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Ohio State recruiting: State Secrets, 8/28 - Brandon Wimbush offered

One of the state's top prospects is expected to make the trip to C-bus this weekend, a 2015 quarterback gets offered, plus updated 2015 hoops rankings with a strong Buckeye presence.

By Austin Kemp
Justin Hilliard will be visiting Ohio State this weekend.
Justin Hilliard will be visiting Ohio State this weekend.

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At this point of the year, it's almost impossible to stay sane with just a day before college football is back in our lives. Among the prospects that will be in attendance for Ohio State in particular's season opener will be St. Xavier linebacker Justin Hilliard. Hilliard, a four star prospect in the class of 2015, has Ohio State, Notre Dame, Michigan, and Iowa all atop his list, with no set leader at this point. Urban Meyer would like to see their success in the Cincinnatti area improve and Hilliard would be a great in-state addition to add alongside Eric Glover-Williams. A great visit is a must as Hilliard is expected to attend the Michigan-Notre Dame night game on September 7th.

Also setting up a visit was 2015 tight end C.J. Conrad, as reported by our own Charles Doss.

Conrad is not only one of the top tight ends in the state but is widely considered one of the top tight ends in the entire country. As a sophomore, Conrad led his team in receiving yards with 924 as well as racking up 14 touchdown catches. With offers already from Illinois, Indiana, and Kentucky, he should start to blow up even more as this season progresses. The sky is the limit for Keystone High School's 6'5" star.

2015 four-star quarterback Brandon Wimbush picked up an offer from Ohio State on Tuesday night. "It is a great feeling. I have been waiting for this for a long time," he told me just after the offer. In an interview with him earlier this month, he mentioned that if the Buckeyes were to offer, it would put them in his top three. When asked if his previous statement remained true he replied, "It sure does! Maybe at the top." Lastly, it's worth noting that Wimbush has thought about when he'd like to give a commitment to a school and he said it will be "most likely after this season. I will not wait till next season."

The offensive line is a position that will continue to be a point of focus and Ohio State has a Maryland duo that sits near the top of the list. Five-star tackle Damian Prince has long considered the Buckeyes and would have a solid chance at early playing time considering he's a player who fits the bill of a true left tackle. The other, Brock Ruble, has become a legitimate target after his visit in late July. As of late, the Terrapins have made a push to keep the two locals at home and if they were able to pull both, it would leave a small indention on the class of 2014. There's no question that Damian Prince is most likely the most coveted offensive player left on the Buckeye's recruiting board and while a commitment to Maryland wouldn't be shocking, Prince is a guy who could anchor Ohio State's offensive line for multiple years.

To basketball, 247Sports rolled out their post summer 2015 rankings. LGHL's Zach Fleer, who has spent most of the summer evaluating these players, chimed in on how the rankings unfolded.

The biggest move was Cleveland Villa Angela-St. Joseph forward Carlton Bragg, who is now ranked as the fifth player in the country, climbing six slots from the previous list. Ohio State target Charles Matthews also checks in the top ten, moving five slots to No. 9 in the nation. Franklin, Ohio shooting guard Luke Kennard cracked moved up four spots to No. 16 after an excellent end to the AAU season. Kennard's performance at Peach Jam and the AAU Nationals led to a rapid increase in interest, and offers from several high-major programs, including Duke, Kansas and Kentucky. Dropping three spots was the newest Buckeye commit, Mickey Mitchell, who checks in at No. 20. Suffering a major drop was Buckeye commit AJ Harris, who fell 73 spots to No. 111 in the class of 2015. There is no apparent reason for the drop in my eyes, as Harris performed at a high level in Orlando at AAU Nationals, and has done nothing to hurt his stock in recent weeks.

You can see the full rankings here.

Turning tide from good news to bad, it was confirmed on Tuesday that current commit Kyle Berger does indeed have a torn ACL. We, along with the rest of Buckeye Nation wish him a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him compete when fall camp rolls around next year. April 17th could be the date that he's shooting for to be back to doing football-related activity.

QUICK HITS:

-Sean Nuernberger told our Adam Waters that he will graduate early and participate in spring ball at Ohio State.

-2015 linebacker Markus Bailey says that he plans to visit Ohio State on September 28th. He currently holds offers from Boston College, Bowling Green, Toledo, and Akron.

-2015 offensive lineman Matthew Burrell is planning to visit Ohio State sometime this season.

-2016 basketball prospect Tyus Battle is working on a trip to Ohio State this fall.

-Check out this incredible pick 6 from Ohio State commit Malik Hooker:

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