My apologies for a DT thread, but I do think this angle of it is worth discussing.
I've noticed lately that a lot of people are concerned with the DT recruiting. In other threads I've heard things along the lines of, "Why even bother trying to recruit southern DTs?" Which I think is fair, but it is overlooking the fact that if OSU is going to get 4*/5* DT talent they're much more likely to get it there than anywhere else. I think it's easy (if you don't follow recruiting regularly) to overlook exactly how weak Midwestern DT talent has been lately, at least if you subscribe to the ranking systems of 247, Rivals, etc. *I should note that I put Texas in the "South" regional category for efficiency in putting these lists together (and because recruiting Texas can be just as difficult as any other southern state given its distance from Ohio).
2014:
East Coast:
5* - 1
4* - 3
South:
5* - 0
4* - 14
West Coast:
5* - 0
4* - 3
Midwest:
5* - 0
4* - 3
2015:
East Coast:
5* - 1
4* - 3
South:
5* - 3
4* - 7
West Coast:
5* - 2
4* - 2
Midwest:
5* - 1 (Terry Beckner, Jr.)
4* - 3
2016:
East Coast:
5* - 1
4* - 1
South
5* - 5
4* - 24
West Coast:
5* - 0
4* - 1
Midwest:
5* - 0
4* - 3
2017:
East Coast:
5* - 0
4* - 6
South:
5* - 2
4* - 8
West Coast:
5* - 0
4* - 2
Midwest:
5* - 0
4* - 2
I think the 2014, 2016, and 2017 classes in particular give you an idea of how lacking in talent the Midwest region currently is when it comes to DTs. There has been 1, I repeat 1, 5* DT in the Midwest in four classes. Prior to Beckner, the last Midwestern 5* DT was Callahan Bright in 2005 (from Pennsylvania). I think these are considerations people have to make when they consider: 1) Why OSU recruits southern DTs, and 2) Why the last few classes in general have been a little rough when it comes to DT recruiting. On the upside, OSU had 1 4* DT in 2016 (Malik Barrow from FLA), and has 1 4* DT in 2017 (Jerron Cage from Ohio, one of the only two 4* DTs in the Midwest in 2017). I think what the trend shows is that OSU's DT recruiting really has very little to do with OSU, and much more to do with where the DT talent is located these days.
