DAVID SANDERS AND WHAT'S NEXT
There were a number of very important official visitors at Ohio State this weekend but it's indisputable that five-star
David Sanders
was
the most important in Columbus.
Sanders and his family have grown increasingly comfortable at Ohio State over the last few months and that was the priority for the Buckeyes this weekend as well. There was plenty of time with Justin Frye and with parents of other recruits—especially the family of Devin Sanchez—and social time with current Ohio State players like Deontae and Devontae Armstrong.
Any thought of "Columbus being too far" or any notion like that has been dispelled by the Ohio State staff and each visit to town underscores that as well.
Everything has gone right for the Buckeyes in this recruitment since the early spring and right now the ball is on the two-yard line and Justin Frye and Ohio State are in a position where they just have to cross the goal line.
There are probably a few weeks to go before anyone gets the answer from David Sanders though. Ohio State feels it's exactly where it needs to be in his recruitment but the is expected to disconnect from the process while they work toward a decision that may not come until August.
The Buckeyes and the Tennessee Volunteers seem to be the primary players heading into decision mode.
DORIAN BREW HAS A DECISION TO MAKE
Ohio State and
Dorian Brew
are not strangers but this weekend in Columbus gave the Buckeyes a chance to reconnect with the Conroe (Texas) High School four-star cornerback and his family. That was something that was necessary after a handful of months where things felt like they were slipping away from Ohio State.
Things begun to shift back in a positive direction for the Buckeyes in May, aided by the decommitment of
Blake Woodby
, but there were still questions to be answered and for the most part that was taken care of this weekend. Yes, Texas and USC are going to continue fighting for the 6-foot-2, 185-pound athlete but Ohio State is hoping to move quickly and get the third piece of its epic cornerback haul locked up and locked in with the Buckeyes.
The biggest hurdle right now however may be the
idea that Brew is the "third" cornerback but Ohio State has been very clear: being third doesn't make you "the third." Brew's athletic profile and traits are extremely high level and he's only really begun to scratch the surface of his potential in the secondary. The national rankings of Devin Sanchez and
Na'eem Offord
aren't going to dictate what happens with Brew's development and playing time in Columbus—only his commitment and work-ethic will.
NIL is going to play a role in this recruitment and Texas, Oregon and USC are all being more aggressive on than front than Ohio State but there's optimism that the Buckeyes can win out in the end despite that.
ALABAMA PROSPECTS POP INTO BIG TEN COUNTRY
Ohio State took its best swing with four-star defensive linemen
Malik Autry
and
Zion Grady
as the pair of Alabama standouts came north for the weekend.
And really, there's no point in sugarcoating things here so we'll just lay it all out: it's going to be
darn hard to flip Malik Autry for Auburn. He's basically living in the Tigers backyard with a family full of Auburn fans. Hugh Freeze and his program picked up an early commitment from Autry and there are great lengths that they'll go to order to preserve it. Autry is, by all accounts, very interested in Ohio State but barring something colossally bad happening at Auburn that forces him to look elsewhere, it seems that battle will continue to be uphill even after a great official visit weekend.
Grady on the other hand, does not feel that way. In fact, after talking to a number of sources in Columbus on Sunday I think it'd be an upset if he picked a school other than Ohio State but there will be a couple days worth of cool down coming as Miami, Florida State, Auburn and Tennessee work to keep him in the south. The country's No. 3-ranked weakside edge defender has been unequivocal in his interest in the Buckeyes since Larry Johnson offered in early May and the momentum right now feels like it's all tinged in Scarlet and Gray. There is some speculation that a decision could come this week and if it does that certainly bodes well for Ohio State.
And speaking of Alabama prospects, the aforementioned Na'eem Offord was at Ohio State for his official visit as well this weekend. There has been a lot of smoke about Alabama, Oregon and other schools in the last few weeks but this weekend
should quiet a lot of that chatter for the time being. There's not a single person who spent any time with Offord who believes he or his family is legitimately on the fence about his recruitment and while the recruiting "game" has been fun to play a little bit, it'd be a major surprise if there were any fireworks in his process any time soon.
ANOTHER IN-STATE COMMITMENT COMING SOON?
Ohio State added a commitment from in-state offensive lineman Jake Cook on Sunday and if things go as expected there could be a decision coming soon from Gilmour Academy (Cleveland) three-star tight end
Brody Lennon
as well.
Lennon spent the weekend at Ohio State after being at Kentucky a week ago and the primary goal was to get more comfortable around the Buckeyes players and coaches, especially tight end commit
Nate Roberts
. There were not a lot of questions that needed to be answered for the 6-foot-4, 225-pound Lennon heading into the weekend and by most accounts what few there were have been answered. The Buckeyes aren't going to be pushy and demand an answer quickly but the case of '
Who could be the second tight end in the 2025 class?'seems all but solved.
JORDON DAVISON AND THE TWO-TEAM RACE?
There's been a lot of discussion in the last few weeks centered around
Jordon Davison
and most of it has been about Ohio State and Oregon though Michigan had been holding onto some optimism that it could pull off a coup and land him.
That dream could be close to dead for Wolverines after landing
Donovan Johnson
on Sunday and the Davison recruitment has settled back into what it's been for most of the last two months: Ohio State and Oregon. Alabama shouldn't be entirely written off here—Kalen Deboer is cooking a bit and the Crimson Tide have put together a very solid offensive line group, including new commit
Micah Debose
—but the Buckeyes and the Ducks have the best relationships with the
No. 2-ranked running back
in the country.
Ohio State would like a decision soon and I think Davison is ready to oblige on that front. Sources in Columbus suggested he's growing weary of the recruiting process and despite how long this has lasted for him there's no one who believes the Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) standout is interesting game-playing or anything like that.
This one should be over, one way or another, in the near future as well.
. Offord dad goated too. Smacking cats on Twitter about a Bama coach being better than Walt 
