Ohio State closing in on nation’s top CB

Ohio State’s 2020 recruiting class is gearing up to be one of the best in school history. With six verbal commits, the class sits at No. 3 in the 247Sports Class Rankings and is atop the Big Ten conference.

The Buckeyes have already earned a commitment from one of the country’s top defensive back prospects in safety Lejond Cavazos (Bradenton, FL / IMG Academy). OSU will certainly be looking to add more depth in the secondary and it appears that help could come in the form of the country’s top cornerback prospect.

Five-star CB Elias Ricks (Santa Ana, CA / Mater Del) is a familiar name among Ohio State recruiting circles. The program offered him a scholarship in July, following an unofficial visit to the University.

Since then, it can be assumed that Ohio State and Ricks have kept in constant contact with one another. It appears that the Buckeyes could be in the driver’s seat for his recruitment, a development that could be due to the commitment of Cavazos.

Ricks and Cavazos appear to be very close and want to play together in college. If that holds true, Ohio State appears to be the leading option since Cavazos has already committed to the University.

However, the Buckeyes cannot jump the gun and assume that they have this one in the bag. First off, this appears to be just an innocent Tweet and it would be smart not to read too much into it. Secondly, Ohio State has some stiff competition for Ricks as he has long been associated with USC, who holds a whopping 92-percent of the 247Sports Crystal Ball Predictions.

So what does this mean, if anything?

It means that Ohio State is a legitimate contender in the Ricks recruitment. And while the Trojans appear to be the runaway favorites, in reality the gap between the two programs is much smaller than what the 247Sports Crystal Ball Predictions suggests.

Look for the Buckeyes to put their best efforts forward in getting Ricks to visit the program multiple times in the coming year, including the coveted official visit. The more time Ricks gets to spend in Columbus directly benefits Ohio State’s chances, as he is currently lives much closer to USC.

What is certain is that if Ohio State is able to secure a commitment from Ricks, next year’s recruiting class is going to be one for the ages.

2020 4-star SG lists Ohio State in top 7

While Ohio State’s 2019 recruiting class is off to a roaring start, the program has yet to earn a commitment in its 2020 class. However, Chris Holtmann and the Basketball Buckeyes may be getting closer to getting that first one.

Four-star shooting guard Zeb Jackson (Maumee, OH / Maumee) took to Twitter last weekend to announce his top seven schools, and Ohio State made the cut.

Included among the Buckeyes were Purdue, Marquette, Michigan, Butler, Arizona State and Michigan State. The announcement of his top schools follows an in-home visit by Holtmann and the Ohio State coaching staff, that appears to have gone as well as possible.

The 6-foot-2, 160-pound guard is the second best player in Ohio and a top 20 shooting guard in the country. Currently, the Buckeyes lead in the 247sports crystal ball predictions with 50-percent of the votes. Butler and Michigan both trail with 25-percent each.