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Hicks and this recruiting class
Written by Duane Long   
Friday, 29 January 2010 12:45

Hicks chose Texas. Yes, I am shocked. Everything I was hearing was that it was trending our way for awhile. He was not happy about Charlie Strong leaving Florida. That is why I was surprised to hear yesterday that it seemed he was headed to Florida. It is Texas. First blush I think that makes Buckeye fans happier. It shouldn't. It means one less slot filled up by Florida who is still trying to get Seantrell Henderson. The closer they are to full, the better. For some reason Meyer is putting together one of the best classes ever. Great classes draw other great players.

As far as missing on Hicks is concerned, I am not going to change anything I do. Nobody is ever going to be right alot. These aren't our kids. This kid in particular has made it all the more difficult to get anything on him because he has played it so close to the vest. That leads to even more speculation. Fans want to know. The problem is, there are two sides to this. Some fans want absolutes. I can understand that. But there is a growing number of fans who have the mindset that even if I don't know, I am still in position to know more than they do and they want my best guess based on that. I am going to continue to put out what I know. In the future for fans who only want the facts, I will put some kind of notice about how much faith I have in the information. What I know and what I hear are two different things. Maybe that is all I need to note. We will see. Only these kids and their immediate families know everything about their recruitment. That any of us in this business are ever right is surprising, and more and more every year are taking the position that Jordan Hicks and Matt James have, this is their business and they will tell all of us when they are ready to tell us.

Speaking of great classes, when it broke that Hicks was not going to choose Ohio State there was some negative reaction. This is not going to be a great recruiting class. It never was going to be.

All great recruiting classes start instate. Not just Ohio State recruiting classes. The only school that has put together great recruiting classes on out of state talent is Notre Dame. We need to recruit the same caliber players as Florida to compete with Florida. We need to get the same caliber players as USC to beat USC. We are not going to get more talent out of Florida than Florida is going to get. We are not going to get more of the top talent from Texas than Texas will get. USC will not get more talent out of Florida than Florida will get. Florida and Texas will not get more talent out of California than USC will get. Now of them are going to beat us for Ohio talent. We have to have good crops at home and win those battles. When we don't we are not going to have great classes. This is not a great

1. It was not a good year instate. All the great classes have had a basis in Ohio. We had the best player in Ohio not play in Ohio.
2. A slow start because of a lack of scholarships. It kept the offers down which means the staff is not talking to as many players.


We have a generation that loves the spotlight. Flashy is sexy. They want it. They want the excitement. Being the center of attention is success. We have a generation that grew up staring at screens, whether they be televisions or computers. Jim Tressel is old school. He is not going to go that route. There are two choices. We go the route that is going to draw more of the kids that want the excitement or we go with the way we are going now. You cannot have it both ways.

This is a young team. There is alot of young talented kids working out at the WHAC as we speak. Filling needs will be what defines this class. If we land at least one of the offensive lineman, Henderson or Moses, I will see this class as a solid one. Not alot of holes on this roster. If we land both we will have gone a long way toward filling needs so I will call it a success.


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Comments (10)Add Comment
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written by RipsManifesto, January 29, 2010
Not to be a downer Duane, but losing out on yet another kid at or near signing day is disconcerting. We always point to Pryor, but he's been the exception and not the rule. I'm not sure what the deal is, but if it goes into January-February for these 5* kids OSU is more often than not losing the battle.

It was an uphill battle from the start, I get that. But I still find it frustrating to lose the best player in the state. Hicks stayed classy throughout the process so I'm not angry at him personally, but I am disappointed.

As a side point, and this is probably just being defensive, but I'm thinking at this point that I've believe we have Henderson when he actually faxes the LOI in. So much waiting around and playing the PR game that just rarely seems to work in OSU's favor.
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written by sehs95, January 29, 2010
Duane... it may not have been a great class in Ohio this year, but that being said, we still stuck out on arguably 5 of the top 6 instate players (Hicks, James, Ware, Hendrix, Anderson). Also the #1 TE in the state. All with offers. Safe to say that has never happened before in my memory.

So this class is not just about a lack of talent in Ohio this year... it's also about a failure to land what little talent there was.
A Tough Call...
written by Buck, January 29, 2010
Hate to say I told you so, but...Just saying.

