4-star power forward has Ohio State on his final list

On Monday, the story broke that former Ohio State basketball commit and 2018 Ohio star Justin Ahrens included the Buckeyes in his list of top schools. Yesterday, more good news came to Chris Holtmann's program, as OSU made the cut for four-star 2018 power forward Darius Days.

Days, who has shined at The Rock School in Gainesville, Fla., has collected over 26 offers from some of the top schools in the country. When Days trimmed his list down to 11, some of those top schools still were in the running, including defending national champions North Carolina.

Kansas, Xavier, and Indiana are just a few of the other schools that Ohio State has to compete against for Days’ commitment. Where Days will end up is shaping up to be a mystery. The 247Sports Crystal Ball had nine entries for Days, and a majority of the votes went with Days choosing the hometown Florida Gators. However, the Gators are not in the final group of schools to win his services.

LSU holds the second highest amount of predictions on the 247Sports Crystal Ball for Days, but those predictions were filed before Roy Williams and his Tar Heels made the offer to the star PF on Aug. 5.

Right now, OSU has only one commitment in the 2018 recruiting class in four-star shooting guard Torrence Watson. Will Days be joining Watson in OSU’s 2018 class? Time will tell.

2019 Ohio football prospect making another visit to OSU?

Pivoting to the gridiron, Ohio State football is taking the necessary steps to creating a relationship with a wide receiving prospect. 2019 athlete Mershawn Rice (Reynoldsburg, OH/Reynoldsburg) talked to 247Sports and Ohio State recruiting guru Bill Kurelic about making another visit—a fourth.

Already, Rice has been to two OSU camps: one on June 13, and Friday Night Lights. However, Rice doesn’t hold an offer from Urban Meyer and the Scarlet and Gray; Rice does, however, hold scholarships from five programs. Two Ohio schools, Toledo and Cincinnati, have made offers to Rice, in addition to Kentucky, Syracuse, and Pittsburgh. Rice doesn’t have a recruiting grade yet, but Ohio State isn’t the college football force to show interest in the Reynoldsburg native.

In October 2016, Rice made an unofficial visit to Notre Dame, according to an entry in his 247Sports profile. Additionally, Rice’s 247Sports profile only has two entries for school camps attended—with both being at Ohio State.

If the Buckeyes were making a play for Rice, the roots to a great relationship have been established. He has made contact with OSU offensive coordinator Kevin Wilson and wide receivers coach Zach Smith, according to Kurelic. If Rice schedules a fourth visit, we'll keep you posted.