
Ohio State continues to stay as active as possible on the recruiting trail.
It can almost be hard to keep up with all of the recruiting news going on with Ohio State this spring. The Buckeyes stay as active as possible and whether it be reaching out to top players or hosting major targets, the coaching staff is pulling double duty with also having to focus on developing their current roster. As it’s been seen throughout the spring ball season to this point, Ryan Day and his crew look to be crushing it from every perspective.
Big time freshman takes home OSU offer
It was just yesterday in State Secrets that Georgia native 2025 offensive lineman, Mason Short was a topic of discussion as he was on campus Wednesday to take in an Ohio State practice while on an unofficial visit. Taking to his Twitter account to share some photos, the 6-foot-7, 280-pound high school freshman obviously is a name worth paying attention to moving forward.
Fast forward a day, after we said that Short was a player certainly in line to receive some interest from the Ohio State staff, the Buckeyes did him one better and dished out their latest offer yesterday, clearly making the trek to Columbus more than just well worth Mason’s time.
Now at five offers to his name, the Buckeyes join Minnesota, Louisville, Coastal Carolina, and Georgia Southern in the mix early on. At the risk of being biased, the Ohio State offer is the biggest one to date which should cause a domino effect of other major programs to also join the fold. Ohio State’s coaching staff isn’t necessarily known for offering prospects this early, but knowing his incredible size and all of the potential that he could grow into, Mason very well could be one of the top offensive linemen in the country when all is said and done.
Grateful and honored to have received an offer from THE Ohio State University!! #GoBuckeyes @CoachM_Patrick @CoachJFrye @ryandaytime @etwill21 pic.twitter.com/e5Gtsnr4L8
— Mason Short ✞ ♹ ♷ (@MasonShort_) April 7, 2022
Buckeyes make the top ten cut for 2023 cornerback
The safety position in Ohio State’s 2023 class is really starting to heat up. With Jim Knowles implementing a three-safety schemed defense, it is no secret how important that position is even with those players playing different roles on the field. Staying in the secondary though, the cornerback spot is always a priority and the Buckeyes are fortunate to be in on some of the top guys nationally.
As it gets further along in the 2023 cycle, the coaching staff will hope to see some of those top cornerbacks joining the class, but for now the pursuit continues. Yesterday, the Buckeyes did receive some news when they made the cut for four-star corner Daniel Harris. A Florida native out of Gulliver Prep, Harris has nearly 30 offers from some of the top programs in college football, but he has now narrowed it down to a list of ten schools that he will be deciding from.
The 38th best cornerback in the country for the 2023 class per 247sports, Harris included Cincinnati, Tennessee, Jackson State, Penn State, Syracuse, Texas A&M, Michigan, Georgia, Miami, and Ohio State. A 6-foot-2, 160-pound corner, Daniel has the perfect length to have out on the edge, and from his offer list, it’s easy to see why so many premier programs are in on him. The Buckeyes are definitely in the mix and likely will be until the very end.
top 10. pic.twitter.com/WwvZ82aSLh
— Daniel Harris (@h9rrisdaniel) April 8, 2022
Lee enjoyed his time in Columbus during two-day stay
Sticking right in line with the class of 2023 cornerback prospects, Ohio State was able to play host to one of their major targets in this current cycle, Kayin Lee. The 18th best corner in the class per 247sports, Lee is also considered the 209th best player nationally. Arriving in Columbus on Wednesday, Lee stayed through Thursday before heading to see Nebraska for his next visit on the list.
The important aspect here was having Kayin on campus to meet with the staff and get a feel for the program. As noted before, the Buckeyes are going after the best players at the cornerback position as they do in every cycle, but Lee is definitely one of the players they’d love to add to the mix. As it stands now, the in-state Georgia Bulldogs for Kayin are the likely frontrunner in his recruitment, but this visit to Columbus looks to have gone about as well as it could have for both parties.
— Kayin Lee (@_kayinlee) April 7, 2022
Quick Hits:
- Ohio State is chasing the top running backs in the 2023 cycle. With Richard Young, the nation’s top back in the class the long-time desire for Tony Alford, yesterday the Buckeyes did receive a major crystal ball prediction from Bill Kurelic of Bucknuts.com that favored a different Florida native running back in the 2023 class.
6-foot-1, 225-pound bruiser of a back, Mark Fletcher was predicted to Ohio State by Kurelic, which matches the same thought that Director of Recruiting for 247sports, Steve Wiltfong also submitted. The seventh-best running back in the country, Fletcher is also the 187th best player nationally. Maybe more interestingly though, Mark is a current teammate of top receiver in the class Brandon Inniss and that certainly would help the Buckeyes continue to build some momentum with Inniss. Time will tell, but it looks as if the running back position is starting to narrow itself down for Ohio State.
- On Thursday, Ohio State landed a preferred walk-on commitment from Michigan native, Kai Saunders. A 6-foot-4, 205-pound receiver/tight-end prospect, Saunders was an All-Conference level player for his Northville prep team and will be another solid piece to what is typically a very solid group of walk-on players for the Buckeyes year in and year out.
100% Committed @OhioStateFB pic.twitter.com/U4zV1GeA2b
— Kai Saunders (@KaiSaun15) April 7, 2022
- Moving to the hardwood now, Ohio State didn’t have to go far yesterday when the live period for hoops recruiting began. Making the short trek to Pickerington, Chris Holtmann and the Buckeyes were in attendance to visit 2023 target, Devin Royal. A priority for Ohio State in their 2023 class, Royal is currently ranked by 247sports as the 26th small forward in the country and the sixth-best player in Ohio.