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Webb Is In
Let’s talk a little bit about pipelines. No, not those kind- “pipelines” as in high school programs that have a long history of sending kids to a specific University due to good connections between their coaching staffs and administration.
While there are a lot of these for Ohio State, the most easily identifiable is Cleveland Glenville- since early in the 2000s, Coach Ginn has only seen two players from his school who held Ohio State offers choose to go elsewhere. It’s why Friday’s news regarding Chris Worley was awesome, but not surprising.
The understanding of a “pipeline” is what makes today’s announcement regarding the second member of Ohio State’s 2014 class so spectacular. As if it weren’t incredible enough to beat TTUN, knock them out of the ranks of the undefeated, and cost them a possible slot as the #1 team in the nation in basketball, Urban Meyer’s staff has now breached the “pipeline” that Detroit Cass Tech has historically had between that school and Ann Arbor. He joins Glenville’s Marcelys Jones in the 2014 class.
Webb was a participant in this year’s “Friday Night Lights” in Columbus, and was “dominant” in the 1 v 1 drills there. He was offered by both Ohio State and Michigan on the same day.
And they did so in the person of defensive back Damon Webb, a 4 star corner back who has been described as “lock down” in ability. At 6′ and 175 pounds, Webb’s recruitment came to an end at the game today, and he attributes his fit with the OSU Sports Industry degree program, his family’s comfort level with the University and coaching staff, and the persistence of Coach Kerry Coombs as being reasons for the decision.
Coach Coombs, who is notoriously passionate about life in general and Ohio State in particular, visited Cass every month and made an impression on Webb; particularly insightful, given that Coombs will be his position coach in two years.
Damon held offers from just about every school in the B1G as well as Mississippi State, West Virginia, and LSU- he’s expected to be one of the top players in that state up north for the coming season. After the break, check out his junior year highlights- please ignore the logo in the lower right corner: Read More
Sharp dressed man
The big recruiting weekend for Ohio State barely got started when the first verbal was made; Cleveland Glenville’s Chris Worley has become the latest member of the 2013 Ohio State recruiting class.
An athlete who’s projected as a safety/linebacker (perhaps the “Star” position?), Worley held offers from Michigan State, West Virginia, Arkansas, and Pittsburgh among others. He’s listed as a three star prospect on most of the major scouting services.
Chris is a bigger defensive back, measuring in at 6’2″ and 185 pounds or so- it will be interesting to see where he ends up fitting in to Ohio State’s defense.
There was speculation for a while that Chris would be a part of this year’s class, due in part to the focus on defensive playmakers and due to the history that Glenville’s prospects have had in Columbus. He was initially scheduled to announce his decision in November, but that was delayed until today. There were rumors regarding his eligibility, but those were put to rest last week when he informed the school he’d made the scores necessary to enroll, if accepted.
It may be interesting to see if this decision has any impacts on, or is a reflection of, Georgia Safety Vonn Bell, who will be visiting Ohio State with his family this weekend. The Buckeyes are rumored to lead for his commitment.
After the jump, check out Chris’ highlights from this past season. Read More
Enjoying The Game
Ohio State Recruiting- The Gift That Keeps On Giving.
This morning, Glenville Offensive Lineman Marcelys Jones called Coach Meyer and became the first member of Ohio State’s 2014 recruiting class. Most scouting services have him ranked as a four star recruit.
The 6’4″ junior weighs in at 32o pounds, so I’m guessing that he didn’t fit under the tree. Jones played offensive tackle for Coach Ginn, but some are projecting him inside when he reaches Columbus. Jones is the cousin of 2013 commit Donovan Munger
Marcelys held offers from Illinois and Indiana, and had significant contact with a number of B1G schools. As the first for the 2014 class, he’s already begun to talk about how he can be a leader in connecting with other athletes; he spoke about working on one of Ohio’s top ranked recruits, fellow Glenville teammate Marshon Lattimore. In addition, one of the nation’s best linebackers, Raekwon McMillan tweeted his congratulations to Marcelys along with the words “Don’t know him yet…” Marcelys commented later that he connected with Raekwon as well.
What makes this commitment most interesting is that it strays from “the norm” for Tarblooders- most wait until later in the process to give their commitment, due in part to Coach Ginn encouraging them to take other visits and allow coaches coming by to get to know their teammates as well.
The only film we could find on this young man was over at Rivals… you can check it out here.
Welcome to the Buckeye Family, Marcelys!
Doran Grant (middle) appears to be Ohio State's top target in Ohio. Glenville players? not so much.
Unfortunately, as the title indicates, this update is full of more apparent bad news on the Glenville recruiting front.
Last week, I mentioned that Ohio State’s interest in Akise Teague is likely due to uncertainty about Shane Wynn‘s status with the Buckeyes.
I also speculated that the recent offer to JUCO defensive line prospect Tank Carradine may have been the death knell for Andre Sturdivant‘s chances at being a Buckeye.
The initial optimism about Carradine’s interest in Ohio State may have been exaggerated, but the implications in regard to Sturdivant remain the same.
If that weren’t enough, the most recent Buckeye recruiting buzz is of an impending offer to Illinois lineman Chris Bryant (teammates with 2012 line prospect Jordan Diamond, who is receiving early interest from Ohio State).
It doesn’t take much imagination to see that Bryant’s listed measurables (6’5″ 330 lbs.) are almost identical to Glenville’s Aundrey Walker. Read More
