• Mississippi State offers Jamarco Jones, Damon Webb & Malik McDowell
• Michigan has offered 2014 Olney (MD) Good Counsel OG/DT, Sam Mustipher
• Louisville Trinity WR James Quick named Kentucky AP Mr. Football
• Georgia Tech is the latest offer for 2014 ATH Nick Chubb
• Damon Webb has OSU a slight lead over Michigan & Michigan State

Rivals$--Ryan Timmons narrows focus to four schools '13 KY ATH Ryan Timmons

• Ryan is focused on Ohio State, Kentucky, Arkansas and Illinois. 

Rivals$--Barker getting new SEC interest '14 KY QB Drew Barker

• Tennessee and UNC have offered while Coach Meyer told Drew the Buckeyes will continue recruiting him hard but are not ready to offer.

BN$--OSU Offer Grabs Huge OL's Attention '13 CO OT Dan Skipper

• Dan says he is defintely considering tOSU and may take an official visit. 

Rivals--Eli Makes Change to Honor Family '13 NJ CB Eli Apple

• Eli has adopted the last name of the man who has raised him since age two. Eli Woodard is now Eli Apple in honor of Timothy Apple. 

Ohio State recruiting: State Secrets, 12/21

If you're reading this, you've likely made it past the end of the world. Time to head back to reality, where Coach Meyer and his staff continue to bring in the best athletes they can get and keep battling for the services of future playmakers.

In case you missed it, or weren't paying attention to the recruiting news yesterday, a rumor was flying around that 2014 offensive lineman Marcelys Jones came near to giving a commitment in the class of '14. Jones later down-played the rumor, but where there is smoke there is usually fire. It's something to keep an eye on, because Jones is actually scheduled to visit Ohio State on January 13th. Another interesting tidbit is that 2014 recruits aren't allowed to commit to Ohio State until after National Signing Day for the class of 2013. Interesting tactic by Meyer, but evidence of that (see: Johnson, Lonnie) might just prove too overwhelming.

Urban Meyer picks the best of the best for his recruiting classes and that much we can be sure of. Class of 2013 commits Evan Lisle and Joey Bosa both made the USA Today All-American team with Lisle running with the first team and Bosa with the second. Both are in quite good company and can both hold their heads high as they leave their high school career behind. Here's what they had to say about Lisle:

All-Conference selection past two years and All-State this season.

Ohio State added another preferred walk-on player Thursday when 2013 LB Jake Chestnut made his decision to play for the Buckeyes. Chestnut is very good in an academic stand-point, but in case you needed any convincing on what Coach Meyer is getting in Chestnut, here's the evidence.

2013 commit Tyquan Lewis joined the fray of impressive recruits and he continues to show why Ohio State was vying his talents so much. After his season Lewis has added another award to his collection. He was selected to the Associated Press All-State Defensive 1st team. Lewis received 15 out of a possible 17 votes, which was the most votes for a defensive player. Lewis led the Vikings for the second consecutive year with sacks and really turned up his game during the playoffs where he averaged at least two sacks per game in the playoffs.

Lewis is listed as a four star athlete and has an impressive time in the 40-yard dash. His big 6-foot-4 230 pound frame has been a force on the gridiron. When he goes to college to play for the Buckeyes, he will move from defensive end to linebacker.

ESPN shared a tidbit about '13 safety Vonn Bell and how important it is to land the 4-star from the state of Georgia. Bell has narrowed his list to Ohio State, Alabama and Tennessee. Here's more from the article itself:

Virtually every single Ohio State fan -- or at least those glued to Buckeyes recruiting -- has already circled Jan. 13.

There's not a bowl game or some big commitment announcement scheduled for that date -- at least not yet -- but it is when ESPN 150 safety Vonn Bell (Rossville, Ga./Ridgeland) will conclude his official visit to Ohio State.

One of three schools lined up for Bell along with Alabama and Tennessee, Ohio State is getting the first visit of the bunch and could be the biggest for the Buckeyes.

The Vonn Bell sweepstakes really come down to Alabama and Ohio State in my opinion, and while I feel the Buckeyes currently have a tiny bit of a lead, it really could go either way. We only have about a solid two months before National Signing Day, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled on the latest from the Bell situation.

