Buckeyes get their first commitment in the 2023 class with four-star tight end

The start of the 2021 Ohio State football season is now officially under two weeks away. Ironically, the team is not on campus prepping, with Ryan Day taking the players north to Canton for both practice and a little break from the grind to visit the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Right now, the only real priority for the Buckeyes is making sure they’re 100-percent ready to go on Sept. 2nd. The days are running thin, and while both sides of the ball start to take shape, the coaching staff has to be excited about the product that will soon hit the field.

In regards to recruiting, Thursday was without a doubt further proof that even in a busy time for the program, the efforts on the trail never cease. The good news continues to come for the Buckeyes, and that’s just another day in the life for Ohio State. On and off the field, this staff is dominating in all they do.

2023 lands first commitment with four-star tight end

The wait is finally over. Ohio State and its 2023 class at last have its first commitment. The wait was well worth it, and should get the ball really rolling for some serious momentum. Ohio State is in on many of the best players in the country, so there was never a real reason to worry about when the time would come, but now having a top player in the fold, he can use some of his own recruiting pitches as a leader of the class to help bring in more of the same caliber of players. Needless to say, the staff is pumped to get this guy.

Ty Lockwood, a four-star tight end, is the first Ohio State commitment in the 2023 class and a major target the staff wanted to land. It was just last week that Lockwood took to Twitter to announce that he was still considering four schools, but was ready to make his final call. The Buckeyes edged out Florida State, Penn State, and South Carolina to earn his commitment, and being the elite pass-catcher he is as well as a very good blocker, the staff couldn’t be more thrilled to get him as his position is one that definitely needed depth after losing Benji Gosnell in 2022.

A Tennessee product, Lockwood is considered to be the No. 8 tight end in the country and the No. 142 player nationally regardless of position. With incredible size at 6-foot-5, 225 pounds, Lockwood is the perfect option to have split out wide as a receiver and certainly a mismatch for the defense thanks to his range and overall athleticism. A player with a solid basketball background too, it’s easy to see how his footwork helps create the separation and how his impressive ball skills help him attack the football at it’s highest point. He is a hard worker, as it’s been brought up how he grew up in the gym and loves working out thanks in large part to his dad being an athletic director.

What brought Lockwood to the Buckeye commitment was his impression of the program overall. He’s made it clear how much he likes the staff and the way they made him feel on not just one but both of his summer trips to Columbus. It looked like this could happen weeks ago, but after his second trip it seemed he had slowed down his process a bit. Lockwood knew Ohio State was the pick, and the Buckeyes set a bar that no one else could touch. The 2023 class is already in great hands.

Quick Hits

• On Thursday, some major waves were made when rumors surfaced that the Buckeyes are making some serious headway with five-star defensive line prospect Shemar Stewart. Not that Ohio State never had a chance in this recruitment, but Stewart really hasn’t been a name previously linked with the Buckeyes, as it seemed Miami was the frontrunner for the Florida native. In fact, on the 247Sports Crystal Ball Miami holds all of the predictions in their favor, and while not always the final say, the Hurricanes for a while looked to have all the momentum.

Per Chad Simmons of On3.com, Ohio State is right in the mix, and in fact look to be out in front with Texas A&M as the two schools that have the edge right now. Ranked as the third best defensive lineman in the class for 2022, Stewart is every bit of a five-star target as he’s also considered to be the top player in Florida as well as the eighth-best player in the country per the 247Sports Composite.

Ohio State and Larry Johnson are an insane combo on the recruiting trail, and while work is far from over here, look for them to do all they can to make landing Stewart a reality.

• Speaking of Texas A&M, another news bit worth sharing — while pure coincidence — is rather fitting considering the circumstances surrounding Stewart.

Denver Bronco star Von Miller had some kind words in regards to Ohio State and their development of players for the NFL. If Stewart is paying attention, hopefully these words by Miller show the Buckeyes are atop of the country when it comes to defensive line development for the NFL. The track record really speaks for itself.