Welcome back to another installment of this recruiting series, focusing this offseason on the misses of the 2012 recruiting cycle. Last time we talked about Jordan Diamond. You can find all previous installments here. This time we'll turn our attention to a 4-star in-state talent at WR, Dwayne Stanford.
THE RECRUITMENT
Standing at 6'4" out of Cincinnati Taft, Stanford was always (and quite literally) a big target for the OSU coaching staff - Tressel, Fickell, and Meyer included. Despite being just the 43rd-ranked WR in the country, he boasted offers from Alabama, Florida State, LSU, Oregon, and of course Ohio State. You just can't teach size. You may remember another name being recruited out of Cincinnati Taft that year: Adolphus Washington.
Washington and Stanford (these PAC-12 team names are really messing with me as I type this) were long considered locks to Ohio State in a package deal. And for a long time, that was probably true. Then Tressel resigned.
Ohio WR Dwayne Stanford says this is "not good for Ohio State," with regards to the resignation. Says he's not sure what will happen.
— Tom VanHaaren (@TomVH) May 30, 2011
Despite much concern from both Dwayne and Adolphus regarding the state of the program, Fickell was able to get them both to take an official visit together on October 29, 2011. If you don't remember that date, it's the day true freshman Braxton Miller found Devin Smith on a heave to the endzone late in the game in a win over #15 Wisconsin.
“I couldn’t hear myself think. I could feel the stadium shake,” [Stanford] said. “The craziest feeling was I could feel my heartbeat going. It was tremendously loud, that’s the only way to describe it.”
Things seemed to be all but decided following the visit. Even Washington thought things were back on track for the both of them.
"When we came on our visit (to Ohio State), we both loved it," Washington said. "We both said we wanted to come here..."
Shortly after the visit, Washington and Stanford announced a dual commitment date of November 9, 2011. Then, Scott Frost, Oregon's WR coach at the time, came into the picture. Frost was able to get Dwayne on an official visit to Oregon, pushing the Taft duo's commitment date back.
“I know everyone thinks I’m a lock for Ohio State but I wouldn’t be taking this visit if I wasn’t serious about Oregon. What a lot of people don’t know is Oregon is a school I always liked and wanted to play for but they didn’t recruit me until recently...Honestly, it’s 50-50 right now,” Stanford said.
In case you ever wondered when Urban started recruiting for Ohio State, albeit indirectly, it's now safe to say it was before he was announced as head coach.
Before his official introduction as Ohio State's coach at the end of 2011, Meyer sent a representative over to a Cincinnati Taft high school basketball game to assure [Stanford and Washington] that the Buckeyes' future was bright. Washington heard that. Stanford's head was in the Pacific Northwest.
"I was already all about Oregon by (the time Meyer's friend came to the basketball game)," Stanford said. "(The tattoo scandal) had something to do with that. Coach Meyer wasn't hired yet, maybe things would have been different."
On November 22, 2011, seven days before Urban Meyer was announced as head coach at Ohio State, Dwayne Stanford announced his commitment to Oregon at the same ceremony where Adolphus Washington pledged to the Bucks.
"It was a disappointment for me, but at the same time I was happy for him," Washington said. "At the end of the day, he had to make his own decision and that's what he chose to go with. No hard feelings. I still love him. Basically, he's my brother."
Washington went on to confirm that uniforms do matter to these kids.
“He knew Oregon was up and coming,” Washington said of Stanford. “They’ve got all that Nike gear. That’s the type of guy he is. He loves football gear. He loves to look good and dress good.”
THE COLLEGE LIFE
Dwayne played his way onto the field his true freshman season, albeit in a reserve role. He played in all 13 games, amassing 106 yards receiving.
“He’s tall, long, has great range and outstanding hands. He’s got a good understanding of athletic positioning and he was a really good basketball player,” [head coach Chip] Kelly said. “There’s a really high ceiling for Dwayne.”
Stanford suffered a knee injury the following Spring that forced a redshirt year in 2013.
The 2014 season, Stanford's redshirt sophomore year, proved to be his best. He put up 639 yards and 6 TDs catching passes from Heisman winner Marcus Mariota. And, as fate would have it, he faced Ohio State on the biggest stage in the national championship game. Dwayne had arguably the biggest dropped ball by Oregon that night, a trend that killed their momentum numerous times that game.
Stanford ended up with 4 catches for 61 yards against Ohio State.
Despite the national championship loss, Stanford proved to be a reliable threat in 2014.
Dwayne dealt with nagging injuries off and on throughout the 2015 season. He ended up with 463 yards and 5 TDs in 11 games with Mariota off to the NFL. He did have this crazy catch to send a game to OT.
Four games into Stanford's final season at Oregon, he suffered a leg injury and was later ruled out for the season. He ended up with 13 catches for 175 yards and 1 TD in 4 games in 2016.
LIFE AFTER COLLEGE
Dwayne worked out at Oregon's Pro Day as well as a Bengals Pro Day in Cincinnati, but was not selected in the 2017 NFL Draft. He remains a free agent.
I'm sure he still enjoys two-stepping, though:
WHAT COULD HAVE BEEN
I'm sure the OSU coaching staff would have welcomed Stanford's presence on the depth chart, especially with his size and the fact that two other WRs from the 2012 class transferred out. The lone WR that stayed from the 2012 class turned out to be a decent football player, though. Lining up Stanford opposite Mike Thomas would have been a matchup nightmare for defenses, but Urban will take his national championship any day of the week.
UP NEXT: Roger Lewis
