The Hurry Up: Trying to Figure Out Quarterback Situation, Harrison Offer is Deserved, More Recruiting News

By Jeremy Birmingham on December 6, 2015 at 7:45 pm
Tim Beck, Tristen Wallace and Urban Meyer at Ohio State in June.
Tristen Wallace
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The Hurry Up is your nightcap of Ohio State recruiting news, catching you up on the day’s events with an ear on the ground for what’s next.


HARRISON OFFER MEANS LIKELY QUICK DECISION

As mentioned Friday, Ohio State – moving on after finding out they won't be landing Daelin Hayes – offered Walnut Ridge (Columbus) athlete Malik Harrison. Harrison, 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, is a phenomenal athlete as the below video illustrates:

He's capable of playing multiple positions, but he's certain to get his first look at linebacker when he commits to the Buckeyes.

Since the summer, when Harrison was closely linked to Wisconsin and some thought he'd commit, the understanding is that he's been basically "waiting" to see what Ohio State would do. With the offer finally in hand, don't expect a long wait before Harrison, at least privately, informs the Buckeyes of his intention.

He's not talking about the offer yet, but it wouldn't surprise me if Harrison were to make an official visit to Ohio State this weekend and announce his commitment either during that trip or shortly thereafter.

DECISION UPDATES ON CORLEY, JACKSON 

We're nearing crunch time for a number of the Buckeyes' top remaining 2016 targets and the next week is going to shed a lot of light on how the country's top-ranked recruiting class finishes.

Detroit wide receiver Donnie Corley, who had been planning a Dec. 8 decision, will not make his choice on Tuesday, and that's good news for Ohio State who hopes to host him on an official visit this weekend. The delay is not necessarily Buckeye related (he'll be in New York as a finalist for the US Army Player of the Year), but it definitely doesn't hurt Ohio State as they've been trying to arrange one last visit.

The four-star wide receiver has been consistent in saying that another trip to Columbus was vital before a decision could be reached, but there's still no reason – at this point – to think it's going to be anyone but Michigan State whenever the verdict becomes final. Could that change with a visit? Of course. The Buckeyes were at one point the favorite for Corley, but that was almost a year ago and the Spartans have been the team to beat for a while now.

The Buckeyes are also still waiting on a decision from Georgia's Antwuan Jackson, the country's ninth-ranked defensive tackle whom we've discussed here over and over. Jackson has already made his official visit to Ohio State and will, this coming weekend, return to Auburn for what is expected to be his final visit before a decision is made inside of the next two weeks. 

Ohio State and Auburn have been the top two schools for Jackson for some time, but one wrinkle that is bound to be brought up now is what happens for the Tigers as they try to replace Will Muschamp and potentially two other defensive assistants that appear to be heading to South Carolina.

With 18 commitments and about seven weeks left in the 2016 cycle, expect things to get real interesting soon.

WHAT'S UP WITH THE QUARTERBACKS?

While we're talking about things getting interesting, it's becoming harder and harder to ignore the potential of a second quarterback joining Ohio State's 2016 class.

The primary discussion right now is around Louisville commitment Tylin Oden, a three-star prospect who has been hearing from the Buckeyes in recent weeks. He is scheduled to receive a visit from Ohio State assistant coach Tim Beck this week (Wednesday), which comes on the heels of a discussion he and Beck had last week.

"He just asked if I was still committed to Louisville," Oden said of his discussions with Ohio State. "I told him yes I was but it was a soft commitment and then we exchanged phone numbers and that was it."

Oden told me that he's a "soft" commitment because the Cardinals added another quarterback to their class after he committed. He's aware the Buckeyes have a pledge from Tristen Wallace, so why would he consider a trip, which he says he'll know more about Wednesday, to see Ohio State? Is something going on with Wallace?

No, not that I've been made aware of, although the four-star from DeSoto, Texas, has been quiet on all fronts lately. Beck visited Wallace last week and everything seems to be the status quo with his commitment. Baylor continues to hover around Wallace – is a switch in the works? Perhaps the Buckeyes just reassessed their roster and realized they needed a quarterback for the future? Perhaps Torrance Gibson never moves back from wide receiver? Perhaps Wallace, a dynamite athlete in his own right, is being considered for a position switch himself? Perhaps it's much ado about nothing? 

In my experience, there's rarely a situation where the Buckeyes don't have their ducks in a row and ready in the event of any surprises. Heck, we've already seen some potential movement regarding one former target and at this point, I'm willing to concede that everything is worth paying attention to.

We'll know more soon, I am sure, so stay tuned.

WESTON BRIDGES HIGHLIGHTS

With Todd Sibley in the mix Ohio State doesn't have to move too quickly in their search for another 2017 running back, but Copley's Weston Bridges is doing his part to stay on their mind. His junior year highlights are very impressive.

Bridges, who visited Ohio State three weeks ago, had a visit from the Buckeyes' Ed Warinner on Friday, one of five different colleges that made a trip to Copley at the end of the week. Pittsburgh and Indiana were among the schools that also made their way to see the 5-foot-11, 190-pounder.

If Ohio State were to offer, and it's easy to see why they would, Bridges would almost certainly end up a Buckeye.

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