You are NOT the man.

Opinions are fine, but Strong Opinions are dangerous...It hurts your credibility.
...
written by RipsManifesto, January 29, 2010
I kind of think we were snake-bitten this year. As I said on BN a while back, this year's class is unique if you look at their high school timeframe. Freshman year - Florida loss in NC. Sophomore year - LSU loss in NC. Junior year - Texas loss in Fiesta. Now, the losses aren't the point. The point is for the vast bulk of their high school careers, from freshman year to mostly through senior year, all they've seen is the media backlash we've experienced since 2006. How overrated OSU is, how much we choke, etc. I have to wonder if, for this one year at least, that didn't affect at least some kids. So many opinions are formed during this formative period in school, they don't just happen the moment they become seniors.
Why continue to make excuses
written by Pula, January 29, 2010
I'm not specifically talking about Hicks today, but in the broader context why is Buckeye nation so willing to make excuses for the coaches. When OSU had lost 3 straight bowl games (two of them were not competitive), I heard every excuse why we did not win. Conversely, when OSU beat Oregon, everyone decides that we are elite. It was clear to me at least that Oregon was over hyped and not the level of any of the previous three teams we lost to. Of course we are happy when we win, but shouldn't we keep are wins and losses in context? OSU was never a bad program when they lost three straight bowl games, but at the same time a win against Oregon doesn't show me that they are ready to compete with the big boys.

This idea permeates recruiting as well. Landing at least 1-2 recruits at the end of the year should be the standard for a program like OSU. A lot of depth problems happen when you are continually losing out on recruits late. No position has this been clearer than QB, safety and the OL. IMO, this has led to a lot of late or hurried offers. If we lose Pryor next year, who steps in? We don't even have one solidified safety that we can point to as a for sure heir apparent. The OL numbers still continue to be atrociously low. It just strikes me that some of these problems are ones for mid-level schools where depth is a problem, but it should not be for OSU.

Maybe I have to high of expectations for OSU, but why would you not? Ohio State is a top university across the nation with endless resources, the best fan base in america, a great tradition, and one the most talent rich states in the country. Florida, USC, Texas, etc may be equal to us in terms of advantages so why should we be happy to continually lose big time recruits to these schools?
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written by poop, January 29, 2010
Losing Hicks doesn't hurt that bad. We're loaded at linebacker so we didn't need Jordan this year anyway. Henderson we need badly. I'll probably be a bit negative if he goes elsewhere. Is it just me or is it an increasingly uphill battle to lure these blue-chip recruits to Ohio?
Hicks
written by Chris In SoCal, January 30, 2010
I agree losing out on Hicks isn't the end of the world, but I do agree that there is something to be concerned with the hurried last minute offers such as the one to Guiton last year. If The Franchise ever gets hurt, we are up a creek without a paddle. We have no solid depth at QB, I am not worried about safety or OL, QB is the most important position that we have. Also, even with our tradition, our rivalries, our resources, I still think Ohio State is a tough sell compared to most of the top schools. I lived in Ohio for 30 years before I moved away and I can you tell from experience....there is a lot more to offer than a nice campus...you go to USC, you got the beach, Hollywood, and Snoop at your practices. you go to Florida or Texas, well the girls are certainly not wearing coats and sweaters...we must keep our cupboard from being raided from the out of states schools.....bottom line
Looking for your thoughts???
written by AndyinOregon, January 30, 2010
Hey Duane, does not getting Hicks help us get Depriest next year??? Good chance Braxton and him are a package deal...now Hicks is not in his way at TOSU. Also, with the so called 2 scholarships remaining I would rather us get 2 OL than 1. your thoughts???
Navigating this sight?
written by tallcoolOne, January 30, 2010
Duane I like reading what you have to say, but you should spend more time fixing this website instead of recruiting analysis. Cart before horse.... For what ever reason you've had problems with your website/computer (even going back to the very early Bucknuts days) since its inception and have ignored the problem. Try navigating your own website and you will see what I'm talking about.
...
written by ry, January 31, 2010
Duane

how good or bad is the 2011 class going to be in ohio? i see some really good qb's & de's. do you see it stronger than 2010?

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