Bill Kurelic June and
July 2002
July 3, 2002
The Buckeyes are hoping to go to that state up north and steal one
away from the Wolverines and Spartans and that certainly could happen.
One of the country's top DEs, Doug Van Dyke, who happens to
be one of the top three prospects in Michigan, is very, very interested
in OSU. Van Dyke, 6-6, 245, 4.8, had nine sacks last year for Marshall
H.S. He has a 2.4 GPA and a 21 on the ACT. He is the younger brother
of former MSU QB Ryan Van Dyke but Doug doesn't have the Spartans
in his top three. He tells me that he went to Michigan's camp for
one day but he probably will not go to any other camps this summer.
He also visited Purdue and mentioned that he will visit OSU probably
this month. He is looking at OSU, Michigan, Purdue, MSU, Wisconsin
and LSU. He said OSU, Purdue and Michigan are his top three and it's
a three-way tie for first. He has been offered by all of the schools
on his list. He said that he is planning to take official visits to
OSU, UM and Purdue for sure. He said he likes the OSU program, the
"new coach" as he put it.
DL Brandon Maupin from Westchester Lakota High School, 6-6,
270, 4.9, was impressive at the OSU senior camp. He was not offered
a scholarship immediately but right after camp he said that DL Coach
Jim Heacock indicated that he was going to push for an offer. Maupin
did get that offer from OSU. He now has offers from, among others,
Purdue, S. Carolina, Northwestern, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Pitt,
B.C., Kentucky, Cincinnati and OSU. Maupin says that his top three
remain OSU, Tennessee and Notre Dame. He does not seem to be in a
big hurry to make a decision.
Speaking of the Bucks' senior camp, LB Brian Czekanski from
Medford Lakes Lenape High School in New Jersey, 6-5, 225, 4.7 made
the trip from the East to Columbus for the camp. Czekanski, who made
58 solo tackles during his junior year, told me he really liked the
OSU senior camp. He said he liked working with the OSU coaches and
working in small groups. Czekanski, who ran a 4.7 40 and had a 26-inch
vertical jump, said he got to spend some time talking with Jim Tressel.
He mentioned that he had been to camps at OSU and Virginia. He said
he is looking at OSU, Virginia, B.C., Northwestern and Illinois. He
said he does not have a favorite right now.
OL Ryan Harris, one of the best in the Midwest, plans a visit
to OSU sometime this month. Harris, from St. Paul Cretin-Durham H.S.
in Minnesota, is 6-5, 255, 5.0 with a 3.7 GPA and a 23 on the ACT.
Harris tells me that he has been to camps at Michigan and Miami (FL)
saying both were excellent. He says he also will probably visit OSU
and Notre Dame this month. He says he is pretty open-minded while
still doing research on schools but mentioned ND, Michigan, Miami,
OSU, USC, Oregon, Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota as schools he
is interested in. He does not have a favorite. He said that all of
those schools except OSU and Michigan have offered.
DB Tony Gonzalas, who committed to OSU several weeks ago, has gotten
a teammate in this recruiting class. OSU offered a scholarship at
the senior camp to DB/LB Kurt Lukens from North Canton Hoover.
The 6-3, 200, 4.5 40 prospect called Coach Tressel and formally committed
to OSU. Lukens, who played LB and WR during his junior season, made
120 tackles including eight sacks and picked off two passes. Lukens
was very impressive at OSU's senior camp. Lukens talked with his mother
and his high school coach and then called OSU and made his commitment.
Lukens father said that OSU has recruited Kurt as an "athlete,"
the kind of kid who can come in and do a lot of things, perhaps playing
SS, OLB or even do some things on offense. Lukens had been offered
a scholarship by every school in Ohio as well as Pitt.
Another player the Bucks offered a scholarship to at the senior camp
was QB Brady Quinn from Dublin Coffman High School in Ohio.
Quinn, 6-4, 210, threw for 2,200 yards and 21 TDs during his junior
season. He was picked off 15 times. Quinn now has offers from, among
others, OSU, Michigan, Tennessee, S. Carolina, Colorado and Louisville
as well as others such as Illinois, Indiana, Clemson and Ga. Tech.
