Kaylon Bailey knows the history of players from Glenville High School going on to become stars at Ohio State.
Since 2002, 26 players from Ted Ginn Sr.’s program have gone on to play for the Buckeyes. Many of them have gone on to make a major impact for Ohio State, including Heisman Trophy winner Troy Smith, national championship-winning quarterback Cardale Jones and top-11 NFL draft picks Arvell Reese, Ted Ginn Jr., Donte Whitner and Marshon Lattimore, to name a few.
Bailey is still deciding whether to follow in their footsteps or forge his own path, though he won’t be deliberating much longer. The three-star linebacker expects to announce his college choice within the next two weeks, picking from a final three of Ohio State, Louisville and Colorado. Bailey originally planned to announce his commitment this Thursday, but told Eleven Warriors last week that he might push his announcement back to next Wednesday or Thursday (July 1 or 2).
That said, the Cleveland native says his interest in Ohio State is high because of the track record former Tarblooders have of doing big things for the Buckeyes.
“I mean, this is the goal. The goal every year is to get to Ohio State,” Bailey said while attending Ohio State’s camp at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center last Thursday. “At Glenville, like that's the goal. Either you go to the team up north or you're down here.”
Because Ohio State has such a strong history with players from Glenville, the Buckeyes have been viewed as the favorite to land Bailey since they offered him in March. Their chances of landing Bailey only increased after they hosted him for an official visit earlier this month.
“It was great,” Bailey said. “I mean, walking in, seeing guys like (former Glenville and current Ohio State linebacker Cincere Johnson) and them calling my name from down the hall, it feels good. It feels like home.”
Still, Bailey doesn’t want to rush into a commitment until he’s sure he’s ready, understanding the gravity of the decision he’s about to make.
“Coach Ginn said this is the biggest decision ever that he had to deal with,” Bailey said.
As Bailey decides between the Buckeyes, Buffaloes and Cardinals, he says the most important factor is the relationship he has with the coaches. He says he’s built bonds with just about every coach on Ohio State’s staff – particularly linebackers coach James Laurinaitis, assistant linebackers coach Sam McGrath, defensive line coach Larry Johnson and head coach Ryan Day – though he also had good relationships with the coaches at Louisville and Colorado.
“I'm really big on the coaching part, the relationship and the bonds,” Bailey said. “I know Colorado came in a little late on the offering situation, but I built that bond over the past few weeks with them. I got a major bond with Ohio State; I mean, since freshman year, since (former Ohio State and current Michigan running backs coach) Tony Alford was recruiting me from out here, even though he’s at the team up north now. And Louisville, yeah, (linebackers coach Adam Mueller), I got a good relationship with him, too.”
Asked about Laurinaitis specifically, Bailey likes Ohio State’s linebackers coach because of his honesty and the way he coaches his players.
“He's just a great guy, man,” Bailey said. “He ain't one of them coaches that's going to tell you a lie. He's going to tell you the truth. He's a real coach. He's going to coach you hard no matter what.”
“The goal every year is to get to Ohio State.”– Kaylon Bailey on the Glenville-to-Ohio State pipeline
It isn’t hard for Laurinaitis and Ohio State’s other coaches to sell Bailey on how they can develop him as a linebacker, because he’s already seen it firsthand from Reese, who was a senior at Glenville when Bailey was a freshman.
Like Bailey, Reese wasn’t the most highly touted recruit out of high school (he was ranked as the No. 212 overall prospect in 247Sports’ composite rankings the 2023 class), yet became an All-American linebacker in Columbus. Also like Reese, Bailey plays both linebacker and edge rusher at Glenville, and Ohio State defensive coordinator Matt Patricia has told Bailey that the Buckeyes would use him similarly to how they used Reese as a hybrid linebacker/edge rusher.
“They plan to use me just how they used Arvell, just how they're going to use Cincere,” Bailey said. “They don't want to just use my talent in one spot.”
If Bailey ultimately chooses Ohio State, he’d become the third and likely final linebacker in the Buckeyes’ 2027 class, joining four-star commits Prince Goldsby and Quinton Cypher.
