Ohio State recruiting: State Secrets, 8/8 - Lorenzo Carter, Thomas Holley, new hoops offer

Well, it's August 8th and the Buckeye football team is hard at work preparing for the upcoming season and week one matchup with the Buffalo Bulls. What that also means is summer camps are over for high school recruits and two-a-days are underway. While the season grows near, some of the best talent in the 2014 recruiting class are still trying to figure out which university is right for them. One of those recruits is 247Composite four star Thomas Holley out of Brooklyn, New York. Thomas visited Syracuse yesterday which will be playing their first season of ACC football, jumping from the once competitive Big East. I personally don't believe the Cuse have a real shot at landing Holley, but anytime you can get a kid on campus it gives you a shot.

Thomas is a key piece for the Buckeyes as the coaching staff is still trying to add depth to the position. With a commitment from Holley, the Bucks would be pairing him with Jalyn Holmes and three star Dylan Thompson on the d-Line to go along with the bevy of guys Urban has brought in the past two seasons.

Lorenzo Carter out of Norcross, Georgia has cut his list down to seven and unfortunately it looks as though the Buckeyes have missed out. Carter, who is ranked as the fifth best player in the country by the 247Composite rankings, seems to be a heavy Alabama lean at the moment. Alabama, Georgia, Florida, LSU, Notre Dame, Oregon and Florida State are the other six teams that are still in play for Carter's commitment. Last year as a junior Carter put up some crazy numbers for a defensive lineman, racking up 136 tackles and eighteen sacks. Carter announced his top seven yesterday via Twitter and then had this remark afterwards:

Blessed to have the power of choice... So many can only dream of what I'm doing #GodFirst

— lorenzo carter (@LCarter_25) August 7, 2013

Whatever school Carter chooses, they are getting a freak athlete. Carter, who stands 6-5 and weighs in at 232 pounds, was clocked at a 4.63 forty at The Opening this past July in Beaverton, Oregon. Lorenzo will finish up his prep career by playing in the 2014 Under Armour All-American Game. You can check out Lorenzo's junior season highlights below:

Buckeye target Mike Weber out of Cass Tech (yes the same Cass Tech Damon Webb is from) took a visit to Michigan State on Tuesday and Wednesday with some of his high school teammates. Weber, who holds offers from Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and others, helped lead Cass Tech to a second consecutive State Title last year when he rushed for 1,700 yards and twenty-one touchdowns. Weber, who is a composite four star on 247 Sports' rankings, seems to be leaning towards Michigan State if you go off the Crystal Ball Predictions. While visiting Michigan State, Weber's classmate Jayru Campbell, who was recently at Ohio State's Friday Night Lights, committed to the Spartans. If I was a betting man (and thankfully I am not), I'd say it is just a matter of time before Mike Weber joins his teammate and commits to Michigan State.

Now lets switch it up a bit and look and see what coach Thad Matta has been up to. Thad has shown that he can bring in top talent to Ohio State and once again he is doing that with his 2014 class. The Buckeyes have received commitments from guys who are all ranked inside of the top 140 in the 247Sports Composite rankings. Led by composite five star Keita Bates-Diop out of Normal, Illinois, D'Angelo Russell, Jae'Sean Tate and Dave Bell give the Buckeyes quite the formidable group. The '14 class is currently ranked as the second best class in the country by 247 Sports, trailing only Roy Williams and the North Carolina Tar Heels.

To add to the good news, the Buckeyes made the cut for one of the best players in the country in Myles Turner:

Myles Turner has trimmed his list down to Duke, Kansas, UK, Louisville, Arizona, Ohio State, Texas & Oklahoma State, per @ReggieRankin.

— FiveStarRecruits (@5StarRecruits) August 8, 2013

Turner is ranked the sixth best player in the country by the 247Composite rankings and the second best at his position. While is it nice for Ohio State to make the top seven, if Thad and the Buckeyes want to land Myles, they have some work to do. Time will tell if Matta will be able to pull this one out, but right now I believe the kid will end up in Lawrence, Kansas and be part of "Rock Chalk, Jayhawk."

Moving on to the '15 class, Thad reached out to Dwayne Bacon of Lakeland, Florida and offered him a scholarship Wednesday. Bacon, who is a 6-6 small forward, is ranked the twenty-ninth best player in the country overall and the sixth best at his position. It is early in the talks for the '15 class, but Dwayne is already putting together a good list of offers that include Louisville, Miami (FL) and now Ohio State. Bacon announced his offer from Ohio State via Twitter:

Just Got Offer From Ohio State

— Black Boe  (@BaconDwayne1000) August 7, 2013

For being 6-6, the kid is very smooth and can handle the basketball extremely well. I think sky is the limit for this kid and he would represent a very nice pick up for Coach Matta and the Buckeyes. Below are some of his highlights with his AAU team, the Showtime Ballers:

QUICK HITS:

- '14 recruit Quincy Wilson will be making his college choice on Monday; the Buckeyes are still in the mix.