| 28 July 2010
Looking at the second half of the recruiting class now.
9 - Devin Smith, WR, Massillon. I was one of those surprised by the fact that it took Smith so long to get an offer. I see a kid with so much upside. His athlete season was spectacular. He lit it up on the track and came to camp and lit it up. I see a player who is going to be so much more than he is right now physically. He is going to get bigger and stronger and I think he is one of those players who is going to get a good deal faster. He is already one of those players who runs by people. If he is even, he is leavin'. I could not be happier that he waited around on an offer. He had the kind of list that many players would just say forget Ohio State and take one of them.
10 - Nick Vannett, TE, Westerville Central. I think Vannett is underrated in general but fans don't get how important his verbal is. I think the tease of a verbal for so long put some fans off but make no mistake of the importance of landing a player of this calber. Ohio State is never going to be a tight end featured offense under Jim Tressel. Some of you want to see a tight end involved in the offense like we see with other porgrams. The tight ends are such a weapon because that is what they are supposed to be in those offenses. In our offense the tight end needs to be a great blocker first. If he is a good receiver that is just icing on the cake. Most kids as talented as Vannett want to be in tight end featured offenses. That we got a player who is the great blocker we need but can be a weapon as a receiver is a real coup. We are starting to drop off in the overall talent level of tight end. Vannett goes a long way in restoring it.
11 - Ron Tanner, FS, Eastmoor Academy. I look at where this talented kid is on this list and that is what defines how good this class is. Tanner is the kind of safety I would target every year. A player like Tanner at free safety allows Jim Heacock the flexibility of playing cover 2 or 8 in the box because he is a good tackler but he is so good on the ball that Heacock can put 8 in the box and know Tanner is going to sit back there and make plays on the ball. That is what I love the most about his game.He reads the game very well, breaks on the ball and has the size and athleticism to go up and battle big receivers for the ball. Watch on this video from ScoutingOhio.com how many times he gets his hands on the football.
http://scoutingohio.com/index.php/view-profile.html?task=userProfile&user=1243&srid=4068
12 - Evan Spencer, WR, Ill. I cannot shake the feeling that this kid is going to surprise everyone. I see a smooth natural athlete that shows some explosion and some strength to go with it. He is being used as much as a runner as he is a receiver, maybe that is because he has a quarterback who will be a receiver in college throwing him the ball.. I am intrigued by what he can be once he is running patterns on every play and has a real quarterback throwing him the ball.
13 -Antonio Underwood, OL, Shaker Heights. If there is a left tackle in this class it is Underwood. He plays left tackle right now and does a good job. He has the feet and the wingspan. He has nice technique for a high school kid. He can add weight and not impact his athleticism. If he were longer he would be a higher rated kid. He is a better DT right now. I love that. Comes off the snap well on defense.
14 -Tommy Brown, OL, Akron St.V-St. Mary. The more I see of him the better I like him. He is a powerhouse. If not for Bennett and Donovan Clark we would all be talking about what a punch Brown has. He is like Underwood in the fact that he is a better DT right now. He plays harder on defense. Wait until he accepts that he is an offensive player and puts the same effort into playing offense. Knocks people down and shoves him them around the field. Several people that have seen him up close say the listed 6-5 300 is accurate. A real specimen.
15 -Jeff Heuerman - TE, FL. His video is so short that it is hard to make an evaluation. When I can't see them myself I default to offer lists. His includes Alabama, LSU and Tennessee. "Nuff said.
16 -Chris Carter, OL, Cleveland JFK. A soup sandwich. He is a mess. He stands straight up. He bends at the waist instead of at the knee. He pushes instead of punches. Just when I am about to ask why he was offered comes a play on the film where he puts it altogether and you see why. He is a project more than a prospect but if he takes to coaching he could be the best of this offensive line class three or four years from now.
17 - Derjuan Gambrell - This is the one. The only kid in the class that I am not sure about. Seems we could have waited on some other top kids before offering him. I have not seen the film that the staff offered him off of. the one I have seen shows a good looking athlete. I don't know about him playing corner. That is where I lose my steam over this offer. I have questions about how this staff has recruited safeties and there is solid evidence that it has been a mixed bag at best, but I am definitely reluctant to question decisions about corners. Whether they were superstars or players who made you say who, this staff has done a great job of identifying talent and developing at corner.
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