Eleven Warriors

I was able to speak to Dylan Thompson after he performed amongst all the lineman in the Core 6 Athletes Showcase at the Rivers Edge Sports Center in Cincinnati. Thompson had just recently received an Ohio State offer about a week prior to the event, and the Buckeyes have made quite the impression on him early.

• On his performance: "I went all out today and did the best I could. It is great to be involved with something like this where I can continue to get better. Going up against guys like J.B. Butler and Jamarco Jones sets you up for the future and makes you a better player."
• On his Ohio State offer: "It was awesome to be offered by the Buckeyes. They are a really good program and one of the elite teams in the nation. I have spoken to Coach Meyer a few times and he says that I'm among the top two guys they like the most at my position."
• On other schools: "Illinois and Indiana have also offered. It is just a pleasure to get the recognition like this. I wasn't sure if it would happen."
• On future visits: "I will be visiting Ohio State this upcoming weekend. It was going to be later on but this weekend is going to work. I want to check out the facilities, get to talk and meet the coaches, and see what it is like in Columbus. Some of the guys that have already been there have told me it is definitely a trip worth taking. I'm super excited about it and can't wait. I also plan on visiting Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Indiana, and Illinois, and taking some trips down south."
• On what he is looking for in a school: "I want to go to a place that feels like home. I'm looking for a great coaching staff that I click with real well. Academics will be key in my choice too."

We will have more from Thompson after his visit to Ohio State this weekend. Ohio State has really opened Thompson's eyes at this point. It is still a long way to go but the Buckeyes are in a good spot early. 

Core 6 Athletes brought a ton of talent to Cincinnati today to perform and compete against one another in the group's first event outside of Chicagoland. The fantastic event elicited attention from multiple media outlets and could eventually serve as a catalyst for some of the prospects in their climb up the rankings.

For Ohio State fans, a list of those attending included Clifton Garrett, Ian Bunting, J.B. Butler, Malik McDowell, Jamarco Jones, Dylan Thompson, Dominique Booth, Lonnie Johnson, and Nile Sykes.

The MVPs of the event were Jamarco Jones, Malik McDowell, Clifton Garrett, and Dominique Booth. All but Booth hold offers from Ohio State, however, Booth has received plenty of interest from Ohio State, visited Columbus twice, and has the Buckeyes in his top six schools.

Clifton Garrett was the most impressive prospect out of everyone that I saw. He continues to put on a show whereever he goes to perform. Garrett has also gotten quicker and his parents informed me he now weighs 225 pounds. His parents visited Ohio State with him and Urban Meyer and staff made quite the impression on the family.

Jamarco Jones was the top offensive lineman during the event. The massive Chicago tackle also recently visited Ohio State, and had nothing but good things to say about the school. A few more visits to other schools are in the plans for Jones, before making his college choice in August. 

Jones indicated that some of his best competition came from DL Malik McDowell. The Detroit (MI) Loyola lineman has incredible size at 6-7/285. His size and potential has many colleges drooling over him. Practically everyone has offered McDowell, who just took a visit to Michigan State. McDowell told me that the Spartans have made a big push for him recently. He will be visiting Michigan next weekend. A trip to Ohio State could happen sometime in the next few months.

DL Dylan Thompson has already been offered by Ohio State and the Windy City lineman talks to Urban Meyer often. Ohio State's presence in Chicago is no secret and Thompson is excited about the Buckeyes. A visit to Ohio State next weekend is on the docket for Thompson. 

Contrary to a few reports, WR Lonnie Johnson did not visit Ohio State over the weekend. Johnson did, however, showcase his raw ability and top of the line speed during today's showcase. The Gary, Indiana native will be visiting Nebraska soon, and made it clear to me that the Huskers were recruiting him very hard. When I asked Johnson if any schools were sticking out, Ohio State was the only school he mentioned.

Keep it locked here at Eleven Warriors in the upcoming week for more on the budding stars from Core 6 Athletes, the reports we'll have from tomorrow's Best of the Midwest Combine in Indianapolis, and more. 

