Eleven Warriors

I spoke to Bolingbrook (IL) CB Parrker Westphal, who visited Ohio State for the first time this past Saturday. Here's what he had to say:

• Only a visit. Didn't camp.
• Visit: "It was great. I went to the football offices, where I saw the facilities, trophies, and got to meet with the coaches. I also took a tour of the campus, where I saw the academic side. I saw Buckeye Grove too."
• Coaches: "I spoke with Coach Coombs the most. He told me they really wanted me, and wants to build a relationship with me."
• Next visit: "I'm not sure, but I'll be back for a game."
• Other visits: "I just visited Notre Dame, it was ok. Next, I'm probably going to visit Florida, and West Virginia."
• No leaders
• No timetable
• Factors: "The academic standards, graduation rate, coaching, coaching stability, and the chance to play for nation titles."
• Goal: To improve at corner, and provide his quarterback, and Illinois commit, Aaron Bailey, an additional weapon on offense.

I definitely think Westphal is interested in the Buckeyes. He holds offers from many top Midwestern programs including Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Ohio State, West Virginia, and a couple of others. The only SEC school who has extended Westphal an offer is Florida. This is definitely shaping up to be a big Midwestern battle for rising 2014 CB, Parrker Westphal.

Montae Nicholson attended the Ohio State camp on June 10th.  It is widely known that Nicholson grew up a pretty big Ohio State fan and his stock is beginning to increase tremendously.  I caught up with Nicholson to get the latest on his recruitment.

• Nicholson said that last year he was still a young unpolished player and didn't know the game very well.  He has since progressed and became a student of the game in the offseason.
• He has attended camps at Penn State, Pittsburgh, Michigan, and Ohio State.
• On his Penn State camp: "It went very well.  I thought I put on a good performance but it wasn't my best day.  I received an offer from Penn State and got to talk to Coach O'Brien.  It was a very informing conversation 
• On his Pittsburgh camp: "I went down there more for the camp experience and less of a visit.  I played as hard as I could which earned me an offer I wasn't really expecting."
• On his Michigan camp: "I got to see the Big House which was pretty cool.  I got to meet the coaches and everyone was so nice.  I put together a solid performance in which I gained another offer that I wasn't really expecting.  Hopefully the Michigan coaches get to see me on a good day."
• On his Ohio State camp: "It was definitely the best camp I thought I performed at.  I was able to meet all of the coaches including Luke Fickell and Urban Meyer.  I took a tour of the facilities and liked how well it was all laid out."
• Academics are really important to Nicholson.  The academics, facilities, and the coaching staff are really what stood out on his Ohio State visit.
• Nicholson also has offers from Toledo and Bowling Green.

Nicholson definitely is on the radar of the Ohio State coaching staff and that interest is being reciprocated on his end.  Nicholson pointed out that his childhood fandom of Ohio State would have little impact on his recruitment.  I have a feeling that an offer from Ohio State could come at some point, and if it does, Eleven Warriors will have it covered as always. 

Last night I got a chance to speak with 2014 wide receiver Dominique Booth who camped at Ohio State this past week.  Booth had told me in a previous conversation about a month ago that the Ohio State staff assured him of an offer if he performed the way they thought he would.

• Booth said he thought he performed up to the staff's expectations.  The staff will meet Monday or Tuesday to discuss other camp offers.
• He will call the coaching staff on Wednesday 
• He said he made 3 or 4 spectacular one hand catches that really caught the staff's eyes.
• Coach Smith and Coach Coombs are in contact with him and will be throughout the recruiting process.
• Coach Meyer pulled him aside during drills outside and had him meet inside with a select group.
• Booth will visit USC next. 

Booth racked up several offers during the spring evaluation period and has camped at several spots.  We could know by Wednesday if the staff was impressed with him enough to deserve an offer.  As always, the staff here at Eleven Warriors will bring you that information if it occurs. 

