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.
Ohio State is pushing hard for Elias Ricks
Five-star California cornerback Elias Ricks confirmed with Eleven Warriors that he will take an official visit to Ohio State on Nov. 22, when the Buckeyes play Penn State.
Ricks is currently committed to LSU but has been looking around at some other programs, Ohio State being involved in most of those rumors. When asked what his interest level in the Buckeyes is, he simply pointed to his official visit.
Ohio State head coach Ryan Day, secondary coach Jeff Hafley and offensive quality control coach Keenan Bailey have all been in contact with Ricks, specifically Hafley.
“He’s visited me three times already,” Ricks said about Hafley. “He says there’s nobody like me in the country that can move like me with my length and that I would fit in perfectly with him.”
Ricks also said that Ohio State is pushing hard for him on an everyday basis. He said Hafley’s experience coaching in the NFL and coaching cornerbacks such as San Francisco’s Richard Sherman is attractive in a cornerbacks coach.
“Not just Richard Sherman, but just in general, he coached in the League,” Ricks said. “That’s where I want to go.”
The No. 2 cornerback in the 2020 class won a California Interscholastic Federation state title with Mater Dei High School as a junior in 2018, racking up nine interceptions and nine pass deflections. But as confirmed with Eleven Warriors, he will be transferring from Mater Dei this offseason in an effort to get onto a collegiate campus as an early enrollee. Where he decides to transfer could affect his chances at developing more of a relationship with Ohio State.
Ohio State commit Lejond Cavazos has been recruiting Ricks to Ohio State over the past few weeks. Cavazos was also heavily recruiting five-star wide receiver commit Julian Fleming before Fleming committed Friday too.
For now, it seems like Ricks will be sticking to his commitment to LSU, but if the Buckeyes give him a good enough official visit so close to signing day, it’s not out of the question for him to be swayed.
He also just finished a full arm sleeve tattoo that is pretty cool.
Latrell Neville visited by Brian Hartline, set to return the favor
Four-star wide receiver Latrell Neville was visited by Brian Hartline at Willowridge High School in Missouri City, Texas, in mid-May. Now he’s planning his own visit to Columbus in June.
The New Orleans-native told Eleven Warriors that he has planned to visit Ohio State on June 14, but if he can’t make the trip that weekend, he will visit the next weekend, June 21.
“It was really good. It was good seeing him,” Neville said about Hartline. “I finally got to meet him in person after being in contact so long. Our relationship has gotten pretty strong, and it will remain that way.”
Neville came into contact with Ohio State while performing at a Houston camp last summer. He was talking with Keenan Bailey in the beginning before finally getting in contact with Hartline. Even though he just met Hartline for the first time in person, Neville said his relationship has grown very strongly with them.
“I honestly can’t even put it in words,” Neville said. “To me, I talk to them so much, it feels like they’re related to me.”
The Texas wideout said development is key for him. He’s a future-focused prospect, so much so that he’s already set his commitment date for September 15, 2020, and seeing players like Parris Campbell, Terry McLaurin and Johnnie Dixon go to the NFL is a plus for Neville.
Having Hartline at the center of that adds to the attraction, he said.
“I have so much respect for Ohio State just for the fact that Coach Hartline is a really good dude, and a lot of guys can’t relate to recruits because they’ve never been in our shoes,” Neville said. “They coach us during games, but they can’t relate to us on a personal level. Coach Hartline can because he’s been here. I used to watch him when he was in the NFL with the Dolphins.”
Neville said that one aspect of his game that makes him stand out among other 2021 receivers is his ability to make plays after catches. It’s evident in his film that his 6-foot-3.5, 205-pound frame is a major asset to his game.
“If you want to be one of the best receivers, one of your best attributes has to be your YAC,” Neville said. “With me, it’s like once I get the ball in my hands, there’s no stopping me.”
Neville also said that he will be transferring high schools this summer, though he doesn't know which school he will be attending until around the end of June.
Cam Large to visit Ohio State
Massachusetts tight end Cam Large will be making an official visit to Ohio State on June 21, which is shaping up to be the biggest recruiting weekend of the summer for the Buckeyes. Large will also be visiting Alabama, Georgia and Wisconsin officially during June.
The visit is a big one for Ohio State because Large is one of a few top tight end options remaining in the class for the Buckeyes.
The 6-foot-5, 240-pound tight end hasn’t been on the recruiting trail too much this spring as he finished up his lacrosse season, hence why he has four official visits scheduled in June, but he did earn offers from Georgia and Alabama in the time since he visited Ohio State in March.
No. 5 tight end Jalin Conyers is still very much a possibility to commit to the Buckeyes, but No. 3 tight end Theo Johnson seems to be leaning toward other Big Ten programs, like Iowa and Penn State.
It wouldn’t be surprising to see Large make his decision before his senior football season.
Blake Smith commits to Texas A&M
Texas tight end Blake Smith announced via Twitter on Sunday afternoon that he has committed to Texas A&M. The 2020 No. 25 tight end made his official visit to Texas A&M this weekend.
Smith had made a spring visit to Ohio State, but it wasn’t until Wednesday that he received his Buckeye offer. That same day, he released his top-10, which included Ohio State.
Smith had been Crystal Ball’d to go to Texas A&M since 11 a.m. EST after a strong visit to the Aggies. He committed at 2 p.m.