Quinn told me that OSU's senior camp went well. He said he got to
talk to OSU assistant coach Joe Daniels as well as Tressel. Quinn
said he is still thinking things through. He wants to see how everything
goes. He said he plans to talk to Notre Dame and perhaps visit the
Irish. He did not give any timetable as to when he would make a decision.
OL Ty Hall from Cincinnati Anderson H.S. was at the camp. Hall
will now head to ND for a visit.
Another prospect to add to the senior camp attendees is a WR out of
Georgia, Harry Douglas. Douglas is from Jonesboro, Ga.
June 25, 2002
Perhaps the biggest name in attendance at the second session of Ohio
State's football camp is an out of state player, defensive back Ashton
Youboty from Houston, Kline High School. Youboty is a 6-1, 185
pounder with 4.45 40 speed. He had a good camp at OSU though the Buckeyes
to this point have not offered him a scholarship. A few instate names
that attended the second session of the camp include DB Brian Jones
from Avon Lake, a player that the Buckeyes are interested in, as well
as a couple of offensive linemen such as Kirk Barton and Zack
Slates, both from Massillon Perry.
DB Donte Whitner (5-11, 175, 4.3) from Cleveland Glenville
attended two days of Ohio State's first session of camp. Whitner is
one of the top DB prospects in the entire nation. Whitner already
has a scholarship offer from Ohio State and many, many other schools
across the country. Also attending the first session of camp was RB
Justin Valentine (6-2, 205, 4.45) from Columbus Eastmoor. Valentine
does not yet have an offer from OSU, but that could happen. A good
case could be made for him being the top RB prospect in Ohio this
year.
Wednesday of this week is the day that the Big Ohio State senior
camp begins and some outstanding prospects will be in attendance,
including a number of prospects the Buckeyes have already offered
a scholarship to. OL Ty Hall from Cincinnati Anderson, a 6-6,
280 pounder, will be on hand, and he says that the Buckeyes have told
him that if he has a good camp he would get a scholarship offer. Hall
has 19 scholarship offers so far, including offers from Illinois,
Indiana, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Vanderbilt, Clemson, Duke and
Cincinnati among others. Hall will attend the OSU camp, then will
go to Michigan to visit the Wolverines, leaving on Thursday evening.
Then he will also visit Notre Dame as well as Illinois and Northwestern.
Another Cincinnatian that is planning to be at the senior camp is
DL Brandon Maupin (6-6, 270, 4.9). Maupin tells me that he
will probably attend the camp for just one day on Wednesday. He has
already been to camp at Tennessee and Notre Dame. He has visited Michigan
as well. Maupin says that Tennessee, Michigan State and Purdue have
offered him a scholarship among others. He says that the schools he
is interested in are Ohio State, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Michigan State,
Michigan and Purdue. He says that it is between Ohio State, Tennessee
and Notre Dame for his leader, but of those three Tennessee is the
only one that has offered thus far.
DE/OLB Shawn Crable (6-6, 230, 4.6) from Massillon Washington
will also attend the senior camp this week. Crable went to Michigan's
camp and has also been to Kentucky for a team camp. Crable says he
is up in the air on his college choice right now, but says he likes
Michigan, Ohio State and Miami of Florida. He also has spoken with
USC, Texas, Florida, Maryland, and he likes Tennessee as well. All
those schools have offered Crable a scholarship. Crable said Michigan
and Ohio State are still high on his list, but Miami and USC are moving
up. He says he probably will wait and take some official visits before
making a decision.
Crable's teammate, Devon Jordan (6-3, 190, 4.5), will also
attend the OSU camp. Jordan is one of the Midwest's finest receiver
prospects and has been offered a scholarship by Ohio State.
WR Jeff Samardzija
(6-4, 190,
4.4) from Indiana is one of the better prospects in the Midwest and
is planning on being at OSU's senior camp. He has been to Notre Dame's
camp and the Irish offered him a scholarship. It will be interesting
to see if he gets an offer from Ohio State this week. He also has
offers from Purdue and Indiana and plans to visit both of those schools.
. He has already camped at Michigan. He caught 51 passes and averaged
23 yards per catch last year and scored 12 times. He has easily qualified
academically. He says his favorites, in no particular order, are Notre
Dame, Michigan, Penn State, Ohio State, Purdue and Indiana.