I spoke recently with Brandon Simmons, a teammate of Ohio State 2014 CB offer Edward Paris, about his new offer from the Buckeyes:

• Had OSU offer for a while, but coach forgot to tell him about it until last week
• Dad owns a camp that he is in so he has already seen a bunch of schools 
• Got to go to Ohio State while in the 7th grade and was able to walk onto the Horseshoe and said "It was incredible"
• Was at a Texas Tech camp recently and will be going to a National 7 on 7 tournament in New York shortly
• Even though Paris has voiced his opinion that he and Simmons will be a "package deal", Simmons says it may not happen that way
• Given all schools a fair chance and would like to visit Ohio State
• Said he knows about the tradition of Ohio State and the glory of the Ohio State-Michigan rivalry.
• Has no leaders and giving every school an equal chance
• Would like to see as many schools as possible 

Even though Edward Paris seems like a lean to LSU, I think Simmons will do his research and take his time more before he makes a decision.  He could very well end up at LSU with Paris but I don't think it is a foregone conclusion like many.  Ohio State may be behind the 8-ball with Simmons but anything can happen if he comes to Columbus for a visit, which could be possible. 

Bucknuts has a great story posted about the Cherish the Moment gala supporting the Kids & Kamp charity in which Jim and Ellen Tressel were the guests of honor. NBC4 was there to cover the event where 13 of Tressel's former players at Ohio State came and surprised him at the event which featured over 300 attendees and raised over $30,000. 

Here are some videos from the event, courtesy of NBC4:

Had the pleasure of catching up with Buckeye commit RB Ezekiel Elliott of John Burroughs HS in St. Louis, Missouri. Elliott was on campus this weekend for his first visit since committing a few months ago. Here are some notes from hsi trip:

• Had an absolute blast being back on campus and hanging out with various players, recruits, and coaches.
• Did not participate in camp, but he was on the side lines watching all of the prospects during the day
• Said he was extremely impressed with 2014 TE Jeb Blazevich as well as a 2013 WR that was very fast, although he didn't catch his name (guessing Taivon Jacobs or Ryan Timmons)
• Hung out with Jayme Thompson, David Perkins, Doran Grant, Noah Spence, and Mike Thomas the most this weekend
• No plans on his next visit to Columbus, but most likely will be in the fall for a game

Elliott continues to impress this summer as he hits mroe camps and combines. He was invited to Nike's The Opening which takes place next Thursday, as well as the Girdiron Kings Event. He brings versatility to the Buckeyes' offense in the sense that he can line up in the backfield as a true back, or move out to the slot and do some work as a receiver. He should be an excellent compliment to Bri'onte Dunn/Warren Ball and I am looking forward to seeing him in a Buckeye uniform.

Caught up with current Ohio State commit S Jayme Thompson of Toledo Central Catholic and wanted to give you all the run down on what the future Buckeye had to say:

• Came down Friday and went home today (Saturday).
• Said it was fun as always and he really enjoyed being around the coaches and some of his future teammates
• Spent the most time with Ezekiel Elliott who is also in Columbus this weekend, as well as with Noah Spence
• Didn't fully work out at camp, but participated in the "combine" part of the camp and tested
• Ran a 4.45 second 40-yard dash. This should silence the doubters who were concerned about the 4.72 he logged last year at the Nike camp that gave him a bad rap when it came to speed. Jayme said he was having trouble starting that day which affected the time, and I look for him to be around a 4.5 guy.
• Picked up some new techniques today that he plans to work on back at home. Other than that, just improving all aspects of his game.
• Said most impressed with 2014 TE Jeb Blazevich

The more I see on Jayme and the more I hear from these camps, I think the Bucks are getting a very solid talent. I'm looking forward to seeing what he does on the field this fall.

[Ed: Special thanks to Katie Hying for this wonderful wrap-up of the first annual Football Women's Clinic.]

From the time he set foot on campus Urban Meyer set out to assemble the best coaching staff in college football.  We’ll know more about that in the fall, but at Saturday’s first annual Women’s Football Clinic 800 women of all ages (I mean all ages – there was proud Buckeye who was 83!) got to experience the staff’s passion and intensity first hand.  The event benefitted the Stefanie Spielman Fund and provided an up-close experience with the new coaches while learning more about the game of football and taking part in some intense drills.

