Eleven Warriors

Here is the current scholarship count following NSD. 58 returning players and 24 signed letters of intent. Johnny Townsend is still in the queue.

As you can see, if the Buckeyes do indeed add Townsend to this count, it would mean that one of the players below would not be on the roster come the start of fall camp.

We are not in the business of mentioning potential names, as that is not right to the players, but I'm sure by taking a look below you can probably take a good guess at who some of those players would be.

The 2013 recruiting class is one of the best in program history and this roster is looking stacked on paper. Of course, young player will need to step up and veterans will need to do their jobs for this team to click on all cylinders, but I think OSU has the coach to make that happen.

QB (4)- Miller, Guiton, Jones, Barrett

RB (6)- Hyde, Hall, Smith, Dunn, Ball, Elliott

FB (0)

WR (10)- Brown, Spencer, D. Smith, Thomas, Fields, Epitropolous, Marshall, Clark, C. Smith, D. Wilson

TE (4)- Heuerman, Vannett, Thomas, Baugh

OL (14)- Mewhort, Norwell, Linsley, Hall, Decker, Dodson, Underwood, Boren, Farris, Baldwin, Lisle, Elflein, Gardner, Brown 

LEO (3)- Spence, Miller, Moore

DT (8)- Schutt, Bennett, Hale, Carter, Pittman, Hill, Price, Munger

SSE (3)- Washington, Bosa, Sprinkle

LB (11)- Shazier, Grant (keeping at LB for now), Perry, Williams, Perkins, Roberts, Marcus, Mitchell, Johnson, Lewis, Worley

CB (8)- Roby, Grant, Griffin, Reeves, Murray, Apple, Burrows, Conley

S (9)- Barnett, Bryant, Brown, Bogard, Tanner, Powell, Thompson, Lee, Bell

K (1)- Basil

P (0)

LS (1)- Haynes

Here is the latest on the 2014 offensive lineman from Red Bank (NJ) Catholic:

• The Nelson family spoke with Ed Warinner and Urban Meyer yesterday on the phone. Quenton tries to call Coach Meyer once a week.
• Because "Q" plays basketball it has been tough to get out for a visit, but they are eyeing March 28-29 to come see OSU for the first time.
• A good thing for the Buckeyes, Nelson's coach has a son that currently attends Ohio State. 
• Other visits planned include Northwestern, UNC, NC State, Duke, Miami (FL), Notre Dame, Penn State, Virginia, and Boston College.
• Urban was out in New Jersey to see Quenton play basketball back in December and was very impressed with his athleticism, strength, and burst at his size (6-5/285).
• The Nelsons are very high on Ohio State, especially Warinner and Meyer. His parents want him to look around at all of the schools that have offered and make an educated, well-informed decision, so I wouldn't expect a decision anytime soon.
• Nelson's current offer are from Ohio State, Boston College, UConn, Maryland, Miami (FL), Michigan State, NC State, North Carolina, Northwestern, Old Dominion, Penn State, Rutgers, Temple, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
• The only visits he has been on are to Rutgers and Penn State thus far.

2014 Cleveland (OH) St. Ignatius LB Kyle Berger was offered a scholarship by Ohio State back in November, right before making a visit to Columbus for The Game.

At the time it was Berger's first offer, but that was quickly followed by an offer from Cincinnati and then a few others. At the time Kyle was high on the Buckeyes and that still has not changed, as he made his second visit to OSU yesterday to see the Buckeyes' beat Michigan for the second time in two months.

• On this visit: "It was unbelievable. I loved it"
• Hung out with sevaral Glenville players who also went for the trip down I-71 including Marcelys Jones, Marshon Lattimore, and Eric Smith
• Itinerary: Luke Fickell took the whole Berger family around the entire day. They first met with Urban Meyer upon arrival for about an hour and then met with an academic advisor. After that they went to the game and afterwards sat down with Fickell, just talking for a while.
• What the coaches said: "A lot of it was just getting to know each other better, but they also talked about their plans for me. They told me they like me at outside linebacker, either SAM or WILL, and they think I'll grow an inch or two and they'll definitely be putting a lot of weight on me. They also spoke to me a lot about academics and what the day to day life is like being a student-athlete at Ohio State."
• Decision timeline: "I still am thinking mid-April or early-May. I want to take a couple of other visits to compare other schools to Ohio State."
• What other visits he may take: "Hopefully Michigan State soon and possibly Tennessee and Stanford."
• Current offers: Cincinnati, Illinois, Michigan State, Ohio State, and West Virginia
• Said Ohio State is in a really good spot at the top of his list

2014 Westerville (OH) Central OL Nick Richardson may be the top at his position in the state when it is all said and done come Signing Day in February of 2014. The 6-5/285 prospect has been in constant contact with the OSU coaching staff, and while he doesn't have an offer yet, he is extremely interested in the hometown team.

