May 24, 2013

NCAA Recruiting: Buckeyes land four-star wide recevier Wilson

February 5, 2013 by 21 Comments

With National Signing Day commencing in less than 24 hours, Urban Meyer’s Ohio State Buckeyes are starting things off a bit early by locking up one-time Oregon Ducks recruit Dontre Wilson.

Wilson, from DeSoto, Texas, reportedly jumped ship upon the exodus of former Ducks head coach Chip Kelly. Per Alex Gleitman from Eleven Warriors, Meyer had Wilson in Columbus as recent as a few weeks ago; the visit apparently won the dynamic athlete over.

A four-star prospect and the 10th-overall running back in the country, the 5-foot-10-inch, 165-pound Wilson will likely be a slot receiver in Meyer’s offense. Scout.com’s recruiting services dub Wilson as “not only one of the premiere play makers in the state, but he is one of the best in the country.” He has legit 4.4-second 40-yard dash speed and will asked to be a play-maker in open field situations, immediately drawing comparisons to former Meyer prodigy, Percy Harvin.

“I just feel that coach Meyer has something going there right now,” Wilson said on Dallas affiliate KDFW when announcing his decision. “They could have been national championship last year if they could have went to a bowl game. I think I can do down there and be a good asset to their team.”

[Related: Smith Jr. Helps Bucks Survive Off Night In Lincoln]

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Urban Meyer Lands the #3 Recruiting Class in the Country on National Signing Day

February 2, 2012 by 6 Comments

NSD made Urban Meyer a happy man

Wednesday was National Signing Day, the first day high school senior prospects are allowed to sing Letters of Intent, finalizing their commitments to the school of their choice.

For Ohio State, NSD has typically been a non-event over the last decade. Jim Tressel’s recruiting style was to secure verbal commitments early. The prospects OSU was still in on when it came to NSD typically put on the hat of other schools during their signing day announcement ceremonies.

This year, with Urban Meyer in control of the program, things were a little different. Part of it was just a matter of circumstance. With Coach Meyer being hired so late in the process, he didn’t have a chance to secure early verbal commitments. He honored every scholarship offer that was given before he arrived on campus, but for the most part, there was a shift in the way recruiting was done once he stepped foot on OSU’s campus. [Read more...]

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While We’re Waiting… Getting to Know Randy Lerner, Irving 4th Best Rookie and Buckeye Scholarships

February 2, 2012 by 9 Comments

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

 

OUTSTANDING profile of Randy Lerner done by WFNY friend Vince G.- “Not to belabor the point, but the Browns and Randy Lerner believe in what they are doing. “We are not beleaguered, we are not going to lay down, this is not business as usual,” says Lerner. “We are working hard to turn around this f****** nightmare.” When offered the opportunity to share a message with the team’s fans, Lerner says only this: “It’s a massive privilege to be in the position I am with the Browns. A massive privilege.”

Browns fans just hope that Lerner has it right this time, that he can finally wake his team and his city from the nightmare that never seems to end.” [Grzegorek/Scene] [Read more...]

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National Signing Day: Kyle Dodson Commits to Ohio State

February 1, 2012 by 3 Comments

Urban Meyer has officially turned National Signing Day into Christmas in Columbus, Ohio. With many believing that four-star offensive lineman Kyle Dodson (Shaker Heights, OH) would be heading to Wisconsin to shore up the Badgers’ offensive line, the newly hired Ohio State coach swooped in and flipped yet another intraconference recruit to come play for him in what is a new era of Scarlet and Grey football.

Earlier this morning, Meyer had officially received word from several defensive linemen who were thought to be joining Penn State and Michigan State. Dodson had verbally committed to Wisconsin this past June. He had also received interest from Auburn and Alabama among several other high-end Division I programs.

It was believed that, with Dodson easing up on his commitment to Wisconsin following the departure of offensive coordinator Paul Chryst, the University of Southern California could make a push for the 6-f00t-6-inch, 308-pound recruit.

At one point, Dodson was believed to be out of football due to a back ailment, but after a long stretch of rehabilitation, he was cleared to get back onto the field.

[Related: Urban Meyer Bringing Recruiting Excitement to Ohio State]

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National Signing Day: Ohio State Solidifies Defensive Line

February 1, 2012 by 5 Comments

The ever-popular fax machine in Columbus, Ohio is running on all cylinders this morning with the Ohio State Buckeyes getting their written commitments from a handful of recruits.

Topping the list of names which have rolled in thus far include Se’Von Pittman, Noah Spence and Adolphus Washington with all three men being big, bruising defensive linemen. Pittman, a four-star defensive end from Canton, Ohio was a notorious Michigan State recruit who decided to join the Buckeyes with the hiring of Urban Meyer. Spence, a five-star defensive end who also happens to be ranked No. 2 at his position, was a heavy favorite to join the Penn State Nittany Lions prior to the acquisition of Meyer. Washington, also a five-star defensive end, is a Cincinnati, Ohio native who has been covered by WFNY late last year. He is ranked third overall at his position.

