The Hurry-Up: Buckeyes in Final Pair for Eichenberg, Carlton Davis to Visit Miami and More

By Jeremy Birmingham on October 20, 2014 at 7:45 pm
Josh Wariboko hanging out with Buckeye royalty
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Welcome to The Hurry-Up, which runs Sunday through Thursday, serving as your last stop for recruiting news and notes nightly. We'll recap the day as it happened and preview the days ahead while keeping our ear to the ground on the Ohio State recruiting scene.


CARLTON DAVIS TO VISIT MIAMI

As expected, Ohio State commitment Carlton Davis is planning to make visits to other schools. The first of those visits, which will go to his hometown Hurricanes, will be November 15th when the Canes host the defending national champions, Florida State. While the visit, and subsequent visits Davis takes are not a surprise, I've checked with a few different sources close to his recruitment and Ohio State to gauge the reactions.

It appears that most people realize that committed prospects taking visits is part of the "new normal," but that doesn't mean anyone is thrilled about it.

"We expected this to happen when he committed," one source close to the Buckeyes said. "He's a great player, and we want him to sign with us come February but if he doesn't, we'll adjust. We've got options, and so does he. There's no doubt about it, a player who commits to Ohio State is looking around, so is Ohio State."

WARIBOKO VISIT GOES WELL

One of the key visitors at Ohio State this weekend was Oklahoma City offensive lineman Josh Wariboko, the 6th-ranked guard in the 2015 class. Sources who spent time with the 6-foot-4, 302-pound Wariboko told Eleven Warriors that the visit went about as well as it could have.

There was some discussion pre-weekend that a commitment was possible, but as he's arrived back in Oklahoma this afternoon, that didn't happen. Still, the Buckeyes picked up considerable steam and a number of "crystal ball" predictions for Wariboko, including one from noted 247.com insider Steve Wiltfong.

As it stands, this appears to be a classic "two team" race for the Buckeyes. The primary competitor, UCLA, will get an official visit from Wariboko before a decision is made, and as he's committed to making that visit, I still think the Bruins are the team to beat.

LIAM EICHENBERG NARROWING HIS FOCUS

After Notre Dame snagged the top lineman in Ohio for 2016 (Tommy Kraemer) it became significantly more important that the Buckeyes keep the state's second-ranked lineman, Liam Eichenberg, at home. The good news for the Buckeyes is that Eichenberg told Rivals.com analyst Marc Givler over the weekend that he was down to two schools; Ohio State and Notre Dame. The bad news is that once again Ohio State will have to recruit head-to-head with Harry Hiestand, the ace recruiter and widely respected offensive line coach for the Irish.

Eichenberg is scheduled to visit Ohio State on November 29th, and has no other visits currently scheduled. The 6-foot-6, 280-pound tackle has been fighting a knee injury suffered early in the season, but he's playing well and leading his St. Ignatius teammates towards the playoffs. For now, that's the focus for Eichenberg, and will be until his season is over. After that, expect a steady diet of Ohio State and Notre Dame for Eichenberg until a decision is made, likely in the spring or early summer.

JOE BURROW KNEE INJURY UPDATE

One of the weekend's biggest stories was Joe Burrow's knee injury, suffered in the first half of Athen's game on Friday night. The Buckeye commitment has torn up his competition week in and week out, and was en route to another rout before the scare. Burrow played less than a quarter in an 82-point outburst by his teammates, and he let 11W know the status of his injury.

"I'm fine, really," Burrow said. "I'm doing a lot better. It just got tweaked."

With senior night at Athens approaching, Burrow says he should be able to play again soon.

"I should be good to play this weekend," he added. "I don't need to get an MRI or anything, there isn't a need for one. If it's physically possible for me to play, I will be."

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