4-star safety talks Ohio State

In the last half decade Ohio State has made one of the strongest cases for being known as “DBU,” a moniker referring to the University providing the best DB’s to the NFL. In the last four NFL drafts, the Buckeyes have seen an impressive amount of former DB’s get selected including Bradley Roby, Christian Bryant, Doran Grant, Vonn Bell, Eli Apple, Marshon Lattimore, Gareon Conley and Malik Hooker. The trend looks to continue this year with Denzel Ward being projected as a first round pick by most NFL Draft analysts.

To be able to replace this talent year after year and not miss a beat, shows Meyer’s elite ability to recruit the best recruits in the country. While the Buckeyes have plenty of young talent in the secondary waiting to earn more playing time, the cornerback and safety position will always be one Meyer and the Buckeyes target in recruiting, including this year.

Keeping with this, Ohio State is looked at as a leader for one of the best safeties in the 2019 recruiting class. Jordan Battle (Fort Lauderdale, FL / St. Thomas Aquinas) was offered by Ohio State late last month and Meyer apparently likes what he sees in the young kid.

SBNation’s National Recruiting Director Bud Elliot spoke with Battle this past weekend at the Under Armor Miami regional camp and discussed where he is currently sitting with his recruitment.

Battle listed Ohio State, Miami, Michigan, Georgia and Florida when discussing the schools he talks with the most. He also mentioned that proximity to home will ultimately not be the determining factor in his decision.

“Right now it really doesn’t matter. It’s really what I want.” Battle told Elliot. “My parents, it’ll be a little bit of a decision, but it’s really mainly me.”

Battle told Elliot that Buckeye assistant coach Larry Johnson has been playing a big role in his recruitment, saying, “He talks to me every day, always asks me how I’m doing. He tells me have a good day at school and everything. So, I feel like the brotherhood there is very good, keeps those guys in contact to communicate with them.”

With that being said, Ohio State would appear to be the clear favorite to land Battle if he were to have to choose today. The 247Sports Crystal Ball would agree with that assumption, with 100 percent of the votes being in the Buckeyes favor.

However, there is still plenty of time left in his recruitment. Battle is planning on visiting Ohio State this spring, but an official date has not yet been set.

Ohio State focusing in on 4-star CB

In further efforts to beef up the Ohio State secondary, the Buckeyes’ coaching staff seems to be focusing in on one of the top CB’s in the country. However, they have a tough task ahead of them if they are able to pry him out of Florida.

Four-star CB Kaiir Elam (North Palm Beach, FL / The Benjamin School) has football in his blood. His father, Abram Elamm, played seven seasons in the NFL and his uncle, Matt Elam, played four seasons. However it is Matt Elam’s tie to Urban Meyer that has the Buckeyes believing they have a true chance.

Matt Elam played under Urban Meyer in college for the Florida Gators before playing for the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL. And while home-state school Florida has appeared to be the favorite destination when predicting where Elam will play, Meyer is using that relationship to its fullest.

Elam also attended the Under Armour Miami regional camp last weekend and spoke to Bud Elliot about his recruitment. In regards to Ohio State he only had good things to say.

“They recruit me real, real hard,” Elam told Elliot. “We FaceTime every other day, the DBs coach texts and calls me, and they recruit me very hard.”

Elam is looked at as one of the top CB’s in this year’s recruiting class. The 247Sports Composite Rankings have him listed as the No. 12 CB and the No. 115 overall recruit in the country. He was also viewed by most as the top recruit to take part in the UA Miami regional camp.

Ohio State has a lot of work to do to make up ground on Florida if they are going to poach Elam, but Meyer has an in; and when Meyer has a way in, anything is possible.

Ohio State offers 5-star WR

Switching gears to the offensive side of the gridiron, Ohio State is looking to add multiple wide receivers to this year’s recruiting class and the coaching staff is now going after one of the best in the country.

Elite wide receiver prospect Frank Ladson (Miami, FL / South Dame) took to Twitter late Monday afternoon to show off his most recent offer from Ohio State.

Ladson is a five-star prospect according to most college football recruiting databases—and for good reason. The Florida native stands at 6-foot-4 and weighs 170 pounds. The 247Sports Composite Rankings have him listed as the No. 3 WR in the class and the No. 15 overall prospect.

His size and athleticism have piqued the interest of almost every school in the country and because of that, he already holds a reported 29 offers as just a junior in high school. Following an impressive offseason and senior year, that number will only climb. Therefore, it is important that Ohio State is still getting into the process early on.

Ladson was another player to partake in the UA Miami regional camp and was viewed as one of the top prospects to attend the camp.

Ohio State will likely need to get Ladson on campus if there is any hope in prying him out of his home state, so look for them to try and get him on campus this spring.

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