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.
THE #BOOM DROUGHT COMES TO AN END
St. Louis Cardinal Ritter receiver Jameson Williams planted smiles on thousands of Buckeye fans across the region Friday afternoon with his decision to attend Ohio State. The 2019 wideout joins Lake Travis (Texas) receiver Garrett Wilson in the Dynasty '19 recruiting class.
Williams is a sure-handed receiver who could be a great complement to Wilson in the Buckeyes' offense. He's also one of the fastest wideouts in the country and will bring a serious speed element to the unit. He'll need to pile on some pounds upon his arrival to Columbus as he weighs in at just 169 pounds. But from a pure talent sense, Williams is an excellent addition.
Count that as wide receivers coach Brian Hartline's first big win in the position. How's Hartline feeling? The good news clearly has him feeling some kind of way.
Boarding a plane like.... #GoBucks pic.twitter.com/Jdu2dxpFg9
— Brian Hartline (@brianhartline) September 28, 2018
STILL AT THE TOP
In case you're wondering, Ohio State's top 2020 top commit Paris Johnson Jr. is still really good. The five-star St. Xavier offensive tackle recently released a midseason highlight video.
It's, as expected, impressive.
Johnson's Bombers are 2-3 with another big one coming tonight.
Johnson's Bombers are 2-3 with a big game tonight at Elder. With crucial playoff points at stake, St. Xavier needs a win this week more than ever. Earlier in the season, Johnson Jr. told Eleven Warriors that he believed St. Xavier had "one of the most talented group of players in the region." That group will be tested once again this week.
BATTLE HEADS TO NORMAN
Jordan Battle's plan all along has been to take all of his official visits, even after verbally committing to Ohio State this past summer. So, the St. Thomas Aquinas (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) safety's expected presence at Oklahoma this weekend shouldn't raise any alarms just yet.
At this point a flip from the Buckeyes to Sooners seems unlikely and it appears Ohio State's staff will mostly be battling things out with Florida, Miami, and Alabama. The Crimson Tide's missing out on Daxton Hill may cause Nick Saban to go all in on a player like Battle, so we'll have to see how much of a push Bama puts forth.
Oklahoma does have one thing working in its favor and that would have to be four-star cornerback commit Jaden Davis. He's a teammate of Battle's and the duo is set to make the trip to campus together this weekend.
Remember, when Urban Meyer's three-game suspension was announced, Battle told the Sun-Sentinel "I still feel strong about [my commitment]. I’m going to see how things play out right now, but right now, I’m still a future Buckeye.”
The Jameson Williams news made Ohio State's first big recruiting splash since Meyer's arrival back on campus. Getting Battle back in town for the official visit and solidifying things will be another priority in the coming months.
MOVIN' ON UP
The stargazers are always looking for more, and most will be happy to learn that the Buckeyes' 2019 class is inching closer back toward the top-10 of the team rankings. The Williams pledge lifted Ohio State from No. 15 up to No. 11 which is good enough for second-best in the Big Ten.
The Wolverines are holding steady at No. 8 in the nation, but it's certainly worth nothing that Jim Harbaugh currently has pledges from 23 prospects and the Buckeyes are now sitting at just 15. Michigan's class consists of 11 three-star prospects while Ohio State has three of the three-star variety.
The Buckeyes average rating per commit is 92.52 which is third in the country behind only Alabama and Georgia.
