Ryan Day, recruiting coordinator and director of player personnel Mark Pantoni, and the rest of the Ohio State football staff did it again. They pulled in one of the all-time classes in Columbus, another top-five one, and might even finish with the overall No. 1 class when it’s all said and done in February.
For now though, on this, the early signing period of National Signing Day, the Buckeyes hauled in 21 overall prospects that are varied, talented, and will fit with the program nicely.
The dust hasn’t quite settled because we’ve still got this thing through February, but there won’t be too many bodies added to the class. Because of that, we thought we’d provide some observations on what this class is made up of, what stands out, and where things go from here.
NEXT … Observations from the early signing period
Observations from Ohio State’s 2021 recruiting class
- Ohio State has the consensus No. 2 class in the country and its highest-rated of all-time. There are no signs of recruiting slowing down anytime soon despite Urban Meyer no longer being there. Sorry, Big Ten.
- There’s still a chance the Buckeyes land the overall No. 1 class too when it’s all said and done. Right now Alabama leads, but when with recalculatios and with Ohio State the leader for top ten defensive end prospect J.T. tuimoloau. He’ll be announcing closer to the traditional February signing date.
- It’s a class that stretches across the country. There are six guys from Ohio, two from Pennsylvania, and two from Virignia. From there, thirteen different states each sent a guy to the banks of the Olentangy.
- It’s another class that knocked it out of the park at the wide receiver position again. Add that to the talent already in the cupboard in Columbus and the passing attack is going to be lights out for years to come.
- That’s mainly because the lone quarterback in this class, Kyle McCord, will be included in the mix of three-five star QB recruits (and one high-four) all in the room once Quinn Ewers gets to town in next year’s 2022 recruiting cycle (if his commitment sticks).
- There are just two running backs in the class, but two really, really good ones. TreVeyon Henderson could be the next big star, but don’t lose track of Evan Pryor either.
- Furthest from home? The top wide receiver in the class who just recently committed, Emeka Egbuka, is from the Seattle/Tacoma area.
- Closest to home? Five-star defensive end Jack Sawyer out of the suburb of Columbus, Pickerington.
- Amazingly enough, there are no kids from Florida. That is often the state Ohio State cherry picks more than any other because of the talent and speed there. It’s the first time there hasn’t been a prospect from the Sunshine state since 2003.
- There’s a lot of DBs in this class, six in total. That was an area of need and it’s a group that Ohio State feels very good about. BIA will continue it appears.
- The ratings for all of these kids had to be tough in 2020. A lot of kids didn’t have senior years and didn’t have the ability to rise up the recruiting service rankings. Still, Ohio State’s kids graded out well.
- On that note, under the radar recruits to watch include DBs Denzel Burke and Jantzen Dunn, as well as offensive tackle Zen Michalski.
- There are several kids that committed to Ohio State without ever stepping foot on campus because of the coronavirus pandemic. That had to be somewhat of an advantage for a program like OSU with the tradition and background of sending guys to the NFL.
- The gap between Ohio State and the rest of the Big Ten is getting greater. Michigan signed a top ten class, but it’s nowhere near as good as what the Buckeyes hauled in. OSU’s average rating per recruit is 94.56, Michigan’s is 90.37. The Wolverines have just one five-star commit, and ten four-stars. The Buckeyes have five five-stars and 13 four-stars. Penn State has dropped further down the rankings this year.
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