National Signing Day 2017: CB Shaun Wade is ready to be the next great Ohio State corner

Shaun Wade is going to be following a lineage of great Ohio State cornerbacks. Jack Tatum, Shawn Springs, Antoine Winfield, Malcolm Jenkins, and Eli Apple are just a handful of cornerbacks that Wade will be trying to match in Columbus.

Wade committed to Ohio State in January of 2015 as a five-star recruit according to 247Sports composite. He’s been on the Buckeye train for a while now, and his time in Columbus is finally coming. He’s a true corner with good length, and is able to cover a lot of ground. Questions about his quickness have been raised, but you don’t become a five-star cornerback if you can’t keep up.

He wants to be great more than you might know. "I have to be great; it's no choice," Wade said. "For my future family, I want them just to be ... where we can have our house, a big house, and just be chillin' in the house. So, I'm looking forward to my future, so I just have to be great."

Kerry Coombs will be tasked with turning Wade into the next great Buckeye corner. Wade knows he’s learning from the best. "Coach Coombs, he teaches great technique," Wade said. "You can see he gets a lot of DBs to the (NFL). He's got three going this year, so he knows what he's doing."

Wade could start immediately at cornerback. Gareon Conley and Marshon Lattimore are on their way to the NFL, leaving Denzel Ward, Damon Arnette, and fellow freshman Jeffrey Okudah as his biggest competition for starting positions. If Damon Webb is the standard going into the 2017 season, you have to like Wade’s odds heading into the spring.

He’s clearly comfortable with the atmosphere, which was a big reason he’s coming to Columbus:

Scouting Report

Shaun Wade is another elite defensive back in the 2017 class who has a chance to play early on. Wade has great height (6’1) and length that is necessary to play press-man coverage, but he only weighs 177 pounds right now. Luckily, his lengthy frame will allow him to fill out and contribute at least on special teams as a true freshman, if not crack the two-deep at the open cornerback position.

Wade excels in man coverage and his length allows him to remain on the hip of the receiver and win at the line of scrimmage. He possesses excellent football IQ and instincts, which puts him in a place to make plays on the football. Wade is quick out of his breaks and he does a good job breaking up quick passes or taking a pick back to the house. His ball skills are superb. Against the run, Wade is a willing and able tackler who shows no hesitation in the run game.

Thus, his height and length is perfect for Ohio State’s secondary and his ball skills are elite for a true freshman. Wade played a great game against IMG Academy, where he locked down premier talent on the perimeter. He’s a competitor who will force his way onto the field at some capacity as a true freshman. — Christopher Jason

Highlights