The Hurry Up: Wide Receiver Mycah Pittman Includes Ohio State Among Top Schools While Targets David Bell, Cade Stover Shine on Hardwood

By Andrew Lind on March 18, 2018 at 6:50 pm
Mycah Pittman
Mycah Pittman
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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.

CHANGING CAREERS

Boasting a career .394 batting average, Toledo Central Catholic three-star wide receiver Jase Bowen committed to the Notre Dame baseball team in May 2017. But following a strong junior season on the gridiron that captured the attention of programs across the Midwest, he’s decided to pursue a career in football first and foremost.

“After thinking about it with my family, football was offering a free eduction and I have always loved football, so I decided I wanted to play football primarily and baseball secondarily,” Bowen told Eleven Warriors.

The 6-foot-1, 178-pound Bowen, who is considered the 74th-best wide receiver and No. 563 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, racked up more than 1,000 all-purpose yards and 15 total touchdowns — including a pair of punt returns — to be named first-team all-conference and third-team all-state last season. He now holds more than a dozen offers from programs such as Cincinnati, Kentucky, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Toledo and Virginia, with last week’s offer from the Spartans prompting his decision to decommit from the Fighting Irish.

Bowen visited Michigan this weekend and is also eyeing a trip to Ohio State, as the staff invited him to attend a practice this spring. There’s no doubt an offer from the Buckeyes would be a game-changer for the in-state prospect who grew up rooting for the program as a child.

Heck, his dad even has an Ohio State tattoo.

Bowen has, naturally, been compared to former Buckeye and Central Catholic wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher, who had a productive career in Columbus before playing for the NFL’s Chicago Bears and Cincinnati Bengals. Will he follow in his footsteps? That remains to be seen.

Ohio State remains among the top suitors for a number of elite wide receivers like five-star Theo Wease Jr. and four-stars David Bell, Jalen “Boobie” Curry, John Dunmore, Ramel Keyton, Trey Knox, Mycah Pittman, Marcus Washington, Lance Wilhoite, Jameson Williams and Garrett Wilson, among a host of others. The Buckeyes will surely want to see how he performs at a one-day camp or Friday Night Lights this summer, but he’s certainly put himself in position to land an offer late in the cycle.

TO FOLLOW OR FORGE HIS OWN PATH

Calabasas, California, four-star wide receiver Mycah Pittman included Ohio State in his Top 10 on Sunday afternoon alongside Alabama, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Nebraska, Notre Dame, UCLA and Washington State.

The 6-foot, 195-pound Pittman is considered the ninth-best wide receiver and No. 52 prospect overall in the Class of 2019, as he’s hauled in 115 receptions for 2,356 yards and 21 touchdowns in his two-year varsity career, which has been split between Calabasas and Westlake Village Oaks Christian.

The Buckeyes offered Pittman — the son of former Tampa Bay Buccaneers running back Michael Pittman and brother to the USC wide receiver of the same name — back in February, but his relationship with wide receivers coach Zach Smith dates back several months. He was supposed to visit campus for the first time earlier this month, but unforeseen issues with weather cancelled those plans. Pittman hopes to take an official visit in April or May instead and make a decision on his future this summer. He’ll then sign with the team of his choice in December and graduate early in order to enroll in classes one month later.

USC is considered the leader in Pittman’s recruitment given his ties to the program, but Florida has put itself in the conversation following an unofficial visit this weekend. He’s also originally from the state, so the Gators may actually be the biggest threat to the Buckeyes chances moving forward.

CUTTING DOWN THE NETS, TOO

Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer hasn’t been shy about his affinity for two-sport athletes, so it should come as no surprise two of the Buckeyes’ top targets are starts on the hardwood, as well.

On Saturday, Lexington four-star linebacker Cade Stover (No. 32 in the video below) scored 20 points — including a go-ahead basket with less than 30 seconds left — and brought down nine rebounds to lead the Minutemen to a 65-64 win over Bay Village in the regional final at Bowling Green. It’ll be their first appearance at state since the 1990-91 season.

Lexington plays Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary at the Schottenstein Center on Friday at 2 p.m.

Indianapolis Warren Central four-star wide receiver David Bell (No. 22), meanwhile, hit a runner at the buzzer to give the Warriors a 64-62 win over New Albany and Gatorade Player of the Year Romeo Langford in the state semifinals on Saturday. He finished with 17 points, none more important than when he sprinted the length of the floor with 4.6 seconds left and hit the game-winner from about 10 feet out.

Top-ranked and undefeated Warren Central will face No. 10 Carmel next Saturday at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, home of the NBA’s Indiana Pacers.

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