LB Jim Presley
(6-3, 225, 4.5) from Michigan has been offered a scholarship
by Ohio State and plans to be in Columbus for the senior camp. He
was at Michigan's football camp and was offered a scholarship by the
Wolverines. He had been offered a scholarship sometime back by OSU.
Presley will camp at Penn State on the 28th through the 30th. He has
been offered by Michigan State, Penn State, Wisconsin and Purdue in
addition to OSU and Michigan. He is looking at all of those schools
as well as Iowa and Notre Dame.
WR Bryan Williamson (6-3, 185, 4.5)
from Thomas Worthington High School will be at the senior camp this
week. He has been to camps at Louisville and Bowling Green, as well
as Pitt and Tennessee. He will also attend West Virginia's camp later
this month. He says he currently likes Pitt a lot, but he really doesn't
have a favorite right now. He has not yet received offers from the
schools he has visited, though he did say that Pitt indicated they
would have offered but they have other wide receivers coming in to
visit and aren't quite ready to offer as yet.
TE Marcel Frost (6-5, 235, 4.6) plans
to be at the OSU senior camp this week. Frost is from Lyndurst Brush
High School.
OL Dan Pribula (6-6, 315, 5.1) says he will not be able to
make the camp at OSU, but Pribula is still considering the Buckeyes.
He has offers from Pitt, Northwestern, Louisville, Maryland and Vanderbilt.
Pribula says he is wide open and mentions OSU and Stanford among others.
June 14, 2002
Champ Davis from Texas is interested in OSU and his father
is a former OSU football player. Davis, 6-3, 210, 4.5 40, during his
junior season played almost totally offense at RB and WR. He rushed
for more than 700 yards and nearly 300 receiving yards while scoring
11 TDs. However he is being recruited more as a SS or OLB for college.
Davis has a 3.4 GPA. He tells me that right now he is looking at Florida,
Notre Dame, Ga. Tech, Texas, OSU, Michigan State and Arkansas just
a bit. He said Arkansas, Vanderbilt, Iowa and W.Va. have offered.
Davis said that his top choices in no particular order would be OSU,
MSU, Texas, Ga. Tech, Florida and Notre Dame. Davis' father, Jerome
Davis, was on the OSU football team for a couple of years in the 70s
and that's how he got interested in OSU. He also mentioned that he
talked to Coach Bill Conley in May.
TE Nick Stefanow from Wheeling Park High School in W. Va.,
6-5, 215, 4.6 40, caught more than 30 passes and scored six times
during his junior season and has a 4.0 GPA. He said that Purdue, Ohio
and Duke have offered. He said that he's pretty wide open and he is
visiting many different schools, in fact, he already has visited OSU,
Pitt, W.Va., Penn State and Purdue. He will got to camp at Pitt later
this week and also plans to camp at Penn State, W.Va. and possibly
Duke and Va. in July. He said he does not have a favorite.
One of the top RB prospects in the state of New York is interested
in Ohio State, Jo-Lonn Dunbar from Syracuse Cochran High School
in NY. Dunbar, 6-0, 215, 4.5 40, rushed for 1,324 yards and 16 TDs
during his junior season. He also played LB and while he feels that
his primary position is RB, he is also a strong safety in college.
Dunbar has a 3.3 GPA and an 800 on the SAT. He tells me that right
now his number one choice is Michigan State. The Spartans have offered
him. He says that Ohio State, Michigan, Pitt and Boston College and
possibly Penn State are the others that would be his main schools
of interest. Dunbar said that in addition to MSU, Pitt also has offered
a scholarship. He said that he is not particularly close to making
a decision.
Speaking of RBs, Marcus Fitzgerald from Richfield Holy Angels
Academy in Minnesota is interested in Ohio State. He actually has
OSU as his favorite school. Marcus is the younger brother of WR Larry
Fitzgerald who just graduated from Valley Forge Military Prep School
in Pennsylvania. Larry made an official visit to OSU this past recruiting
season before ultimately deciding to stay with his original commitment
to Pitt. Marcus rushed for close to 1,600 yards during his junior
season and he has a 2.8 GPA. Marcus visited OSU in February and he
was very impressed. He is currently looking at Ohio State, Pitt and
MSU as well as Illinois and Minnesota. Fitzgerald said that Ohio State
is his favorite. He said he really liked it at OSU and that he felt
very good about the coaches and especially like head coach Jim Tressel.
