Competition at The Opening doesn't officially kick off until Friday at the Nike headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon, but the quarterbacks, wide receivers and tight ends are already out west preparing for the most competitive recruiting camp out there.
Wednesday marked the first day of practice for some of the country's top offensive players as they gear up for the annual 7-on-7 competition and Buckeyes quarterback commit Tate Martell is teamed up with top Ohio State wide receiver targets Trevon Grimes and Tyjon Lindsey on Team Alpha Pro. Below are some sights and sounds from their first day of work together.
Here is Martell throwing a quick pass to Lindsey, via Bleacher Report's Tyler Donohue:
Plenty of #Buckeyes fans would love to see this in Columbus. #OhioState commit @TheTateMartell to WR @tyjonlindsey. pic.twitter.com/7u8kIqxfKj
— Tyler Donohue (@TDsTake) July 6, 2016
Lindsey hauls in another pass here, via Donohue, from current Tennessee quarterback Joshua Dobbs, who is working as a counselor.
Tennessee #Vols QB Joshua Dobbs hits @tyjonlindsey with this toss. Dobbs was also a counselor here last summer. pic.twitter.com/wVBLpCHvJl
— Tyler Donohue (@TDsTake) July 6, 2016
Via Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports, here is another pass from Martell during practice:
#Buckeyes commit Tate Martell sharp early at Elite 11 finals https://t.co/pqB1YHDTOW pic.twitter.com/XjC56bcylD
— Steve Wiltfong (@SWiltfong247) July 6, 2016
Lindsey, Grimes and Martell working together on 7-on-7 pass patterns, via 247Sports' Ryan Bartow:
Preview of things to come in Columbus, Ohio? Tyjon Lindsey motions in the slot as Tate Martell hits Trevon Grimes pic.twitter.com/nmqoSusXqz
— Ryan Bartow (@RyanBartow) July 6, 2016
Additionally, Grimes and Lindsey both updated their recruitment with reporters in attendance. To no surprise, Martell is heavily recruiting both to pledge to Ohio State. Lindsey has an Aug. 22 decision date set while Grimes is set to announce his commitment Aug. 24.
Former Eleven Warriors director of recruiting and current LandOf10.com Ohio State/Big Ten recruiting analyst Jeremy Birmingham briefly caught up with Grimes after his first workout in Oregon:
“Ever since I went up there that first time, I honestly fell in love with it. I love the campus and I feel like I know enough about Ohio State, I know enough people there like (former teammates at St. Thomas) Damon Arnette and Nick Bosa. I speak to enough people to know that Ohio State has a phenomenal campus, a phenomenal coaching staff. Me and Zach Smith, we talk probably every day, me and Urban (Meyer) we chop it up probably once, twice a week, just talking and seeing how life is.”
...
“I feel like our connection is tighter than ever as of right now,” Grimes concluded. “I couldn’t be happier with it.”
As for Lindsey, Scout.com's Brandon Huffman spoke with the nation's fourth-ranked wide receiver after his first day of practice. The full video interview with Lindsey can be seen here, but below is a portion of his comments relating to Ohio State:
"Playing for Urban Meyer, I can have the possibility of being a Heisman candidate, winning a national championship and entering the draft. Those are all big goals in my life and I want to reach them so that's one of the main focuses in my game. I'm also looking into it for the sports broadcasting and sports media deal. That's what I want to major in so Ohio State, they're one of the top-ranked schools in that so I'm liking that."
Stay tuned all week as Eleven Warriors will post updates from The Opening as more Ohio State commits and targets perform.