Ohio State has recently put out offers to several 2014 prospects. S Erick Smith, DB Kiy Hester, and DE Solomon Thomas. I caught up with DE Lawrence Marshall, who received an offer a couple weeks ago, and TE Nic Weishar, who received an offer last night.

Lawrence Marshall is a 2014 DE from Southfield, Michigan.

More:

• Coach Vrabel is the one that informed Marshall of his offer.
• Has already visited Ohio State before. He was at a game last season, and enjoyed himself while taking in the atmosphere and meeting the coaching staff.
• He spoke to Coach Meyer on the phone the next night. Meyer conveyed him his desire to bring in Marshall for a visit the weekend of February 17. Marshall said he would take a visit to Ohio State at that time.
• Marshall will also visit Michigan next month.
• He visited Michigan State recently for a junior day.
• The top 3 for Marshall in no order: Michigan, Michigan State, and Ohio State.
• My thoughts: Just like Marshall told me, I see it remaining a three team race. With him taking visits early on and having three midwest schools in mind, I can see Marshall making a decision sometime before his senior season.

Nic Weishar is a 2014 TE from Midlothian, Illinois.

More:

• Weishar has 12 offers from the likes of Ohio State, Michigan, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, and Vanderbilt.
• He has a cousin that plays for Indiana and a cousin that goes to Michigan, but not involved in athletics. Neither will impact a college decision for him too much he says, but they'll be good sources of information for him when wondering how it's like to be a student at those respective schools.
• A lot of visits have already been taken by Weishar, including visits to Notre Dame, Michigan, and Oklahoma.
• No school has really stood out yet, and he hasn't really begun to dive into the process too much yet with new offers still rolling in.
• No date has been set but Weishar plans to visit Ohio State at some point.
• Vrabel had been by his school numerous times to check in on him before, but the offer came when Coach Hinton dropped by his school on Wednesday, and delivered the news to his coach. 
• My thoughts: Weishar not nearly as far as along in the process as Marshall so I would not expect him to have any type of early college decision. However, anything is possible in recruiting and a future visit can be enough to tip the scales one way or another. I don't foresee that happening, though. There is a long ways to go with Weishar.

I was able to reach 2013 WR commit Taivon Jacobs to discuss his official visit to Columbus. Jacobs camped at Ohio State in June. He later committed to the Buckeyes in July. 

• On his visit: "It was a great time and I got to see a ton of things I had not yet previously which was very cool. I really enjoyed being able to connect with the other commits that were also on campus and the current players on the team. I felt like I was already on the team."
• On the coaching staff: "Coach Smith is a great man and the guy I connect with the best. I got to talk to all of them."
• On what commits he is closest to: "I really was able to develop a good relationship and got pretty close with Darron Lee and Chris Worley. I hung out with them quite a bit while I was there. I also hung out with Shelton Gibson and Vonn Bell. I was recruiting a 2014 linebacker too."
• On what his future role may be at Ohio State: "I have told them repeatedly I am willing to do whatever they ask of me. They have told me I will be playing in the slot and they also envision I will be returning kickoffs and punts as well."
• If he is solid to Ohio State: "I am a solid commit to the Buckeyes. Its where I can see myself playing. I am considering taking an official visit to Maryland though. It is a possibility."

I talked to Jacobs a little bit more extensively on the possible official visit to Maryland. He said they are not recruiting him all that hard but that he was interested in checking out another school.

He was not adamant or absolutely sure he would take the visit. In the end, I do not see it happening, or that it is a concern. The way that he presented the idea to me made it sound pretty harmless. I would not worry about it at this time. 

I just finished chatting with a few of the premiere 2014 recruits on the Ohio State coaching staff's radar. The state of Georgia holds an all-star game after the playoffs have been complete for the current juniors. Several of those prospects have the Buckeyes in their top group. 

LB Raekwon McMillan and ATH Myles Autry have told me that Ohio State is the team to beat for their services. It had been widely known around recruiting circles that those two had a strong affinity towards OSU. 

S Nick Glass is committed to Georgia but has told me several times that Ohio State is the school that will give the Bulldogs the strongest competition for his signature. QB Deshaun Watson, who has an OSU offer but is committed to Clemson, has recently told me that the Buckeyes would be the school right behind Clemson.

