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Football
Recruiting Rundown: The Final Countdown
By Brandon CastelFor college coaches, the recruiting season can often seem longer and more grueling than the actual season itself. Convincing high school kids to come to your school is a year-round job, but National Signing Day is truly the one day of the year where every coach in the country can breathe a sigh of relief.
With only one day to go, Ohio State Head Coach Jim Tressel and others like him are making the final push for uncommitted players like Seantrel Henderson and Matt James.
Where will the Buckeyes finish and how will they close out there class? Only the fax machine will tell, but there’s speculation a plenty as the big day approaches.
Getting Harry with the Henderson’s
While the majority of top recruits make their college decisions known throughout the course of the season, there are always a few big names that choose to hold the suspense until the very end. While Seantrel Henderson has not been one to get caught up in the recruiting hype, he will finally make his college choice Wednesday as he picks between Ohio State, USC, Miami, Notre Dame and Florida.
After all but narrowing his list to OSU and USC, Henderson listed the Hurricanes as strong contenders after his visit to South Beach over the weekend. The ‘Canes made enough of an impact that they could get a look come signing day, but most recruiting services are still calling it an OSU-USC battle for the nation’s top-rated prospect.
The Buckeyes certainly have location on their side along with coaching stability (it’s hard to imagine Henderson getting as excited to play for Lane Kiffin as he was Pete Carroll), but his parents recently announced they would likely move with their son if it was one of the locations they wanted. That bodes well for the Trojans, but it didn’t stop all five Rivals.com experts from predicting Henderson will fax his LOI to Columbus tomorrow.
Even with four starters coming back on the offensive line, Henderson could step in and compete right away for the left tackle spot at Ohio State if he selects the Buckeyes on signing day.
Irish Eyes Smiling on James?
Whether or not Henderson makes the call for Ohio State, the Buckeyes would still love to add Matt James to the class. The four-star offensive lineman out of Cincinnati St. Xavier visited Notre Dame over the weekend and officially narrowed his recruitment to a two-school battle between ND and OSU. He had named the Buckeyes as slight front-runners before the visit to South Bend, but Irish Eyes could be smiling when James announces his decision on National Signing Day.
Anderson Will Mull Decision Past Signing Day
According to a number of sources, Latwan Anderson will not sign his letter of intent to West Virginia Wednesday. In fact, he likely won’t sign for any school tomorrow. The playmaking safety out of Glenville has been committed to WVU since the beginning of January but recently told Rivals.com that he now has an official offer waiting on him at Ohio State.
The offer comes on the heels of Jordan Hicks’ decision to play at Texas, but it seems to have conflicted Anderson to the point where he will not be able to make his decision by this week. A five-star prospect and the top-rated player in Ohio by Rivals, Anderson has not eliminated USC from the mix either, although cancelling his trip to Los Angeles recently does not bode well for the Trojans.
Expect this one to go a few more weeks. If he makes the trip out west, USC will be tough to beat. If not, the Buckeyes should be able to overtake the Mountaineers.
Moses Staying Put?
Another player who could push his decision back is offensive lineman Morgan Moses. The 6-foot-7 tackle out of Richmond, Va. played at Fork Union Military School this past season and is still working on getting his academics in order. He was committed to the University of Virginia last season but had opened his recruitment to include Ohio State and LSU.
He was expected to make the trip to Baton Rouge over the weekend, but did not, which means it’s likely a two-horse race between OSU and UVa. If he chooses to sign Wednesday, it will likely be Virginia simply because he has yet to visit either of the other two schools. The longer his recruitment goes, however, the better Ohio State’s chances, especially if they can get him on campus for a visit. That would all but seal the deal.
Brown Skips Town
With only a few spots left in the class of 2010, one player the Buckeyes were considering as a last-minute add-on was Dominique Brown. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound athlete out of Cincinnati Winton Woods took an official visit to Louisville over the weekend and liked it so much that he decided to commit on Sunday.
Brown only recently picked up an offer from Ohio State, but opted for UL over OSU and hometown Cincinnati in hopes that the Cardinals will give him a chance to play quarterback at the college level. He ran for nearly 2,000 yards and 32 touchdowns as a senior while leading the Warriors to their first state championship, but passed for fewer than 800 yards this past season.
Class Clown or One Foot out the Door?
The recruitment of James Louis has been of the stranger stories of the 2010 recruiting season. The 5-foot-11 wideout from Delray Beach, Fla. has been committed to the Buckeyes since July, but that hasn’t stopped him from being rumored to a number of different schools leading up to Signing Day. While Florida has always been the big name out there, a rumor emerged Monday after Louis posted on his Facebook wall that he was considering the University of Minnesota.
Louis’ teammate Donnell Kirkwood is currently committed to play for coach Tim Brewster and the Gophers next season, and it’s possible Louis could pull a last-minute switch much like Justin Green did last Signing Day when he backed out of his OSU commitment in favor of Illinois.
There’s an overwhelming feeling, however, amongst recruiting experts that Louis is simply a player who enjoys the spotlight and is taking full advantage of the recruiting process, which will draw to a close for him Wednesday. It’s certainly possibly that all the joking could represent a rift between Louis and Ohio State, but the smart money has him signing with the Buckeyes when it’s all said and done.
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