Ohio State offers 2019 DB Tyus Fields, looks to bolster secondary of the future

Tomorrow night the Buckeyes square off in yet another road night game as they take on the Nebraska Cornhuskers in a conference showdown. While Urban Meyer and many other Ohio State football fans are feeling rather annoyed with the amount of road conference night games the team is being forced to play, it cannot be overshadowed that once again, the primetime eyes are on the Ohio State Buckeyes. When it comes to prime-time match-ups, recruiting is a never-ending story. The amount of stars on hand and viewing via television is always increased due to the time of the game. Whether Ohio State likes this or not, Urban has to at least enjoy the fact that his team is being seen by prospects all over the country. If it ends on the field as a win and off the field in a recruiting win, the more night games, the better.

DB offers don’t come easy

It wasn’t long ago that Urban Meyer was quoted for saying some schools hand out scholarships like “pop-tarts.” We know he meant that the rate scholarship offers go out is very different than in the past, and that’s not always a good thing. When you look at the Buckeye football program and their recruiting efforts, it’s not a program that hands out offers left and right. If a prospect has an offer from Ohio State, he is a legitimate candidate and a top player in the country. When it comes to the secondary, that is proven to be true with the amount of success Kerry Coombs and his cornerbacks are having year in and year out. A ton of high-profile student-athletes have received offers to play in Ohio State's secondary and gone on to become high NFL Draft picks. That's a huge selling point for recruiting new talent to Columbus.

Yesterday, Ohio State handed out their latest scholarship offer to Tyus Fields. The Cornelius, North Carolina native is a 5'10, 170-pound corner in the 2019 class. He currently ranks out as the seventh-best corner in the country for 2019 and the fifth-best player overall in the Tar Heel state. Easily deserving of his 4-star status, Fields also holds nearly 10 offers from schools such as Clemson, Penn State, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Tennessee, and Ohio State, among others.

With Fields still having the remainder of this season and all of next year to be played, this recruitment has started early. However, when you’re Urban Meyer and you boast one of, if not the best defensive backfield development program in the country, it’s never to early to recruit the nation’s top talent. With the past success of Buckeye DBs, you can guarantee Fields will pay close attention and entertain Ohio State's efforts. As always, if a visit occurs and the red carpet is laid out, Ohio State will certainly be a player in this recruiting saga.

But really, what’s going on?

The Ohio State 2018 recruiting class has no shortage of talent, and truth be told, doesn’t possess a weakness, which is exactly why they hold the nation’s best class according to every major recruiting site. However, their lone quarterback commit, Emory Jones, who has been a commit since the summer of 2016, has been shall we say nothing short of interesting. Taking visits to schools such as Alabama while he’s still “solid” to the Buckeyes has been the word, but with a loaded QB room in Columbus and guys ahead in line such as Joey Burrow, Dwayne Haskins, and Tate Martell, you can see why there may be some looking around.

With that said, Ohio State is no slouch in this game, as it seems a newer name has come onto the scene as of late. Basically, the staff is being as proactive as they can with their lone QB spot in the 2018 class. It’s no secret the program wants to keep Emory Jones in the fold, but if he’s steadily entertaining other options and at the very least visiting other schools, the Buckeyes have to be smart and also keep the door open.

Enter current Kentucky commit Jarren Williams, another Georgia native like Jones. Williams is the seventh-ranked dual-threat QB in the nation, with Jones coming in three slots higher as the fourth-best. While he may hold a lesser ranking, there are many out there that believe Williams is actually a better prospect with a higher upside. Playing in the top division of the talent-rich state of Georgia as well as being an Elite 11 finalist, Williams truly is one of the best in the country.

All in all, there’s still a long way to go before the pen hits the paper and the fax machine cements in stone the Buckeyes' 2018 signal caller, but until then, if Jones is going to continue to shop around, then the Buckeyes are going to stay in Jarren Williams’ ear.

Quick Hits:

• Current Ohio State 2018 commit L’Christian “Blue” Smith will take his official visit to Columbus when Penn State heads to town on October 28.