Hawaii four-star offensive lineman Enokk Vimahi commits to Ohio State

Though Wednesday’s official National Signing Day started out with a dud following the flip of offensive lineman Doug Nester to Virginia Tech, it picked up significantly in the early afternoon as Kahuku, Hawaii native Enokk Vimahi committed to the Ohio State Buckeyes.

The seventh-rated offensive guard in the class, and the 124th ranked player in the country, had long been considered a future USC Trojan, but thanks to a visit to Columbus in late January, Vimahi decided to become a Buckeye.

The 6-foot-4, 263 pound four-star talent also held offers from Oklahoma, Notre Dame, Arizona State, Florida, Hawaii, and many more. However, new head coach Ryan Day had been Vimahi’s primary recruiter for OSU all along, so when he took over for Urban Meyer, the lineman’s interest apparently increased as well.

The only hangup with Vimahi is that he is a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and currently plans to complete a two-year mission either before or after his freshman year of college. How Day and staff will approach Vimahi’s mission — and when he will take it — is yet to be decided.

Scouting report: Enokk Vimahi is ready made to play on the line of a Ryan Day offense. At 6-foot-5, 275 pounds, he’s not massive, and will have to add a little weight at Ohio State, but his elite athletic ability and lateral movement makes him an ideal physical fit for Day’s pass heavy spread offense.

On top of that, he already knows how to block in the offense! His high school passes the ball quite a bit (this is super common in Hawaii, given the local school’s success with the run and shoot), so Enokk has been doing it for years. That means he already has the technique and tricks for pass blocking down, so Ohio State’s job is made that much easier (the less Greg Studrawa has to coach, the better).

Unfortunately for the Buckeyes, Vimahi won’t be around for two years, because he has a mission to go on, meaning he’s essentially a 2021 recruit. However, his talent and technical skill are more than enough to convince Ohio State to take the risk on waiting for Enokk to return from his visit. ~Patrick Mayhorn

Check out highlights of Vimahi in action: