Gerard Mullins had a dream for his grandson, one that seems simple on paper, yet is hardly anything but straightforward in the world of college football recruiting.
"That would make me and my Papaw's dream come true because he said 'Go to DeSales for high school, then go to Ohio State,'" Derrius Mullins, Gerard's grandson, said Tuesday after attending Ohio State camp. "But I got many options out there in front of me."
Mullins, a defensive tackle yet to make much of a blip in the world of recruiting websites, currently holds offers from Bowling Green, Cincinnati, Toledo, Kent State, Boston College and Ohio University. The latter extended a scholarship Tuesday at camp and Mullins has plans to visit places like Eastern Michigan and others in the near future.
"I wanted to bust my butt to get at least a couple more (offers)," Mullins said.
He achieved that in Columbus Tuesday, but is still waiting for his dream school to reach out and fulfill the plan set forth by his late grandfather.
"We talked about it when I was in like fourth, fifth grade because my brother Jahlil graduated from Africentric, got a full scholarship to Kentucky. We talked about it right before he passed. He said 'go to DeSales, then hopefully go to Ohio State,'" Mullins said. "Just to land one. I'm going to try and work hard, grind."
Being right next to campus and from DeSales makes it an easy trip for Mullins to Ohio State, but he knows he must do more than just show his face around the program in order to get an offer from the Buckeyes.
"Hands, if I used more hands I'll get better. Just try and stay away from the bullrush. It was just hard," the 6-foot-5, 315-pound Mullins said. "That's my go-to move."
Ohio State defensive line coach Larry Johnson is one of the best in the business at what he does, though, and Mullins knows that listening to him and the rest of the Buckeye coaching staff is sure to pay dividends.
"It was pretty nice to meet him because he's teaching one of the best defensive lines in the country," Mullins said. "I met him this year when I came up here for a visit. I felt like I could really trust him."
Mullins visited Ohio State in February, but said Ohio University could lead for him now because the Bobcats told him he could come in and play right away in 2017.
Ohio State, though, still holds that special memory and wish for both he and the man he always looked up to.
"That would be a dream," Mullins said.
