Warning: The following sentence may make you feel old.
The son of Na’il Diggs Sr. — a two-time All-Big Ten honoree at Ohio State and a 12-year NFL veteran with the Packers, Panthers, Rams and Chargers — joined the Buckeyes this summer as a walk-on linebacker.
For this week’s Remember When, we’ll revisit two Signing Day curveballs from Ohio State’s 1996 recruiting class: one involving running back Durrell Price and another involving the elder Diggs.
Price’s Signing Day story remains one of the most famous recruiting twists of the last 30 years.
A star running back at Sylmar High School in California, Price verbally committed to Ohio State in January 1996. At the time, he appeared to be a perfect fit for the Buckeyes’ power-running offense, and some even compared his size and running style to departing Heisman Trophy winner Eddie George.
On Signing Day, Price and his mother went to a local drugstore and faxed his National Letter of Intent to Ohio State — or so they thought.
Later that day, the Buckeyes called Price to tell him the drugstore clerk had accidentally faxed the wrong side of the two-sided document. Instead of receiving a signed letter of intent, Ohio State received a page of recruiting instructions and compliance information. The Buckeyes asked Price to resend the paperwork.
Price took the mistake as a sign.
“Did I do the right thing if it didn’t go through?” Price told the Los Angeles Times in February 1996.
Rather than immediately refaxing the document, Price spent the day reconsidering his future. He called UCLA coach Bob Toledo, who told him a scholarship was still available if he wanted to become a Bruin. Price jumped at the opportunity and faxed his letter of intent to UCLA later that evening.
The reversal stunned Ohio State coach John Cooper, who had already announced Price as part of the Buckeyes’ recruiting class earlier that day.
“It didn’t sit well with (Cooper),” Price told the Los Angeles Times. “But like they would have said to me, it was a business decision."
Price appeared in 42 games over four seasons at UCLA, recording 145 touches for 683 yards from scrimmage and one touchdown. His best statistical performance came as a freshman in 1996, when he rushed for a career-high 110 yards against Northeast Louisiana (now UL Monroe). The signature play of his career came in the 1999 Rose Bowl, when he caught a 61-yard touchdown pass from Freddie Mitchell on a trick play.
Now 48, Price is the executive director of player development at UCLA.
While Price's fax-machine fiasco cost Ohio State one of the nation's top running back prospects, the Buckeyes benefited from a different Signing Day twist elsewhere in the 1996 class. Diggs entered Signing Day expecting to attend USC, but after a family dispute altered his plans at the last minute, he signed with Ohio State instead.
Diggs appeared in 37 games over three seasons with the Buckeyes, developing into an All-American as a junior in 1999. That season, he led Ohio State with 94 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, six sacks and three forced fumbles. He recorded a career-high 14 tackles against Wisconsin and a career-high four tackles for loss against Miami in the Kickoff Classic.
Diggs entered the NFL draft in 2000 and became a top-100 selection when the Packers chose him with the No. 98 overall pick in the fourth round. He appeared in 170 games during a 12-year NFL career, recording 679 tackles, 71 tackles for loss, 11.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, six fumble recoveries and 33 pass breakups.