DL Nick Larkin from Cincinnati St. Xavier has a number of scholarship
offers on the table. Larkin has not to this point been offered by
OSU but he remains interested in OSU. Larkin, 6-5, 245, 4.8 40, registered
12 sacks during his junior season. Larkin, who has a 3.0 GPA, scored
a 24 on the ACT. He tells me that he now has 10 scholarship offers:
Virginia; Miami (OH); Cincinnati; BC; Ga. Tech; Maryland; Pitt; Wake
Forest; S. Carolina and Duke. Larkin said his is most interested in
Notre Dame, Virginia, he said OSU is in there, alone with Michigan,
BC and N. Carolina. Larkin has been to see some schools but said he
wants to get out and see a lot of others. Larkin said that he's going
to go down south soon to visit Wake Forest, Duke, S. Carolina and
N. Carolina as well as MD. He said he also is planning to visit BC.
Larkin said it's up in the air right now whether he will attend the
OSU senior camp later this month. He said that if he had to name a
leader at this point he said he would guess that it would be Virginia.
OL Devin Kirkland from Aliquippa, PA, 6-7, 300, is interested
in OSU. Kirkland, who starts at offensive RT, has a 2.6 GPA. He tells
me that he is looking at Ohio State, Ga. Tech, Pitt, MD and Bowling
Green. He said that most of those schools, including OSU, have had
coaches at is high school. Kirkland said that he likes OSU best. He
said that he likes the academics and the location, the campus and
the people. Kirkland was at OSU for a junior day. He plans to attend
Pitt's football camp the middle of this month.
One of the top prostyle QBs in the state of California has ties to
Ohio and attended OSU's spring game and will be back in Columbus this
month for OSU's senior camp. That QB is Brian White from Mission
Viejo Trabuco Hills High School. White, 6-6, 215, 4.7 40, threw for
1,500 yards and 14 TDs in his junior season, completing 58% of his
passes. White was picked off six times. He tells me that from the
Midwest he's being recruited by OSU, Wisconsin and Illinois. Of those
three, he is most interested in OSU and Ill. He said that he's also
interested in Colorado, Washington, Washington State, Oregon, USC
and UCLA. He said that a couple of schools have told him that if performs
well at their camp they might offer a scholarship. He said that he's
going to camps at OSU, Colorado and Washington. He said that he would
be at the Buckeyes' senior camp June 26-27. White also attended OSU's
spring game and said that he really liked it. He called OSU a great
place to play football and said the campus is very nice. White's family
is from Ohio, the Cleveland area, and he mentioned that OSU assistant
coach Jim Heacock recruited his father to go to Bowling Green.
LB prospect Nick Oakley from Virginia Beach Ocean Lakes High
School, 6-3, 240, is interested in OSU. Oakley runs a 4.7 40 and has
started as a sophomore and junior at both DT and C but will play OLB
this coming season. He is being recruited as a LB. He has a 2.9 GPA
and a 1070 on the SAT. He told me that in no particular order he likes
William and Mary, Virginia, Michigan, OSU, E. Carolina and N. Carolina.
Oakley said that coaches from Ohio State and Michigan were at his
combine but he did not have a chance to talk to them. He mentioned
that OSU sends him a letter per week.
Not long ago I told you about LB Wesley Jefferson. Jefferson,
from the state of Maryland, is one of the South's top LB prospects.
He had said that the Bucks had offered him a scholarship and that
he would likely be going to camp at OSU this summer. He has a number
of offers on the table and recently additional schools have offered
scholarships. Among them are Miami (FL); Purdue; W. Va.; N. Carolina
all of which have offered. He remains interested in OSU and camping
there this summer. Jefferson is a 6-2, 230 LB at Gwynn Park High School
in MD.
Moving to the Midwest, Lonnie Hurst is a WR prospect that has
a number of Big Ten scholarship offers and Hurst mentions OSU. Hurst,
from Detroit Jesuit High School, 6-3, 180, 4.5 40, has a 3.3 GPA and
a 30 on the ACT. He caught 39 passes and scored nine TDs averaging
21 YPC during his junior season. Hurst tells me that he has scholarship
offers from MSU, Purdue, Iowa, NW, Illinois, Colorado, Wisconsin,
MD and Indiana. He says the schools he's focusing on are MSU, Purdue,
Michigan, OSU, Illinois, NW and Colorado. He says that right now his
top three would probably be Illinois, MSU and Purdue but he is interested
in the Bucks.