I am a 2009 graduate from the Fisher College of Business and attended with my mother, a 19XX nursing grad whose claim to fame is that Archie Griffin once held a door for her while she was going to class.  Buckeye football tradition runs deep in our family – so we jumped on the opportunity to attend.  In the interest of full disclosure, the last time I saw Urban Meyer in person I was sulking down the stairs of University of Phoenix stadium while orange and blue confetti rained down from the ceiling in January 2007.  As he was hired on last fall, it took some time to shake my bitterness but as time went on I’ve become fully team Urban and I gladly stood in line on Saturday to get my picture with him, as did the 800 other women at the clinic.

The other coaches were hanging out to sign autographs and take pictures as well and the lines around Buckeye legends Luke Fickell and Mike Vrabel (dubbed the “prettiest defensive coaches in the country”) seemed longer than Meyer’s at times. Some of newer faces on the coaching staff had less attention and Stan Drayton made a point to say he had no line to take pictures with him. After the event and his high-energy speeches about “having juice or being juiceless” a lot more Buckeye women will recognize him and the other coaches.

Following the autograph session, Gene Smith shared the responsibilities of the coaches and athletic department. Then each member was introduced of the coaching staff which helped place the names we’ve all heard in recent months to some of the unfamiliar faces in red coaches’ polos.

I read in the Dispatch where the Buckeye basketball coaching staff is comfortable with the way the recent recruiting went . Well this writer believes our coaching lacks a sense of urgency that is held by Kentucky, Duke and North Carolina and others. Our team lost a huge inside presence and argueably did not recruit a replacement and with a grave concern of what we have on our bench to help inside coupled with our lack of outside shooting expertise it appears that unless that shooting improves dramatically we may win a some percentage close to our shooting percentage. The coaching staff is the culprit here and their satisfied attitude had better get a greater sense of urgency or it will be another long season.

Maybe this is the work of a Nittany Lion fan. Perhaps it came from Penn State recruiting. It does appear to be a card fashioned out of the Penn State oval logo and it was re-tweeted by Anzalone himself, originally posted by an account appearing to belong to his older brother.

The authenticity and/or author of the card isn't as important as the validity of the sales pitch:

1. 12 kids per year get accepted to to BS/MBA: True (and Anzalone has shown interest in that academic path)

2. Smeal colleg (sic) of Business = Top 15 B-School. It's actually ranked 20th by USNWR and 22nd by Bloomberg, but that's inconsequential - it's a world-class joint. The late Frank Smeal (yes, the same guy whose name is on the college) was a partner at Goldman-Sachs. Which leads to...

3. B-School = Pipeline to Goldman Sachs. Penn State as well as a couple dozen other schools mostly in the northeast - and mostly Ivy - that Goldman regularly recruits. Former Nittany LB Brandon Short currently works there. Goldman is a rich, proud and tarnished brand these days...sounds a little too famiiliar.

4. Get to play LB at Penn State | Not TE/HBack | We believe in you AS LB. This seems like a strawman shot at Urban Meyer, who already seems to be good to go at TE/HBack and desperately needs linebacker depth. The use of "We" is technically correct in accordance with the We Are chant and shouldn't be confused with a coach. Unless it is one, which we don't know.

5. Penn State = Pipeline to NFL LB's. Sure. Little or no separation from other NFL pipeline schools, but Linebacker U is everything but a registered trademark.

6. Penn State's #1 defensive recruit. Without a doubt.

Sure, it has all the same cheesy markings of an invitation to a sorority barn dance, but that kind of flowery praise resonates with kids. Recruiting is inherently creepy - it's the courting of immature boys by grown men into a 4-5 year mutually beneficial relationship.

It's a nice pitch to Anzalone. This is how you sell a product: Core value proposition, open competitive positioning and minimal negativity. Mike McQueary could learn a thing or two from this noble effort to persuade Pennsylvania's top prep player to stay in-state.