Rounding out the list of defensive linemen is the five-star defensive tackle and Penn State commitment Tommy Schutt. The school is waiting on a decision from three-star, Durham, NC linebacker Jamal Marcus who is reportedly deciding between Ohio State and East Carolina University. His decision is slated to arrive at 10:30am EST.

[Related: Urban Meyer Bringing Recruiting Excitement to Ohio State]

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While We’re Waiting… Kardiac Kyrie, Signing Day is Here and LaPorta’s Swing

February 1, 2012 by 2 Comments

While We’re Waiting serves as the early morning gathering of WFNY-esque information for your viewing pleasure. Have something you think we should see? Send it to our tips email at tips@waitingfornextyear.com.

Great breakdown of Kyrie’s game- “Many NBA guards never figure out how to convert shots in the lane at a high rate; Irving, who is listed generously at 6-foot-3, seems to have a knack for getting to the basket and scoring there. According to Hoopdata.com, Irving shoots 63 percent at the rim. This puts him in similar territory with Derrick Rose (62.9 percent), Tony Parker (62.4 percent), and John Wall (58.6 percent). In fact, Irving scores 1.292 points per possession near the rim, which puts him in the top 20 percent of all NBA players, according to Synergy Sports.” [Pruiti/Grantland] [Read more...]

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About the Buckeyes Draft Class

February 6, 2009 by 3 Comments

The year 2008 saw the Ohio State Buckeyes take the field with top recruit Terrelle Pryor.  His presence may have made recruits for this year shy away from Columbus.  And the Buckeyes may have gotten some bad news on signing day with Marlon Brown and Justin Green going their own way.  But while some may want to focus on the bad news that came up over the final week of Signing Season, the truth is that Ohio State Buckeyes will take the field in 2009 with one of the top recruiting classes in the country, despite not signing a “Pryor.”

For those of you wondering how the main recruiting boards graded Ohio State:

Scout.com: 1
CBS.com: 2
Rivals.com: 4

And while those guys are obviously in the “know,” here is a quick synopsis of what others in the blogosphere as well (as main stream media) are saying about what the Scarlet and Gray was able to do with this season’s back of high school seniors. [Read more...]

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NSD: Elsewhere in the Big Ten

February 4, 2009 by 6 Comments

Kraig AppletonOhio State has officially dropped to third overall on Rivals’ recruiting ranks.  If you’re curious on what our division rivals have brewing today, here’s a quick update on a few notable signings thus far…

  • Rich Rodriguez will look to rebound with two Floridians – Adrian Witty (DB) and Denard Robinson (ATH). 
  • Hawkeye fans seem relatively excited about their new running back.  Who… was… also a kicker?
  • Despite not bringing in a single five-star recruit, Michigan State currently holds down the 15th slot on Rivals.com thanks to two four-star running backs and a four-star quarterback.
  • The Wisconsin Badgers locked up a top-ranked wide receiver, Kraig Appleton, after he had first committed to Illinois.  Needless to say, Badger fans are stoked.
  • And the Penn State Nittany Lions had their sights set on linebacker Jelani Jenkins.  They’ll have to settle for a four-star wideout in Justin Brown – the top prospect in the state of Delaware.  Hi, we’re in Delaware.

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National Signing Day: Marlon Brown On the Clock

February 4, 2009 by 8 Comments

In what is becoming more and more like a national sports holiday every year, today is “National Singing Day” for the 2009 NCAA football season. 

At approximately eight o’clock this morning, we caught word that one of Ohio State’s top recruits – cornerback Justin Green - has actually signed a letter of intent with Big Ten rival Illinois.  It is never good to lose a four-star recruit, especially one that was ranked in the top ten at his position.  Green was also ranked as the second CB overall in terms of speed and athleticism by Rivals.com as he currently holds the record for the 100-meter dash for the state of Kentucky.

Thankfully, we can still hold out hope that four-star wide receiver Marlon Brown decides to come to Columbus.  The 6’5″ pure athlete out of Tennessee is ranked fifth overall at his position and is third in terms of athleticism.  As we mentioned a few days ago, Jim Tressel has some stiff competition for Brown’s services as Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, and Ole Miss are all considered to be options.

With their 25 commitments, Ohio State is currently second (LSU) in the recruiting rankings.  Brown makes his announcement at 3:45PM.  We will keep you updated as needed.

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Buckeye Football: Pryor Scares off Boyd, Then Boucher

January 29, 2009 by 11 Comments

Terrelle Pryor Ohio StateJim Tressel’s ability to woo the top-flight quarterback recruits apparently will have to take a year off.  At least starting this off-season after landing the all world talent that is Terrelle Pryor.  In the much recognized game of college football recruiting, Rivals.com currently ranks The Ohio State University second overall – with the LSU Tigers narrowly edging them out for the top spot. 

Thus far, the Scarlet and Gray have managed to receive commitments from two five-star recruits (linebacker Dorian Bell and cornerback Corey Brown, both out of Monroeville, PA), as well as 15 four-star high school seniors.  Of those 15, four are defensive backs, three are running backs, three are wide receivers and the rest fill a bevy of roles from offensive line to the ever-popular “athlete.”  But the one position that is glaringly vacant is the one of quarterback. 

[Read more...]

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