The Hurry-Up: Four-Star Safety Mikal Harrison-Pilot Impressed by Ohio State Visit, Elliot Washington Includes Buckeyes in Top Five

By Garrick Hodge on November 17, 2021 at 5:30 pm
Mikal Harrison-Pilot
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Making his first-ever visit to Ohio State Saturday, 2023 safety Mikal Harrison-Pilot came away impressed with what he saw from the Buckeyes.

“It went great,” the four-star Harrison-Pilot told Eleven Warriors of his visit. “I loved the fans, the atmosphere, how fast and electric Ohio State plays and how physical the defense is.”  

Harrison-Pilot took the trip with his Temple High School (Temple, Texas) teammate, linebacker Taurean York. Together, the pair did a photo shoot and toured the facilities. 

“Ohio State has hands down had the best food ever and it was fun seeing other recruits there as well having fun,” Harrison-Pilot said. “The best part was hearing the band play, I couldn’t wait to see them march and I can’t wait to head back up to Columbus.”

While he holds offers from more than 30 Division I schools, Harrison-Pilot does not yet hold an offer from Ohio State. He hopes to receive one eventually and was told to keep working by several Ohio State coaches.

“I talked to coach (Al) Washington and coach (Brian) Hartline,” Harrison-Pilot said. “They said they wanted to get to know me more and evaluate me more.” 

Harrison-Pilot is ranked as the 114th-best prospect in the 2023 class per 247Sports’ composite rankings. 

Washington releases top five

One of Ohio State’s top safety targets for the class of 2023, Elliot Washington, released a top-five list Wednesday afternoon. Washington’s school list consisted of Alabama, Ohio State, Michigan State, Penn State and Georgia. 

Washington, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound Florida resident, received an offer from OSU in May. He is ranked as the No. 178 overall prospect and the No. 18 safety for 2023. Kenyatta Jackson, Kye Stokes and Ryan Turner are among Ohio State’s recent recruiting wins in Florida.

Rolder commits to Michigan

In Tuesday’s Hurry-Up, we wrote that four-star linebacker Jimmy Rolder would be the sole focus for the Buckeyes to fill out their 2022 linebacking corps with Carson Tabaracci canceling his official visit to Ohio State this weekend. A few hours later, Rolder committed to Michigan. Go figure, right? 

Rolder is ranked as the 364th-best player and the 39th-best linebacker in the 2022 cycle after a late emergence in which he went from an unranked prospect to a four-star recruit in his senior season.

With C.J. Hicks and Gabe Powers already committed to Ohio State, adding another linebacker in the cycle isn’t a glaring need, but with attrition already impacting OSU this fall at that position, an addition via the transfer portal in the offseason could be possible. The Buckeyes don’t appear to be pursuing another high school linebackers in the 2022 class, but could gamble on a less heralded prep prospect if they feel they need one more.

Pair of top 2024 prospects to visit OSU

Two top-20 prospects in the class of 2024 have announced visit plans to Ohio State this weekend. 

Sammy Brown, a 6-foot-2, 215-pound linebacker from Georgia who rocks a mullet that could give Quinn Ewers some competition, will be in Columbus Saturday for the Michigan State game, the highly touted sophomore announced Wednesday. 

Brown, the No. 5 player and the top-rated linebacker in the 2024 class, already has offers from nine Division I schools, including Georgia and Auburn, but has not yet received one from the Buckeyes. 

Six-foot-4, 245-pound defensive lineman Nigel Smith II will also be making the trip from Texas to Ohio. 

Smith, who is ranked the 19th-best prospect and the second-best defensive lineman in the 2024 class, has offers from five Division I schools, including LSU and Notre Dame.

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