WR Demarre Kitt has told Miles that Clemson is his top school but that the Buckeyes had picked up their recruitment of him and had narrowed the gap. Urban Meyer was at his state championship game where he shined for Sandy Creek High School. 

DE Dante Sawyer also has an OSU offer and has told me that he's quite interested in the Scarlet and Gray as well. LB Bryson Allen-Williams is another Peach State recruit beginning to attract attention from the Ohio State coaching staff.

This group of elite athletes took to twitter today to create an avalanche of recruiting news. They voiced their desire to visit Ohio State this spring together. WR Demarre Kitt had already told our Miles Joseph a few weeks ago of his intention to visit Ohio State the weekend of February 10.

After talking to Autry and Glass, it seems that the likely date for this group of talented prospects to visit Columbus will indeed be the weekend of February 10. During that weekend, Ohio State's basketball team will be hosting the high-powered Indiana Hoosiers hoops squad on the hardwood. It definitely appears to be some strategic planning on the part of the Ohio State staff as the Schottenstein Center crowd should be raucous for that showdown.

Obviously plans can change, but as of now, that will be one of the more high profile recruiting weekends for the Buckeyes during the 2014 recruiting cycle. It will be difficult for the OSU staff to match that type of recruiting weekend in terms of the caliber of talent, the rest of the entire offseason.

For class of 2013 prospects, there is a dead period that begins on Monday December 17th and lasts until January 3rd. During this dead period, contact is not allowed between schools and targets anywhere off campus. Coaches will no longer be permitted to stop by schools and talk to recruits and not able to go into the homes of their top targets.

What is allowed during that time period is phone communication and recruits coming onto campus. Recruits will not generally end up on campus during this timeframe because of the holidays, anyways. Contact is very limited, as it will only be one call a week, generally.

Who does this impact the most? I think James Quick and Mike Mitchell. Why? Because they are set to announce at the U.S. Army All-American Game on January 5th. If they are set to announce their choice then, they will have very minimal interaction with the staffs of their finalists until then.  Starting Monday, and until two days before the day they announce, will be a dead period. When the dead period ends, Mitchell and Quick will be in the process of traveling to San Antonio.

Mike Mitchell has recently canceled his official visit to Texas A&M for this weekend.  Coaches Luke Fickell and Mike Vrabel had the in-home visit with Mitchell this week, but Coach Meyer won't be in the Mitchell home until later on in January. Sounds like a done deal to me. Mitchell to Ohio State. Why would Coach Meyer wait and schedule the in-home visit with Mitchell for a date after he announces? Because he is confident that Mitchell will announce his intentions to sign with Ohio State.

James Quick is going through with his official visit this weekend to Louisville. Louisville is Ohio State's only competition for the services of Quick. After his official visit, he will have about 2 weeks to make up his mind on where to attend college. Now, the information on Quick is not as clear as it is on Mitchell. The reports are few and far in between on Quick. By now, the in-home visits between Quick and Meyer and staff have probably already been completed. More than likely, they took place this week. If it is the same situation as Mitchell and Meyer is waiting to meet with Quick for the in-home visit later on in January, Ohio State probably seems plenty confident in their situation with Quick as well.

My hunch is that Urban Meyer has already had his in-home visit with James Quick and his family. It probably happened this week before the Louisville official visit in hopes of sealing the deal. It had to be done with the dead period approaching, and Quick's decision being announced soon after the dead period finishes. One clear detail I have discussed with someone in regards to the recruitment of James Quick, is the choice to announce the decision at the U.S. Army All-American Game, and not before or afterwards inside his high school gymnasium. Why is that relevant? If he was picking the hometown Cardinals, I would think the ceremony would be in a more local venue, rather than a national one. 

All of Trey Johnson's in-home visits seem to have been completed and Ohio State and Florida were said to be the schools he is focused on. Florida has 3 linebackers committed already so it seems like OSU is the likely choice. With the dead period approaching, in-home visits finished, and not wanting to drag out the process, I can see Johnson making a decision soon, or waiting to make a decision during the Under Armour All-American Bowl on January 4th.