Richardson was in the Horseshoe last Saturday for The Game and had the following to say:

• On the experience: "The game was great!"
• Spoke to Ed Warinner for a while and is going to follow up by calling him this week.
• On if he thinks OSU will offer: "I'm not sure. I'd like to think so, but you never really know."
• Nothing set up for sure when it comes to visits but he is going to try and get to bowl practices at both Wisconsin and Northwestern
• He is going to talk to Ed Warinner on the phone about setting up a possible return visit to OSU in the near future
• Bowling Green offered yesterday and he adds that offer to Michigan State, Illinois, Indiana, Toledo, and Cincinnati.
• Would like to make a decision before his senior season, but if he doesn't feel like he's ready to do it then, he will wait. He doesn't want to rush into anything that's not right.

We caught up with 2014 Aliquippa (PA) ATH Dravon Henry, the cousin of Darrelle Revis, after he attended the Ohio State-Michigan game this past weekend with teammate, DT Jaleel Fields:

• If he enjoyed the game: "Yeah, I did. It was really loud and I didn't expect it to be like that. It was an awesome experience. I have been to Pitt before for a game, but this was way different."
• On the campus: "The campus at OSU was humongous. I didn't get to see all of it, but from what I saw it looked really nice."
• Has an offer from the Buckeyes and also has offers from Rutgers, Pittsburgh, West Virginia, and Toledo. He says OSU is recruiting him as a defensive back.
• Says the Buckeyes are definitely in his top three and he will be making a return visit to campus either in the winter or spring.
• While at the game, spoke to Mark Pantoni and Luke Fickell. He said it was just casual conversation as they asked him how he has been and how he was doing.
• Will take the SATs on December 1 and plans to start making more visits after that.
• Plays basketball in the winter and runs track in the spring.
• A decision won't come anytime soon as he wants to see what offers come in and go check out some schools.
• His team just won the WPIAL championship (area) and now plays in states. As of now he has achieved all of his goals for this season, but wants a state championship.
• Offensive stats for the year: 116 rushes for 1,316 yards and 23 TDs

2014 Aliquippa (PA) Senior High School DT Jaleel Fields is a prospect that the OSU staff has been in constant contact with. At 6-3/270 Fields has great size to play defensive tackle at the next level, but also has the great athleticism that Urban Meyer looks for in his offensive linemen.

He took his first trip to Columbus this weekend with teammate 2014 DB Dravon Henry (story coming this week) and had the following to say following the visit:

• "The visit was great and I had a lot of fun. The atmosphere was awesome and my favorite part was rushing the field with all of the fans after they won. It was a good game and the environment was hype."
• Spoke to a few coaches in the recruiting room including Mike Vrabel and Luke Fickell. They both told him they were very interested in him and are going to keep evaluating him further.
• He can probably play defensive end in college, but says the Buckeyes are looking at him on the inside at tackle.
• He went in the locker room after the game and said it "was really cool to hear all of the seniors' speeches."
• Wants to make a return trip to Ohio State and said that will likely be in late spring or summer.
• He is waiting on an Ohio State offer and wants it bad. He said Pittsburgh and Maryland are expected to offer soon.
• Said if OSU offered they would be at the top of his list and would definitely be in his top five throughout the recruiting process regardless.
• Would like to make a decision around this time next year, right after his football season ends.
• Plays basketball as well, but his team just won the WPIAL title (area) and now moves on to the state round.

Dorian Hendrix is a 6-1/215 linebacker in the class of 2014 from Huber Heights (OH) Wayne, the same high school as Braxton Miller. He is considered one of the best linebackers in the state for his class and has been in contact with the Buckeye coaching staff. 

Hendrix was in town to see OSU beat Michigan this past weekend and had the following to say:

• On the experience: "It was good. I enjoyed the visit and the atmosphere was great. The game was really exciting."
• Dorian briefly spoke to the coaches before the game, but like many other prospects, mentioned they didn't have much time to chat extensively as the focus was on the task at hand, beating Michigan.
• Has a great relationship with Luke Fickell and Tim Hinton. He has spoken to them about the possibility of an offer and they are telling him that he is one of their guys and to just be patient.
• Says he is looking forward to seeing what happens this spring with Ohio State. They told him they want to continue to evaluate him, watch his complete film, and then talk as a staff about an offer.
• Holds offers from Illinois, Buffalo, Ohio, Toledo, and Bowling Green.
• He is thinking about making a visit to Northwestern for a bowl practice and also may take a trip down to Duke.

