas on the right track, but the program still doesn't touch Ohio State. So Texas Tom is probably going to have to get used to losing talent to his old boss out of his back yard, because the pipleline just seems to be getting wider.
Buckeye Nation... if you think i aint bringing some Texas boys with me, youre wrong. So happy to be apart of the family, Go Bucks!
— Garrett Wilson (@GarrettWilson_V) April 30, 2018
2013 WAS A GOOD YEAR. With the conclusion of the 2018 NFL Draft, Ohio State's 2013 class officially ran it course. And in hindsight, it was one of the most talented, accomplished classes not just in school history, but in all of college football.
From Ryan Ginn of Landof10.com:
Eight players — nearly one-third of that 25-player recruiting class — became first- or second-round picks in the NFL draft. Those players formed the top end of a class that will go down as not only one of the best in Ohio State history but one of the best at any school in the recruiting rankings era.
...
The final tally for the 2013 class is staggering. The 25 players combined for 463 starts at Ohio State — 201 more than the 25 players in the Class of 2012. Over five years, Ohio State went 61-8, won two Big Ten titles and a College Football Playoff National Championship. Three of those 25 players became All-Americans, six became Ohio State captains, eight became NFL draft picks and — perhaps most incredibly — 20 either graduated, fulfilled their eligibility or left early for the NFL.
The hilarious thing is, as good as that class was, Ohio State just signed back-to-back recruiting classes rated higher than that one.
There are obviously no guarantees it leads to the same success, but it's generally a good practice to send out your best class of all time with two better classes to replace it.
JEROME BAKER IS FAST. The scouting report on Jerome Baker is pretty straightforward: he may be raw, but he's a freak athlete who can run like most defensive backs. It seems the Dolphins have figured it out.
From MiamiHerald.com:
Third-round pick Jerome Baker runs a 4.53 at 6-foot-1 and 229 pounds. The Dolphins see him as a modern day WILL linebacker.
"He's really fast," a source said. "Can he go cover Dion Lewis in space on opening day? Yes. He has that ability. I'm not saying he's going to be the opening day starter but the ability is there. "
It feels like Baker is going to be either a complete boom or a total bust with nothing in between. Either he can be coached up and learn how to use his raw athleticism, or he's going to fizzle quickly.
Still, if I were an NFL GM, I'd give him a shot based solely on this one play from a scrimmage over two years ago:
HILLIARD ALL HEALED. Speaking of linebackers, Ohio State needs some. After Baker bolted for the NFL, Chris Worley exhausted his eligibility and Tuf Borland injured his achilles, the Buckeyes now have three open linebacker spots to fill by August.
One of the guys vying for playing time is Justin Hilliard. The former five-star has been banged up his entire Buckeye career, costing him valuable practice reps. But now, not only is Hilliard healthy, he's where he needs to be developmentally.
From Tony Gerdeman of theozone.net:
“He’s caught up. Those injuries are why it took him a while,” said OSU linebackers coach Bill Davis. “He’s ready to go. The injuries do not factor in right now. They don’t factor. He’s back.”
Hilliard has the athletic ability to play inside or outside for the Buckeyes, but Davis wants him to get comfortable at one spot. And more than anything else, he simply wants him to get reps.
“Reps are golden no matter who you are,” he said. “Even in the NFL, they’re the best of the best athletes and an NFL player that doesn’t have reps is behind the NFL player that has reps. So it does matter that you’re a better athlete, it absolutely matters, but reps are golden and you’ve got to have them and you’ve got to grow.”
I, for one, can't wait to see Hilliard do the same sort of damage on opposing offenses as he did to our servers the day he committed. He and Jashon Cornell, who committed on the same day, could both see big roles this fall.
DOING IT AGAIN. Remember the Ohio State men's volleyball team that couldn't stop winning last year? Well it's now looking for it's third-straight national championship after reaching the NCAA Tournament semifinals with a win over UC Irvine on Tuesday night.
Let's take another look at match point.
— OSU Men's Volleyball (@OhioState_MVB) May 2, 2018
Samarin with the diving dig followed by Szerszen painting the line to end it.#GoBucks pic.twitter.com/32iabH8zUV
This run has been a bit of a change of pace from the past two seasons of dominance. Ohio State had to win a play-in game and win in five sets to advance to the semis. Now, the Buckeyes have to face No. 1 Long Beach State on Thursday.
THOSE WMDs. French art museum discovers more than half its collection is fake... The digital vigilantes who hack back... Zora Neale Hurston’s lost interview with a slave-ship survivor... Video: Smartphones locate your phone in time and space... Rejected Ohio license plates.