Vonn Bell has placed his recruitment in the back of his mind recently, and has yet to take an official visit or welcomed any coaches for an in-home visit. Bell's season will end after this weekend as his team plays in the state championship game. No in-home visits will be able to be made unless Bell decides to hold off on a decision, and allow his recruitment to go on into the middle to end of January. If Bell makes his college choice within a week of his season ending, not only will he not take official visits, but no in-home college visits either, which I think could be more important in the case of Ohio State.

Without an in-home or an official visit with the new staff, Tennessee would certainly be out of the race for Vonn Bell, meaning Ohio State and Alabama are the only suitors. It is hard to gauge Vonn Bell's intentions, and I would feel better about the Buckeyes if they at least had gotten an in-home visit with Bell and his family, and they still may, depending on his decision date.

I have been in disagreement with many of the experts out there that still believe Bell dons the Crimson Tide uniforms. I have felt Ohio State because of their lack of scrambling for other safeties and players in the secondary. At offensive line, when it became clear they were out of the picture for Dawson and Johnson, they issued an offer to Kenny Lacy and Jack Keeler. When it became clear they were struggling at linebacker, they tried flipping Daniel McMillan, James Hearns, and Trey Johnson, and also issued out an offer to Skai Moore. None of that type of activity has taken place in the secondary. I'm going to remain stubborn, and pick Vonn Bell to Ohio State for that reason.

I received the pleasure of getting to talk to Coach Jarvis Gibson of Shaker Heights High School about Donovan Munger's commitment to Ohio State, as well as a few other topics.  Coach Gibson was gracious enough to tell me all about Munger as a person, his ability as a player, the recruiting process, his final choice, and other stars coming up through the Shaker Heights football program.

• On Munger: "Donovan is an exceptional player.  He's even a better person and that is what I'm most proud of.  He has great character and was an instrumental leader as this football program has progressed."
• On Munger's ability and what he brings to Ohio State: "Ohio State recruited Donovan as a defensive tackle, but he can play on the offensive line too.  He's great at both positions.  Half of his offers were for the offensive line, and the other half for defensive line.  That is pretty unheard of.  I think they are getting a very special player."
• On what drew Munger to Ohio State: "I think there was a variety of factors that played into his choice to commit to the Buckeyes, and proximity probably played a part.  When it came down to it, I think he liked the direction the program was headed in and the coaching staff."
• More on his choice: "I think Donovan had about 7 schools he really liked.  They were all even but I think Ohio State being on the rise and Coach Meyer coming in and doing what he did his first year had an impact on him.  That is how I saw things develop with him."
• On if depth chart was ever a concern: "Donovan thought about it like every recruit making this kind of decision should.  Getting on the field in a timely matter is what you dream of at the college level.  He knows they have some depth across the front line, but in the end it was about trusting his abilities and playing for the program he fit in at."
• On the Ohio State coaches Munger had the best relationships with: "Other than Coach Meyer, he talked the most with Coach Vrabel and Coach Drayton.  Coach Drayton recruits this area and he is exceptional at it.  He is well respected."
• Shaker Heights High School also has six 2014 football players attractiving Division 1 colleges' attention.  Already holding offers are WR Odell Spencer, WR Nolan Jackson-Daniel, RB Ramses Owens, RB Greg Claytor, DE Joe Henderson, and OL Jamerez Bowens.

Ohio State landed its 19th commitment in DL Donovan Munger, and have a handful of spots left still available in the 2013 class.  Stick with us here at Eleven Warriors as we bring you the latest on who may fill those slots.

2014 Cleveland (OH) St Ignautius OL Jimmy Byrne has committed to Notre Dame.  Byrne was an offensive lineman high on Ohio State's board and had a Buckeye offer.  

Byrne got an Ohio State offer before his junior season even began but his visit to South Bend for the Notre Dame-Michigan game turned out to be too much to overcome for the scarlet and gray.  Ohio State had Byrne on a visit to the Michigan game a few weeks ago and Byrne enjoyed himself, but was hesitant to say if OSU had made up any ground on Notre Dame.

