Ohio State offers pair of high-profile running backs

Ohio State’s football team is busy. Summer camps began last week and with them, a handful of recruits traveled across the country to visit the program in Columbus. This week will be more of the same as the second round of camps will take place. However, this didn’t mean that Monday was a day off for the coaching staff, especially for running backs coach Tony Alford. The Buckeyes offered two running backs Monday, made the cut for a four-star offensive tackle, and learned a quarterback target of theirs will soon be announcing his collegiate school of choice.

Ohio State offers pair of RBs

Ohio State running back coach Tony Alford put in the extra hours Monday as the Buckeyes offered a pair of running backs. The more well-known of the two to earn an offer is 2024 four-star RB Davion Gause of Hollywood, Florida.

Gause had an incredibly successful sophomore campaign for his high school team, piling up more than 1,800 yards on the ground and he will look to continue to build on that season this year. However, last year’s season has already resulted in wins for Gause in the recruiting landscape.

The blue-chip prospect already holds more than 20 reported scholarship offers from some of the top programs in the country. Ohio State is the newest member to throw their hat in the ring, but they will be competing with the likes of Arkansas, Georgia, Florida State, Miami, Notre Dame, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Oregon, USC, Utah, etc.

Gause has yet to visit Ohio State but the Buckeyes' coaching staff will look to change that in the coming years. They will need to get him on campus if they are going to stand a chance as he has already visited Notre Dame, Georgia, and Miami.

Gause is the No. 8 RB in the 2024 class and is the No. 173 overall prospect. He is also the No. 33 prospect from Florida.

Gause was not alone the only RB to receive an offer from the Buckeyes Monday as 2025 RB Gideon Davidson of Lynchburg Virginia also received an offer from the Buckeyes.

The blue-chip running back has only played one season of high school football, but in that season he showed enough to have already earned nearly 10 scholarship offers, including from the likes of Ohio State, Liberty, Louisville, Penn State, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.

Look for Ohio State to get the Virginia native on campus multiple times in the coming years as he looks to continue to improve his game. He has not yet received any rankings yet but expect him to be viewed highly when he does.

Ohio State makes top 5 for four-star OT

The Buckeyes also received news Monday regarding their chances of securing a blue-chip offensive tackle. 2023 four-star offensive tackle Olaus Alinen of Windsor Connecticut announced his top five schools of Ohio State, Oregon, Miami, Alabama, and Georgia.

The group of five was not surprising as he already had official visits scheduled with the majority of the schools, but now he has the fifth visit to Oregon scheduled as well. Ohio State will be the last school on his trip, affording them with the opportunity to leave a solid last impression.

His visit to Ohio State on June 23 will be crucial for the Buckeyes' chances as Alabama has long been viewed as the favorite to earn his commitment. That being said, Ohio State can never be counted out until it is all said and done.

Alinen is the No. 15 OT in his class and is the No. 122 overall prospect. He is also the No. 1 recruit from Connecticut.

Quick Hits

• Ohio State 2023 four-star quarterback Dylan Lonergan of Snellville, Georgia took to Twitter to share that he will be making his commitment on July 5. The Buckeyes already have multiple targets scheduled to announce over the Fourth of July weekend and if Lonergan decides to choose the Buckeyes over favorite South Carolina, the weekend could be the biggest recruiting weekend for the team this year.