Ohio State has busy recruiting weekend

While you were spending time with family and friends over the weekend you might’ve missed out on some of the latest recruiting news surrounding the Ohio State football squad.

Don’t worry! Land-Grant Holy Land is here to get you caught back up.

Buckeyes are BOOOOOOOMING

Coming into the weekend already blessed with fantastic verbal pledges in both its 2020 and 2021 classes, Ryan Day and the rest of the football staff at Ohio State got their huge recruiting weekend started off on the right note by landing two more big-time commitments on Friday afternoon.

Jumping on ship with the Buckeyes right around the same time, four-star 2020 cornerback Clark Phillips, and 2021 four-star wide receiver Jayden Ballard can now both call Columbus their soon-to-be home.

Phillips, a 5-foot-10, 178-pound, California native, keeps the west coast pipeline very much alive for Day and the Buckeyes. Choosing OSU over scholarship offers from a long list of programs such as Alabama, California, UCLA, and USC, the La Habra High product gives Ohio State 13 verbal commitments at the moment.

Although Jayden Ballard still has two more years of terrorizing defensive backs at Massillon Washington before he suits up in the scarlet and gray on the college level, the 6-foot-1, 164-pound playmaker decided he’s seen enough from the Buckeyes to know Ohio State is the right spot for him on and off of the football field.

Considered the 125th prospect in the class of 2021, per the 247Sports Composite, Ballard has backed his off the field accolades while under the lights on Friday nights. Playing on one of the top overall teams in the state as a sophomore, he accounted for over 800 yards receiving, and 12 touchdowns to help pace the Massillon Tigers to an overall record of 14-1.

Want to know more about the newest Buckeye verbal pledges and what they bring to the Buckeyes? Land-Grant Holy Land has your back with pieces on both Phillips, and Ballard.

Top recruits check out Columbus

Phillips and Ballard weren’t the only recruits to take the time out of their busy schedules to visit Ohio State over the weekend.

Playing host to a long list of highly sought after prospects on official and unofficial visits, here are just some of the talent that reportedly flocked to Columbus to spend time getting to know the staff and program at Ohio State a little better.

Official visits

Verbal commits:

• Paris Johnson/OT/Cincinnati/Princeton
• Grant Toutant/OT/Warren,MI/De La Salle

Targets:

• Darrion Henry/DE/Cincinnati/Princeton
• Kendrick Bingley-Jones/DT/Charlotte,NC/Providence Day School
• Cam Large/TE/Dedham,MA/Noble and Greenough School

• Jalin Conyers/TE/Gruver,TX/Gruver
• Joe Royer/TE/Cincinnati/Elder
• Sam Adams/RB/Sammamish,WA/Eastside Catholic
• Jaylan Knighton/RB/Deerfield Beach,FL/Deerfield Beach
• Josh Fryar/OC/Beech Grove,IN/Beech Grove
• Cameron Martinez/ATH/Muskegon,MI/Muskegon

• Lathan Ransom/S/Tucson,AZ/Salpointe Catholic

• Makari Paige/S/West Bloomfield,MI/West Bloomfield
• Kourt Williams/OLB/Bellflower,CA/St. John Bosco
• Cody Simon/OLB/Jersey City,NJ/St. Peter’s Prep

Unofficial visits

Verbal commits:

• Julian Fleming/WR/Catawissa,PA/Southern Columbia

• Gee Scott/WR/Sammamish,WA/Eastside Catholic

• Jaxon Smith-Njigba/WR/Rockwall,TX/Rockwall
• Lejond Cavazos/S/Bradenton,FL/IMG Academy
• Jack Sawyer/DE/Pickerington/North

Targets:

• Donovan Edwards/RB/West Bloomfield,MI/West Bloomfield
• Corey Kiner/RB/Cincinnati/Roger Bacon
• Ben Christman/OT/Richfield/Revere
• Lorenzo Styles/WR/Pickerington/Central
• AJ Kirk/S/Dublin/Coffman
• Tunmise Adeleye/DE/Katy,TX/Tompkins
• Gavin Sawchuk/RB/Littleton,CO/Valor Christian

Quick Hits

• With plans to end his recruitment in less than two weeks, 2020 defensive back Joseph Johnson announced his final four over the weekend. A former South Carolina pledge, Johnson, a Virginia native, will take his talents to either Ohio State, Penn State, North Carolina State, or Texas A&M.
• Class of 2020 running back EJ Smith, the son of NFL legend Emmitt Smith, took to his Twitter page to let the world know he’s down to five programs. Still in the mix for the 5-foot-11, 198-pound four-star prospect are OSU, Texas A&M, Stanford, Florida and Georgia.
• Per Alex Gleitman, Ohio State will host Blair Academy (NJ) class of 2021 defensive end Aaron Armitage on July 26. Armitage, a 6-foot-4, 242-pound pass rusher, holds offers from not just OSU, but also LSU, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State and Pittsburgh.