Every weekend in the fall, thousands of high school football times line up and take their shot at prep glory. The Sunday morning Prep Tracker is your final stop for the names, numbers and scores that mattered to Ohio State's recruiting efforts.
NORLAND PULLS DOUBLE DUTY
This past week saw a rarity in Florida, well heck, anywhere: Ohio State commitment Carlton Davis and his Norland teammates played a Monday night game against crosstown rival Northwestern. The game, resumed in mid-third quarter because of a lightning-induced suspension earlier in the year, was otherwise typical in the ultra-competitive 305: hard-nosed, close and to the wire.
Knotted up at 10 as the game got back underway, Norland and Northwestern failed to score a regulation point the rest of the evening. Davis' team struck first in overtime, taking a 17-10 lead. Northwestern responded, finding paydirt just minutes later and lined up to kick an extra point to force a second overtime. The snap was low, forcing an adjustment by the holder who tried to improvise a would-be winning two-point conversion. The pass fell incomplete, and Norland and Carlton Davis improved to 3-1 on the year.
Last night, the Vikings played their second game of the week and fell to Central (Miami, Florida) 32-12.
BAKER BACK IN ACTION, LEADS BENGALS TO VICTORY
Friday was a busy day for Ohio State's Urban Meyer, and it began in Northeast Ohio when he stopped by Cleveland Benedictine to check in on Jerome Baker and new 2016 offer Justin Layne. Baker, who had been out of action for almost a month after suffering a high ankle sprain on September 12th, returned to the field and immediately paid dividends for his Bengals.
Welcome back to Jerome Baker! 11 yard touchdown run! Pat is good! Benedictine 28 NDCL 10 with 544 left in the 2nd
— Benedictine Bengals (@bhs_bengals) October 10, 2014
When the dust settled, Baker, Layne and Benedictine left walked out with their fourth straight victory. This one came in front of Ohio State's Luke Fickell; Meyer left earlier in the day. Cleveland.com listed Baker as a standout for Benedictine, and while that's hardly a surprise, it's worth noting after a month-long absence,
He’s back, but his coach isn’t sure if he’s quite 100 percent. There didn’t seem to be any difference defensively; his number was announced over the PA system every other play or so. He said it felt good to be back out – and no he didn’t talk to Fickell. He said they did “look at each other,” though. Baker visited Ohio State recently.
Baker left Saturday morning for his official visit to the University of Florida, where he committed in July.
GIBSON HAS HUGE WEEK
Torrance Gibson has had, by his own admission, a less than expected year, statistically. On Friday night, as he and his American Heritage Patriots took on Bolles (Jacksonville, Florida) that concern was alleviated, at least for this week. Down 14-0 on the road in the first quarter, Gibson rallied his teammates and roared to a 35-20 victory.
Gibson threw three touchdown passes and added one on the ground for the now 4-2 Patriots. Gibson was assisted by an opportunistic Heritage defense that forced six turnovers.
| Player | CLASS | Pos | HIGH SCHOOL | OPPONENT | RESULTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| JOE BURROW | 2015 | QB | Athens (The Plains, OH) | Meigs (Pomeroy, OH) | Won 49-0. Burrow threw for 275 yards on 16-23 passing. He tossed two touchdown passes in terrible weather conditions. |
| JOSH MOORE | 2015 | TE | North (Olathe, KS) | Mission North (Shawnee, KS) | Won 41-10. |
| AJ ALEXANDER | 2015 | ATH | Lake Braddock (Burke, VA) | Woodson (Fairfax, VA) | Won 34-28. Did Not Play. Out for the season with torn ACL. |
| GRANT SCHMIDT | 2015 | OL | Roosevelt - 03 (Sioux Falls, SD) | Stevens (Rapid City, SD) | Won 51-29. |
| KEVIN FEDER | 2015 | OL | Don Bosco Prep (Ramsey, NJ) | Paramus Catholic (Paramus, NJ) | Lost 21-14 in battle of New Jersey's top two teams. |
| LIAM MCCULLOUGH | 2015 | OL (LS) | Kilbourne (Worthington, OH) | Franklin Heights (Columbus, OH) | Won 34-12. |
| JOSH ALABI | 2015 | DL | Cass Tech (Detroit, MI) | Mumford (Detroit, MI) | Won 25-15. |
| JASHON CORNELL | 2015 | DL | Cretin Durham Hall (St. Paul, MN) | Roseville (Roseville, MN) | Won 34-7. Cornell had nine tackles including two tackles for loss in three quarters. |
| DRE'MONT JONES | 2015 | DL | St. Ignatius (Cleveland, OH) | McDowell (Erie, PA) | Won 41-10. Jones played both ways and scored a ten-yard touchdown from the tight end position. |
| NICK CONNER | 2015 | LB | Scioto (Dublin, OH) | Dublin Jerome (Dublin, OH) | Lost 36-31. Conner had 128 yards rushing and scored two times in defeat. |
| JUSTIN HILLIARD | 2015 | LB | St. Xavier (Cincinnati, OH) | Lasalle (Cincinnati, OH) | Won 24-21. Hilliard and nine tackles and a fumble recovery in cross-city showdown. |
| CARLTON DAVIS | 2015 | DB | Norland (Miami, FL) | Northwestern (Miami, FL) | Won 17-16. |
| JAMEL DEAN | 2015 | DB | Cocoa (Cocoa, FL) | Seabreeze (Daytona Beach, FL) | Won 19-3. Dean scored a 49-yard touchdown on the game's third play and continued to play shutdown defense at cornerback. |
| TYLER GREEN | 2015 | DB | DeMatha (Hyattesville, MD) | Bishop O'Connell (Washington, DC) | Won 37-31. Green did not play because he was taking collegiate admissions tests. |
| DENZEL WARD | 2015 | DB | Nordonia (Macedonia, OH) | Copley (Copley, OH) | Won 52-19. Ward had a 65-yard touchdown reception. |
| ERIC GLOVER-WILLIAMS | 2015 | ATH | McKinley (Canton, OH) | GlenOak (Canton, OH) | Won 37-7. EGW had another big week, 162 yards on 20 carries and two scores. |
| TYLER GERALD | 2016 | OL | Sciotoville (Portsmouth, OH) | Symmes Valley (Willow Wood, OH) | Lost 16-0. |
| GEORGE HILL | 2016 | RB | Hubbard (Hubbard, OH) | Canfield (Canfield, OH) | Won 40-10. Hill finished with 11 carries for 87 yards. |
| DANNY CLARK | 2017 | QB | Washington (Massillon, OH) | Ursuline (Youngstown, OH) | Lost 23-14. Clark was 14-37 for 223 yards against an unrelenting pass rush. |
