The Hurry Up: Porter Gustin Departs, Wednesday Could Bring Fireworks, 2016 DB Options

By Jeremy Birmingham on February 2, 2015 at 7:45 pm
Jared Mayden leads a talented secondary unit Ohio State is pursuing in 2016.
Sachse, Texas 2016 DB Jared Mayden II
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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.


GO FOR THE GUSTIN

Porter Gustin left Columbus this morning, early, as his two-day official visit to Ohio State came to an end. The 6-foot-5, 245-pound four-star athlete took to Twitter hours after his departure to provide an update on his college choice.

The schools that remain the mix for Gustin, the country's 41st-ranked player and 4th-ranked outside linebacker (he's likely to end up at defensive end in college and beyond), are Arizona State, Ohio State, USC and Utah. Right now, the Trojans are the team to beat according to the 247Sports.com crystal ball.

Sources I've spoken with have indicated the Sun Devils' chances could be better than people are giving them credit for, but it's the Buckeyes — fresh off this final visit — that seem to have momentum. While there's optimism on the Ohio State end, it doesn't appear that they are sure he'll choose the Buckeyes.

"Not really," a source close to Ohio State said when asked if there was an indication about what way Gustin is leaning. "Call it 50/50. I think the family is on-board though if that's what he wanted (from this weekend's visit)."

Gustin's athleticism could get him selected in this coming June's Major League Baseball draft, so whatever team he selects will have to sweat that possibility. A big right-handed pitcher, Gustin has had his fastball top out at 97 miles per hour.

WILD WEDNESDAY IN THE WORKS

When Urban Meyer is leading the football program that you follow, you start to expect some signing day dramatics. A master of last-minute flips, not many capitalize on signing day like Meyer has done consistently throughout his career. We've beaten the horse dead about the possibility of losses this signing day with Mike Weber and Torrance Gibson both up in the air, but fear not Buckeye fans, there's good reason to believe that as many as three new commitments could be coming in the next 48 hours.

As mentioned, there's Porter Gustin who announces tomorrow afternoon (11:00 a.m. MST) and the Buckeyes appear to be in a good spot to land him (re: 50/50 comment above). Beyond Gustin, expect Ohio State to be in the final two for offensive lineman Isaiah Prince, wide receiver K.J. Hill and defensive back Damon Arnette. Right now, I think it's not only a possibility that the Buckeyes land all three of those prospects but it's a probability.

Prince did make an official visit to Maryland this past weekend, but the Buckeyes remain optimistic that they've done enough to keep the momentum they gained during his trip to Columbus two weekends ago.

Hill, at least to the best of my knowledge, did not make a trip to Arkansas or Ole Miss or anywhere this past weekend. The Buckeyes were the last team to see Hill, and the last team Hill saw, and with one wide receiver commitment only in 2015 they seem to be in a great spot to get his signature come Wednesday. 

Arnette is committed to South Carolina — and has been since July — but all sources in Florida are indicating that the Buckeyes have moved into the lead position in his recruitment on the heels of his official visit this past weekend. He will make his decision at 8:30 p.m. tonight, so a gray box may be forthcoming. Arnette has been targeted by the Buckeyes as a contingency plan in the event of Carlton Davis' (expected) decommitment. 

Buckle up, Buckeye fans.

DEFENSIVE BACKS ON THE 2016 BLOCK

As we try and finish the 2015 recruiting cycle, we'd be remiss if we didn't start peeking into 2016 to see what/who could be worth following. As you know, the Buckeyes' 2016 class is off to a hot start with six commitments already in the mix. One position in next year's class that hasn't yet "taken off" is defensive back, where a number of players are firmly in the mix. Perhaps the top overall target it Sachse, Texas' Jared Mayden II, a 6-foot-tall, 190-pound cornerback who recently named a top three among his almost 30 offers.

Mayden has visited Ohio State twice (for Friday Night Lights and the Michigan game) and with only one of the in-state schools making his final group, it's clear he's willing to leave Texas for college. He did visit TCU this past weekend and there's no timeline for his choice, but expect the Buckeyes to remain involved until the end. 

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