Watson remains strong with Tigers

Class of 2014 QB Deshaun Watson of Gainesville, GA remains strongly committed to Clemson. The dual-threat quarterback has offers from Clemson, Auburn, Florida State, LSU, Georgia Tech, Central Florida, Vanderbilt and NC State. Watson is planning to visit each of these schools as well as Oregon, Southern Cal and Tennessee. "I'm going to go to Clemson," he said. "I just want to see what's out there." Watson discussed his relationship with Chad Morris and says it is one of the main reasons he has committed to Clemson. "He talked to me each time he talked to another school," said Watson. "He just told me he was looking to see what was out there but that he loves Clemson, his family loves Clemson and he wants to coach me at Clemson." Watson acknowledged that if Morris were to leave for a head coaching position he would give the new Tigers offensive coordinator an opportunity. "I would have to open back up my recruitment but I would definitely listen to him," he admitted.

New 5s highlight 2014 Top247

In the latest release of the class of 2014 Top247, two more five-stars have been added along with a number of big movers. As is seemingly always the case, difference-maker pass rushing prospects are at a premium with two of the nation’s best making ascending moves to the top of the class.

Defensive end Lorenzo Carter is now the No. 3 overall prospect in the Class of 2014.

Class of 2014 Top247

Though there were dozens of moves, here's a look at the five most noteworthy.

Lorenzo Carter, WDE, Norcross (Ga.)

We’ve known for some time that Carter was a tremendous athlete, but it was his junior season film and several in-person evaluations by our team that caused him to ascend rapidly to his lofty position at No. 3 overall, a numerical grade of 100 and a five-star rating. The 6-foot-5, 237-pound Carter has special quickness and instincts and the type of frame that could see him make millions of dollars in the NFL one day. As good as he is now, he can be even better and since rankings are projections, we project him very high. Alabama, Notre Dame, Florida and a host of other programs have offered recently.

John Smith, S, Long Beach (Calif.) Poly

Smith had a brilliant junior campaign for Los Angeles-area power Poly and is dynamic on film on both sides of the ball. The 6-foot-1, 185-pounder likely projects long-term as a safety (a loaded position in the 2014 cycle), and plays fast and physical on the defensive side of the ball. He’s a playmaker for Poly on offense as well and has the explosiveness to be a big-play threat offensively. One view of his junior film and we were sold that Smith is a special prospect. UCLA, Washington and Fresno State are his early offers, but there is surely more to come.

cont...

King of the Bluegrass | Trinity football star James Quick debuts on basketball court as Shamrocks cruise

James Quick’s season debut on the basketball court highlighted Trinity High School’s 62-30 romp over Phoenix Mountain Pointe on Thursday night in the 32nd annual King of the Bluegrass Holiday Classic at Fairdale.

The Shamrocks, the defending state champions and No. 3 in The Courier-Journal’s preseason poll of coaches, got 13 points from Darryl Hicks, 11 from Miles Rice and 10 from DeMarcus Page in a game that merited a running clock after the lead reached 56-21 late in the third quarter.

Quick, a star wide receiver for the Shamrocks’ state football champions, had been sidelined after suffering broken ribs late in that season. The 6-foot-2 guard came off the bench to play 16 minutes for Trinity (5-1).

Although he missed all six of his shots, he hit 3 of 5 free throws, grabbed three rebounds, handed out three assists and came up with three of Trinity’s 15 steals. The Shamrocks’ pressure defense forced Mountain Pointe (2-4) into 25 turnovers, 17 in the first half.

Trinity coach Mike Szabo was glad to see Quick back on court.

“He knows how to win,” Szabo said. “He’s a competitor and has a lot of heart. We played hard and we played good defense, and then we converted on offense.”

cont...

One of the more intriguing recruiting story lines in the west is that of ESPN 300 OL Cameron Hunt (Corona, Calif./Centennial). While he is still committed to the Cal Bears, the Under Armour All-American has a busy January ahead.

"I have the Under Armour Game on January 4th, then the following week is when things get really hectic," Hunt said. "I'm going to Michigan on the 12th, Oregon on the 18th and Cal on the 25th. I'm going to visit Ohio State at some point to but I need to figure that one out."

Michigan, Nebraska and Oregon offered the 6-foot-4, 274-pound Hunt after Cal fired head coach Jeff Tedford. Urban Meyer made a trip to see Hunt at his school last week, and while no offer was extended, it appears that is just a matter of time.