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Some teams have taken time off from the recruiting front since National Signing Day earlier this month, but not Urban Meyer and company. Last week, Ohio State offered a number of class of 2015 recruits including offensive lineman Tyler Jordan and running back Dexter Williams. Another prospect the staff sent a scholarship offer to was Williams' teammate at Orlando's Olympia High, Deondre Francois. A 6'2 190-pound three-star dual threat quarterback, Francois adds the offer from the Bucks to a list that includes Clemson, Louisville, Miami, Florida State, Tennessee, Indiana and others.
Currently the 34th ranked dual threat signal caller and 1,021st overall player in the 2015 class according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, Francois has watched his stock sky rocket after a solid junior campaign where he passed for over 1,300 yards and 19 touchdowns for Olympia.
The staff played host to a few underclassmen over the weekend. 2015 tight end Cole Chewins, 2016 standouts, wide receiver Desmond Fitzpatrick and defensive end Nick Bosa, the younger brother of Buckeye Joey, are just a few of the recruits that were in town to check out the campus, meet the coaches and get an overall better sense of the OSU football program.
While the 6'2 215-pound Nick Bosa already holds an offer from Ohio State, Chewins and Fitzpatrick, who both hail from the state of Michigan, are still waiting for their opportunity to potentially suit up for the Buckeyes.
At Ohio State today!
— Cole Chewins (@cchew15) February 15, 2014
Per a variety of reports (and his Twitter account), class of 2015 five-star wide receiver Christian Kirk will visit Ohio State later this month on the 27th. A five-star prospect and top overall wide out in his class, per the 247Composite, Kirk holds offers from just about every major program under the sun, including Florida State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas A&M, OSU and plenty of others.
Back in May, the 5'11 195-pound Kirk told Land-Grant Holy Land after receiving his scholarship from OSU that "they love my speed and play making ability. This is an offer I have been dreaming about for awhile. They told me I would fit into their offense like Coach Meyer used Percy Harvin at Florida. I'm real excited".
Blessed with not just great speed, but also hands and vision, Kirk, a Scottsdale, Arizona native would fit perfectly in what Meyer and Tom Herman are putting together in Columbus. As a junior, Christian was a force to be reckoned with, hauling in 65 receptions for 1,183 yards and 17 touchdown, and was also a threat in the backfield, rushing for 832 yards and 13 more trips to pay dirt. He also chipped in 55 tackles and 2 interceptions on defense and returned three punt returns for scores on special teams for Saguaro High last season.
There were rumors that he would also be visiting That Team up North While in the Midwest, but that was something Kirk quickly shut down:
I will not be visiting Michigan while at Ohio St. On 2/27
— Christian Kirk (@ChristianDavon2) February 14, 2014
While the staff waits for one five-star prospect to hit campus, another announces he won't be making any more trips. 2014 defensive lineman Malik McDowell's recruitment has been a wild one, to say the least. The Michigan State commit's mother has not been shy with sharing her thoughts on the Spartans but that hasn't (and from the looks of things won't) change the mind of her 6'7 290-pound Army All-American son, who plans to sign with MSU before April 1st:
I just talked with Malik McDowell. He confirmed he is still solid W/MSU. He is taking no more visits. He has talked with no other coaches.
— Josh Newkirk (@JoshNewkirk7) February 16, 2014
Now to the Buckeye basketball recruits, where most of them were back in action over the weekend. After being down double digits, Keita Bates-Diop and his University High (IL) squad battled back to win a hard fought 54-50 contest over Central Catholic on Friday evening. Led by Bates-Diop's 21 points, the victory was U-High's 40th straight conference win and clinched them a third straight Corn Belt title.
While Keita has and the Pioneers ended up in the winning circle, his classmate Dave Bell did not. Class of 2016 standout Willie Jackson finished with 22 points and the future Buckeye Bell had 13 in a 56-50 Garfield Heights loss to Brunswick on Friday.
Saturday, D'Angelo Russell scored a game high 26 points and dished out six assists in a 82-65 Montverde smashing of New Jersey's Roselle Catholic. 2015 OSU offeree Isaiah Briscoe pitched in 18 for Roselle in the loss at the Metro Classic.
In front of OSU head coach Thad Matta, Russell once again led Montverde to a victory, The McDonald's All-American had 24 points in a 79-70 win over St. Joseph's. Russell and the Eagles are now 24-1 on the season and are right in the mix for another national championship.
In a 78-68 Dayton Dunbar win over Mansfield Senior on Saturday, class of 2015 commit AJ Harris had one of his quietest games on the offensive end, scoring only nine points. Sunday, Harris and the Wolverines were back at it against Thurgood Marshall. In a nail biter, Harris hit a key foul shot with less than a minute left in regulation to give Dunbar a 60-59 victory over their crosstown rivals. Harris, who battled foul trouble most of the game, finished with 13 points in the win.
Even though his season is over with a shoulder injury, Jae'Sean Tate's name is still in the press. Yesterday, the Pickerington Central star was named both the District 11 and Ohio Capital Conference Player of the Year, to go along with being named First Team All District 11 and OCC.
QUICK HITS:
-Thad Matta didn't just watch D'Angelo Russell, Noah Dickerson and Montverde on Sunday. The Buckeye boss also took time to check out 2015 four-star power forward Moustapha Diagne. The 6'9 Diagne, who attends Pope John XVIII in Sparta, New Jersey, the same high school as Ohio State football signee Noah Brown, currently holds offers from Syracuse, Kansas and UConn.
