Ryan Day discusses recruiting dead period, Ohio State commits impress on field

Ryan Day has a lot on his plate right now. Heading into the second year at the helm of one of the biggest college football programs in the country, he is trying to keep his team ready for whatever may happen in the near future. Day, like the rest of us, does not have many answers, and so all he can really do is continue to plan ahead and make sure his guys are prepared for any outcome.

On top of all that nonsense, he is also trying to assemble top-ranked recruiting classes to make sure his team will not only compete the next time they are on the field, but also well into the future. Appearing on 97.1 The Fan’s Buckeye Roundtable earlier this week, the Ohio State head coach spoke on a myriad of topics. One of which was how the recruiting dead period is effecting his staff’s work on the trail this offseason.

The NCAA Division I Council is set to meet again later this evening, and are expected to extend the recruiting dead period through October. With the way things keep getting continually pushed back, it seems increasingly unlikely that any on-campus or in-person visits will be allowed with recruits for the remainder of the 2021 cycle.

How has this effected Day and his coaching staff in their ability to build relationships with some of the nation’s top prospects?

“We’re able to stay in contact with a lot of the recruits,” Day said in the radio interview. “Some of the recruits don’t have a season either, so they’re able to share in some of the things that they’re doing. Some of them do. And so, we’re just continuing with the Zoom calls and the communication. We’re not allowed to have them on campus yet, it’s still dead.”

Day said that recruits are anxious to get on campus, but until things begin to open up again, their only options are Zoom calls and teleconferences.

Thus far, it hasn’t seemed to impact Ohio State all that negatively. The Buckeyes currently hold the No. 2 recruiting class in the country in both 2021 and 2022, and have a pretty solid chance of moving to that No. 1 spot in either — or both — of these two important cycles. Obviously, they still want to be able to get recruits on campus to wow them with their football facilities and all of the great tradition at Ohio State. But for now, they just have to make do with the tools at their disposal during this weird and confusing times.

Ohio State commits steal the show

In case you missed it over the weekend, a pair of the Buckeyes 2022 commits dazzled for their respective high school teams. Both C.J. Hicks, a four-star linebacker, and Gabe Powers, a five-star linebacker, showed exactly why Ohio State is so high on them with their standout performances.

Hicks absolutely dominated in Kettering Alter’s 49-12 victory over Middletown Bishop Fenwick. Starting off the game with a bang, as he recorded a sack on the very first play, Hicks would go on to finish with 13 total tackles, three sacks and an interception which he returned for a touchdown. He also made a valuable contribution in the return game, taking a punt back all the way inside the opponents 10-yard line to set up a TD.

Powers was equally as impressive for Marysville as his team defeated Dublin Jerome 31-12. Playing both linebacker and running back, Powers had 10 tackles, including three for loss, and two pass breakups on defense, while pouring in 135 rushing yards and two TDs on offense. Three games into the season, Ohio’s No. 1 prospect has 33 tackles and three sacks from his outside linebacker spot, and has racked up 382 yards rushing with four TDs.

Quick Hits

• Ohio State four-star corner commit Jordan Hancock will be one of the featured players on NBC Sports’ Road to the Dome digital series, and will be virtually presented his All-American Bowl jersey on their YouTube channel on Sept. 16 at 8:00 p.m. ET. Hancock is one of nine Buckeye commits in the 2021 class currently set to play in the All-American Bowl, and it could soon be 10 if Tyleik Williams accepts his invitation.