The Irish can thank Coach Harry Heistand for this coup.  Byrne had mentioned to me several times how the relationship with Notre Dame Coach Heistand had a lot to do with his affinity to Notre Dame.  

Ohio State will now go forward in pursuing other offensive lineman like Orlando Brown Jr., Damian Prince, Jamarco Jones, Andy Bauer, K.C. McDermott, Mason Cole, and Marcelys Jones.  

In-state offensive lineman still getting looks from Ohio State that I think could eventually hold Buckeye offers are Westerville (OH) Central OT Nick Richardson and Lancaster (OH) OT Kyle Trout.  Both continue to stay in contact with Ohio State and were at a few Buckeye games this year.  

Tracking the 2014 offensive line group this year will be interesting as that position group will be pivotal for the 2014 recruiting class at OSU.

2014 Southfield (MI) DE Lawrence Marshall attended the Ohio State game in Columbus this past weekend and couldn't have had a better time.  He is a defensive player in the class of 2014 whose stock is soaring.  He had a few offers coming into this week but has since picked up a few big ones, in Michigan and Pittsburgh.  

• On the visit: "It was real nice, and I enjoyed myself a lot.  It was a great game, and for sure the best one that I have ever been to.
• On his interaction with the Ohio State staff: "I got to talk to Coach Coombs and he said he likes me a lot.  He was also at my school yesterday and told me to come to Columbus and check out Ohio State more whenever I want to.  He said an offer could come soon.  They just want to get to know me better and evaluate me more."
• Marshall has offers from Bowling Green, Toledo, Indiana, Michigan State, Michigan, and Pittsburgh.
• On his recent Michigan offer: "That's a big offer to me. It's my second big one.  It was amazing to get.  That doesn't mean Michigan is the favorite though.  I'll go to school whereever the best fit is."
• On what coaching staffs he has best relationship with: "I would say I like the Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, and Indiana staffs the most.  I'm pretty comfortable with all four of them."
• Marshall said he may make a decision on what college to choose before his senior season, but if not, soon afterwards.  
• On what will factor into his college choice: "It will be about how the coaching staffs treat their players, and how well the relationships are between the players and the coaches.  I also just want to take as many visits as possible to see where I fit in at the best, and to see if I feel better about putting a certain jersey on."

Lawrence Marshall is a recruit that figures to receive more offers in his future.  The more his junior film begins to circulate, the more attention he begins to garner.  Ohio State will definitely be tracking Marshall moving forward, so an offer would not surprise.  We will stay in touch with Marshall as his recruitment develops.

2014 Indianapolis (IN) Pike WR Dominique Booth took his third Ohio State this past weekend for The Game against Michigan.  Booth was also in attendance for Ohio State's game against Cal.  He also was able to see three Ohio State games as guests for other teams he was visiting.  Last weekend's game impressed Booth once again.

• On The Game: "It was definitely the best game I'd been to.  The fan support for Ohio State is impressive.  That rivalry is something else."
• Was able to talk to Coach Coombs who has been recruiting him.  Him and Coombs have a good relationship.
• Coombs told his coach he still has a chance to earn an offer as Ohio State continues to evaluate him and other wide receiver targets.
• Michigan has also told Booth that he would receive an offer from them if they aren't able to bring in another wide receiver for the 2013 class.
• Schools sticking out to Booth right now are Michigan State, Missouri, Indiana, and Wisconsin.  All have offered.
• His favorites could change with new offers.  He also said that Big 12 schools are beginning to show a lot of interest which isn't common as they do not go up to Indiana to recruit prospects much.
• On timetable for college decision: "I'd like to decide my college choice sometime in March.  I want to get it out of the way and be able to focus on my senior season.  I'd also like to decide earlier on so I can help recruit other top players to join me in my class."

Booth is definitely a wide receiver target on the Buckeyes' radar.  If they decide to extend an offer at some point, it appears they will be amongst his top choices.  Until then, the forementioned schools should have the best opportunity to garner Booth's signature for the 2014 class.