Ohio State recruiting: Justin Hilliard recaps OSU visit

Ohio State hosted a couple of the nation's top prospect yesterday for their fifth practice of the spring. It was probably the biggest recruiting day of the year so far.

One of the top recruits on campus was Cincinnati (OH) St. Xavier linebacker Justin Hilliard, who's one of Ohio State's top linebacker targets in the 2015 class.

Hilliard, who has been to Columbus on multiple occasions, really enjoyed his trip, especially getting to watch the Buckeyes in action.

"It was my first practice (at Ohio State) other than a walkthrough I went to last year, but it was my first real practice," Hilliard said. "There was a lot of energy at the practice. I really enjoyed it."

In addition to watching the practice, Hilliard got to do a couple of other things while in Columbus.

"After the practice I got the chance to talk the coaches, walk around the stadium, and see pretty much everything I didn't see last time," he told Land-Grant Holy Land. "I would say it was one of my better visits to Ohio State."

The standout linebacker got to spend time with a lot of the Ohio State coaches, including head coach Urban Meyer and linebackers coach Luke Fickell, who he has mentioned before as two guys he has really good relationships with.

"I talked to almost all of the coaches. The main ones were Coach Meyer, Coach Fickell, and Coach Coombs," he said. "They've already said most of the stuff, but this time they were telling me where they see me in the defense. Pretty much defensive and talking about the team this year."

When it comes to other visits this spring or summer, the St. Xavier star would like to make a southern road swing.

"I think I'm going to try to get down south to see Alabama, and some other schools," he stated.

Last weekend, he made the trip to Ann Arbor to check out Michigan again, where he had a very good time.

"That was a pretty good visit," he continued. "I went to a practice and hung out with some of the players which was pretty cool. It was a good visit."

Hilliard still plans on deciding late in the recruiting process and doesn't have any leaders right now (other than the top 15 he named a month ago).

"(Late in the process) is still kind of the look. I'm going to keep narrowing in down and have it to five before the season," Hilliard said. "Then from there I'll take visit to all of those schools. I'm not in a rush to make my decision. I just want to narrow my list down and make it easier."

He did add that the schools recruiting him the hardest are probably Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Iowa, and Oklahoma.

When it's time to make a college decision, there will be many different factors he takes into account.

"Academics, being about to win a national championship, and me fitting in and being comfortable at the school," he told Land-Grant Holy Land.

This is going to be a long battle between Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Iowa, and Oklahoma for his commitment. Right now my pick is OSU, but there's a lot that could change in between now and when he decides to announce his decision. This is going to be one of the closest battles in the 2015 recruiting cycle in my opinion.