BUCKEYES TO BROWNS
Mike Hall Jr. is selected 54th overall in the second round of the NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns.
The Hurry Up is your nightly dose of updates from the Ohio State football recruiting trail, keeping tabs on the latest from commits and targets from around the country.
OUTSIDE LOOKING IN
We've paid a lot of attention in recent weeks to running backs from the Class of 2018, but one that seems to have been lost in the fray is Laurinburg, North Carolina, Scotland County five-star Zamir White. That said, it was certainly not a surprise when White did not include Ohio State in his Top 4 on Monday night.
Top 4
— Zeus34 (@zeus1_34) February 21, 2017
1. Georgia
2.Alabama
3. Clemson
4. North Carolina
The 5-foot-11, 195-pound White spoke highly of the Buckeyes and running backs coach Tony Alford following his visit for the Nov. 5 game against Nebraska — “The atmosphere and how everyone made it feel like home [stood out]” — but he hasn't been back to campus since.
He's visited Alabama and Georgia on multiple occasions in the meantime, so his recruitment seemed to be following the path Cam Akers took last year. Of course a lot of things can change in the next 11 months, but I don't expect Ohio State to jump back in it.
BEST IN THE COUNTRY, TOO?
The Best of the Midwest Combine took place in Indianapolis, Indiana, on Sunday. As you may have expected, Dayton Dunbar three-star running back Tavion Thomas stole the show.
He wants to play running back in college and that is where he worked out Monday, coming away with position MVP honors. Although we did not see a lot of it on junior film, Thomas was surprisingly smooth catching the football and running routes. He also proved his competitiveness during the one-on-one blocking drills with linebackers, driving several guys out of the play and showing a high motor.
“I think I did good, but not the best,” Thomas told Eleven Warriors. “I still need some work.”
The 6-foot-2, 225-pound Thomas continued his meteoric rise on Monday, as Michigan became the latest Power 5 school to offer him a scholarship. He'll visit Alabama this weekend.
“I am really surprised about all of this,” Thomas said. “Literally all of it.”
Other Ohio State targets who stood out at the combine include Lakota West four-star junior linebacker Xavier Peters; Indianapolis four-star linebacker Cameron McGrone; Detroit, Michigan, Cass Tech four-star sophomore running back Jaren Mangham; and Belleville, Michigan four-star sophomore offensive tackle Devontae Dobbs.
DIAMOND IN THE ROUGH
Though he doesn't yet have an offer from Ohio State, I expect Columbus St. Francis De Sales three-star linebacker Brian Asamoah to include the Buckeyes on his list of top schools this Friday.
I will be releasing a list of my top universities this Friday, February 24th.#GodBless
— Brian Asamoah (@b_moah211) February 21, 2017
The 6-foot, 205-pound Asamoah is considered the 44th-best outside linebacker and No. 578 prospect overall in the Class of 2018. He holds 15 offers from programs such as Cincinnati, Michigan, Minnesota, Notre Dame, Penn State, Pittsburgh, UCLA and West Virginia, and his relationship with Ohio State has grown significantly in the last few months.
He most recently on campus for Junior Day, after which he said he learned a lot about the program.
“I was able to have one-on-one with coach [Urban] Meyer and coach [Bill] Davis.” Asamoah told Eleven Warriors. “During my one-on-one with coach Meyer, he said they're very interested in me and he loves my style of play. He wants me to come down in the spring. Coach Davis and I really got to know one another and got to further our relationship.”
Asamoah hopes the Buckeyes eventually offer and is no hurry to make a decision on his future.
“Patience is a virtue,” he said.
