With the departure of four veterans to graduation and/or the NBA, Chris Holtmann has room to add to his 2018 recruiting class.
C.J. Jackson is set to return to the lineup, but translates more to a shooting guard than a true point guard. Forced to play the point in 2017-18 due to a lack of depth, Jackson performed admirably in his junior season, averaging 12.6 points, 3.9 rebounds and 3.9 assists per game. He was, however, plagued with turnovers at times, which resulted in him being benched for a handful of games early in the year.
Outside of Jackson, Ohio State will have just two other upperclassmen on the roster who were originally recruited as scholarship players in Andre Wesson and Micah Potter. Because of that, Holtmann is looking to add a veteran to the roster.
"At least one, in terms of an older guy that could step in and play. If you look at the balance of our classes, you see that we have recruited one scholarship senior in C.J. Jackson and then you have Joey Lane," Holtmann told Matt McCoy of 105.7 The Zone. "Our junior and senior classes are thin in numbers. So we need to add one, potentially two, but at least one in terms of a fifth-year guy that could play an important role."
As Holtmann said, Ohio State is in the market for an immediate impact player first, and if they can get one, perhaps a longer transfer who would have to sit a year before becoming eligible in 2019-2020.
The following four players could be potential graduate or undergraduate transfer candidates for Ohio State.
Miles Reynolds, G, Pacific
A 6-foot-2 guard, Reynolds is looking for his third school in five years as he pursues a grad transfer. He spent his first two years at St. Louis before transferring to Pacific following the 2015-16 season. In his only year at Pacific, he averaged 13.3 points per game as the Tigers finished with a 14-18 record.
Pacific grad transfer Miles Reynolds will take a visit to Oklahoma next weekend. Sooners went to see him yesterday. Ohio State, Nevada, DePaul have also reached out.
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) March 28, 2018
13.3 points, 2.8 assists. Immediately eligible.
Reynolds shot 37.7 percent from 3-point range in his only year at Pacific and scored a career-high 25 points in a 60-58 win over Portland on Feb. 10. A Chicago native, Reynolds has reportedly been contacted by Nevada and DePaul as well as the Buckeyes, and was scheduled to travel to Oklahoma this weekend. The Sooners are tasked with replacing superstar guard Trae Young, who recently declared for the NBA draft.
Cheddi Mosely, G, Boston University
Mosely played in just two games as a senior at Boston University before suffering a season-ending knee injury in a loss to Albany. The year before, he played in just 11 games after what was described as an "internal matter" that kept him sidelined for the final two months of the season.
. @CheddiMoselyy has already heard from Ohio State, Wake Forest & N.C. State. https://t.co/e07KV3Qqnu
— Andrew Slater (@Andrew__Slater) March 23, 2018
His best season came as a sophomore in 2015-16, when he averaged 13.3 points per game and shot 40 percent from the floor for the season. At 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds, Mosely provides good size and length at the point guard position; however, he never averaged more than 1.7 assists per game in a season while at BU.
Mosely, a Jersey City, N.J. native, has also reportedly heard from Wake Forest and N.C. State in addition to Ohio State.
Marcus Carr, G, Pittsburgh
Just a freshman, Carr was granted his release from Pittsburgh following the firing of head coach Kevin Stallings. A report from Adam Zagoria of the New York Times said that Carr was "keeping his options open," however, after Pitt hired Jeff Capel from Duke.
Since obtaining his release from Pitt, PG Marcus Carr is hearing from these schools:
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) March 26, 2018
Texas
Cincy
Minnesota
Iowa State
Gonzaga
Xavier
UMass
Akron
Ohio State
(Photo: @PghSportsNow) pic.twitter.com/DdQyPAg074
Carr averaged 10 points per game as a freshman on a Pitt team that went an abysmal 8-24 in 2017-18 and went winless in ACC play. Before he was a Panther, Carr was a three-star guard in the 2017 recruiting class and the No. 27 point guard, according to 247Sports.
According to Zagoria's report, Carr has heard from a number of schools since being granted his release, including fellow Ohio schools Xavier and Cincinnati.
Koby McEwen, G, Utah State
It was announced Friday evening that Utah State's second leading scorer Koby McEwen would transfer following a coaching change by the Aggies. McEwen, a former three-star recruit, averaged 15.6 points and 5.4 boards per game as a sophomore in 2017-18.
Utah State transfer Koby McEwen has heard from Creighton, Ohio State, Marquette, Oregon, Iowa State, Tennessee, Grand Canyon, Arizona State and Akron thus far. Averaged 15.6 points as a sophomore.
— Jeff Goodman (@GoodmanESPN) March 31, 2018
McEwen would have to sit out a year due to transfer rules, but has been contacted by a number of teams including the Buckeyes, according to ESPN's Jeff Goodman.
A premier scorer, McEwen notched a pair of 30-point games this season as a sophomore while the Aggies limped to a 17-17 finish to their season. McEwen was a 33 percent shooter from behind the three-point arc.
