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Whew. What a day. College football is in an incredible weird state right now. In case you somehow missed what was going on, don’t worry, Land-Grant Holy Land has you covered.
But enough with unnamed sources, and let’s talk about what appears to be the only certainty still remaining in college football: recruiting.
On Monday, lost in the shuffle, news broke that Ohio State had officially offered on of the top prospects in the 2022 recruiting class. Five-star offensive tackle Gunner Givens (Daleville, VA/Lord Botetourt) has had plenty of contact with the Buckeyes’ coaching staff, and Monday took to social media to show off his official offer.
“Beyond blessed to receive an offer from THE Ohio State University,” Givens posted on Twitter.
Beyond blessed to recieve an offer from THE Ohio State University #GOBUCKEYES ⚪️ @CoachHarless55 pic.twitter.com/1sxhT1p7uM
— Gunner Givens (@givens_gunner) August 10, 2020
The Buckeyes are off to a quick start in the 2022 recruiting class, and Givens would make for a terrific addition. Currently, Ohio State holds the No. 1 class in the Big Ten and the No. 2 overall class in the 247Sports Class Rankings. Included in this class is fellow offensive lineman and four-star commit Tegra Tshabola.
While the Buckeyes have put in some ground work before sending the offer, the team faces some stiff competition for Givens. Programs like Alabama, Auburn, Arkansas, Florida, Clemson, Notre Dame, Penn State, Michigan, Maryland and USC are all in the mix for the blue-chip prospect who already holds 30 scholarship offers. However, Givens has expressed interest in Ohio State in the past, speaking highly of both the program and position coach Greg Studrawa to Bill Kurelic of Bucknuts.
“For sure I love OSU and what they do,” he said back in June. “[Studrawa] seems like a straight up guy who would not lie to you. That’s a big thing I look for in coaches.”
Givens is listed as the No. 2 OT in the 247Sports Composite Rankings and is the No. 19 overall prospect in the 2022 class.
Look for Ohio State to try and get a virtual visit in here in the coming months, and hopefully an in-person one when possible. OSU has proven successful in recruiting offensive linemen in the past, especially after sending more than a handful to the NFL in the last few seasons. There is plenty of work to do, but the Buckeyes should have a chance in this one if they are serious about it.
#WeWantToPlay
In addition to the plethora of college football players joining the #WeWantToPlay movement on Twitter, the two future Buckeyes taking up the Captain Buckeye mantra in their respective classes — as well as many others — showed their support in the movement:
Ohio State 2021 four-star OG commit Ben Christman
— Ben Christman (@BenChristman70) August 10, 2020
Ohio State 2022 four-star OLB commit C.J. Hicks
— C.Hicks♛ (@imcjhicks) August 10, 2020