I had the chance to sit down with 2014 Cincinnati (OH) Sycamore LB Tinashe Bere following his weekend visit to Columbus to see Ohio State defeat Michigan:

• On the experience: "It was amazing and really fun. It was an exciting game."
• He didn't get to speak to the coaches other than to say hello, as they were focused on the game and there were so many recruits in attendance.
• He sat in the third row and a great view of the game. He went on the field after the game and said "it was really cool to see everyone (fans, coaches, players) really excited about beating Michigan and being 12-0"
• Has been "just occasionally" talking to the OSU coaches, but is expecting more frequent communication now that their season is over and they are focused on recruiting. Coach Coombs is his recruiter.
• Holds two offers currently from Purdue and Illinois. Says Indiana, Georgia Tech, and Cincinnati close to offering him.
• Is a wrestler in the winter and does track+field in the spring.
• Right now says Purdue and Illinois are on top because they offered, but if OSU were to offer they would be at the top of his list. He says it would be really exciting to play for the Buckeyes because of the intensity they bring every day.
• His team was 9-1 in the regular season with their only loss coming to Colerain. They ended 9-2 after losing in the first round of the playoffs to Elder. Tinashe didn't know his exact stats, but he did make the All-Conference team.

2014 Lancaster (OH) OL Kyle Trout has been a prospect that has been in constant contact with the Ohio State coaching staff. While he does not currently hold an offer, he is thought to be at the top of OSU's wish list for the in-state prospects at the position group, along with Jimmy Byrne and Nick Richardson.

We caught up with Kyle after his visit to the OSU-Michigan game this weekend to hear his thoughts on the experience and recruiting:

• On the game experience: "It was cool. It was a great atmosphere and there was a lot of intensity on the field".
• Trout went down onto the field after the game and went into the locker room as well following the win. He said the players were dancing, singing, jumping, hugging, and there were even tears shed. The seniors were all called up by the coaches and said something to the team and the game ball was handed out as well.  He called seeing that "awesome" and "really sweet".
• Kyle got to speak the coaches briefly before the game and they just wanted to catch up and see how he was doing in general. He said Mark Pantoni sent all of the recruits a Facebook message earlier in the week apologizing if the coaches couldn't interact with them as much as normal, as they were extremely focused on this game.
• Kyle holds 8 offers from Cincinnati, Illinois, Pittsburgh, West Virginia, Indiana, Ohio, Toledo, and Bowling Green. Arizona State, Duke, and Wisconsin are very close to offering and those may came any day.
• He doesn't have any trips planned in the near future. He is going to try and go to a Wisconsin bowl practice, but it may be hard as he plays basketball and that is starting.
• He is not making a decision anytime soon and will wait until next year. He says he has "many visits to go and many places to see"
• When asked how OSU would stack up on his list he said "It's hard to say right now since they haven't offered and I don't want to speculate on a list right now without knowing what all of my offers will be. I will say Ohio State is a very prestigious university and I would love to get an offer from them."

More to come from Eleven Warriors as we speak to more prospects. 

In alphabetical order, nation's top 2014 player lists his top 10. He is visiting for The Game this weekend with his coaches and teammate ATH Marcus Boone. They are making the drive from Virginia today and will likely leave on Sunday.

Alabama Crimson Tide
Florida State Seminoles
Lsu Tigers
Michigan Wolverines
North Carolina Tar Heels
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Ohio state Buckeyes
Oklahoma Sooners
South Carolina Gamecocks
Virginia Tech Hokies

Hand is rated as the top 2014 defensive end and top overall player by every recruiting service and many believe he is the bestplayer in the country regardless of class.

 I think this comes down to an OHio State vs VIrginia Tech vs Bama battle with South Carolina and Florida State also in the picture but there is a LONG way to go. Hand is not expected to announce for at least a year, and likely not until the High School All Star Games in 2014 or National Signing Day, but the fact he is coming this weekend on his own dime is huge. Expect the OSU staff to roll out the red carpet for Hand tomorrow and try to get him back to campus again this winter for a junior day, as well as again next summer for a senior camp or Friday Night Lights.