Ohio State sends out another offer to a 2017 WR

Johnson gets OSU offer, shares thoughts

The days are quickly passing and National Signing Day for this year’s football recruiting class is right around the corner. For Ohio State, despite having commitments from 2017 wide receivers Trevon Grimes of St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.) and Jaylen Harris of Cleveland Heights (Ohio), they are still hoping to add one more pass-catcher into the fold.

On Wednesday, the Buckeyes threw out an offer to '17 WR Damond Johnson. The latest Buckeye offeree stands at 6-foot-1, 170 pounds and attended West Florida Tech High School in Pensacola, Fla.

Johnson, who is committed to David Cutcliffe and Duke, is currently graded out as a three-star prospect. With that being said, it doesn't seem likely that the Blue Devils have much to worry about here.

Johnson has been committed to Duke since February of last year, but that didn’t stop the Buckeyes from attempting to add another member to Zone 6.

"I think relationships are important in recruiting," said Johnson. "I've built a great relationship with Duke and they have been committed to me, so it's only right to do the same in return."

Johnson concluded by saying that he was thankful for the interest and offer from the Buckeyes.

Barring some unforeseen change of heart from Johnson, the Buckeyes will have to look elsewhere to fill the void left by '17 WR Tyjon Lindsey, who decommitted from the Buckeyes not long ago and pledged to Nebraska.

One name that should be on major offer watch now is '17 WR Elijah Gardiner of Kemp (TX). On Wednesday, Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer and new offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson went down to the Lonestar State to visit the Missouri commitment.

Gardiner, much like Johnson, is also graded as a three-star prospect. The 6-foot-5, 185-pounder already had some thinking to do in regards to his recruitment since Texas dropped an offer to him nine days ago. Stay tuned to see if the Buckeyes are next to give the Texan an offer.

Okudah hints at another Texas addition?

One thing that certainly got Ohio State fans on the edge of their seat on Wednesday was the interesting tweet dropped by '17 cornerback Jeffrey Okudah, who hinted at maybe another Texas recruit joining the Buckeyes historic recruiting class:

As we well know, Ohio State has had great success in the state of Texas this cycle. They pulled Okudah, linebacker Baron Browning and running back J.K. Dobbins from the state and their lone remaining target from the state, for now, is '17 defensive tackle Marvin Wilson.

Wilson has been a longtime target for Ohio State and their pursuit of the five-star defensive lineman will not slow down until pen meets paper.

After meeting the aforementioned Gardiner, Ohio State had Meyer and defensive line coach Larry Johnson stop by Epsicopal High School in Bellaire, Texas to visit the massive 6-foot-4, 329-pounder.

If the Buckeyes can indeed land Wilson, it will put the icing on the cake for, arguably, the best recruiting class ever in the program’s history. With that being said, as of now, LSU is the projected landing spot for the Under Armour All-American.

In-state DE gets Buckeye offer

Lastly, with the 2018 recruiting class standing at the on deck circle, Ohio State didn't let Wednesday go by without giving some good news to one certain prospect for next year.

2018 defensive end Tyreke Smith, a teammate of Jaylen Harris at Cleveland Heights (OH), was on the receiving end of an offer from the Buckeyes last night.

The new offer for Smith puts the Buckeyes in the mix with programs like Louisville, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Penn State, Tennessee, UCLA and USC.

Smith is currently ranked No. 175 in next year’s class; the Cleveland native also stands as the sixth best weak-side defensive end in the country and the seventh best player from the state of Ohio.