June 6, 2002
Offensive lineman Tyler Luellen
from Bethany, Missouri South Harrison High School is one
of the top line prospects in the state of Missouri and he is drawing
plenty of interest from Ohio State. Luellen, a 6-7, 275 pounder, runs
a 5.2 40. He starts at both offensive and defensive tackle but will
play on offense in college. Luellen will be a four-year varsity starter
and helped lead his team to an 11-1 record during his junior season.
He was named all-state as both a junior and a sophomore. He has close
to a 3.5 GPA and also is the state discus champ. He is getting plenty
of mail from the Buckeyes, estimating approximately 50 letters he
has received so far from Ohio State. He plans on sending OSU a game
tape. He already has scholarship offers on the table from Missouri,
Illinois, Kansas, Oklahoma State and Colorado State. He is interested
in those schools as well as Purdue and Georgia Tech, and those two
schools have indicated they too will offer.
Daniel Henderson from Marion Franklin High School in Columbus
will be one of the better offensive line prospects in Columbus and
the 6-3, 300 pound Henderson is interested in Ohio State. Henderson
says the Buckeyes are one of his top five choices. Also on his list
are Pitt, he is very interested in the Panthers, as well as Northwestern.
Henderson has not been offered as yet by OSU.
June is football camp month for the Buckeyes. OSU puts tremendous
emphasis on their summer camp in terms of recruiting, as it is a great
tool for Ohio State to evaluate prospects. In past years OSU has offered
a number of prospects at camp and have come away with at least one
new verbal commitment. Almost 2,000 prospects will be at various OSU
camps this month. Camps sessions are scheduled for June 18 - June
21, June 22 - June 23, and June 26 and 27 will be the senior elite
camp which has been a great recruiting tool for the Buckeyes. Some
outstanding prospects who have told me they plan on being in attendance
are DE Sian Cotton and DE Ray Edwards, both of whom
have been offered a scholarship by OSU. OL Ty Hall from Cincinnati
Anderson will attend camp and it will be interesting to see if the
Buckeye coaches offer him a scholarship at camp. DB Brian
Jones from Avon Lake High School also plans to camp at
OSU, as well as QB Brady Quinn from Dublin Coffman High Schools.
Quinn is one of the fastest rising QBs in the country. He has a number
of scholarship offers on the table and will camp at OSU. Also DL Brandon
Maupin from Westchester Lakota, High School plans to camp at OSU.
Maupin does not have an offer yet from the Buckeyes but does have
a number of excellent offers on the table. DB Curt Lukens is
another fine prospect that will be camping at OSU this month. Lukens
is from North Canton Hoover High School. From out of state, LB Wesley
Jefferson from Maryland will be on hand. Jefferson has already
been offered a scholarship by OSU. Those are just a few of the prospects
that will be at OSU's summer camp this June.
WR/DB Steve Richardson from Texas is a 5-10, 170 pounder with
4.4 40 speed. He starts at both WR and safety. In his sophomore season
he started at running back. In college, however, he will be a wide
receiver or cornerback. He has a 2.4 GPA and is looking at Texas A&M,
Oklahoma, UCLA, Oklahoma State, Ohio State, Texas, Baylor and Arkansas.
Baylor and Arkansas have already offered a scholarship. He says he
does not have a favorite and says that the Buckeyes have called him.
In Michigan RB Jerome Jackson from Saginaw is one of the top
prospects overall in Michigan, and the 6-0, 195 pounder who runs a
4.5 40 says he is looking at all of the Big Ten schools including
Ohio State. Jackson has a 3.5 GPA and rushed for almost 1,800 yards,
averaged 10 yards per carry and scored 25 times during his junior
season. Jackson set a record for the most yards in a playoff game
with 406. He says he does not have a favorite though he likes all
the Big Ten schools. He says that Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue,
Minnesota, and Nebraska have offered a scholarship.
OL Pat Sharrow from Monroe, Michigan
is a 6-5, 275 pounder who has an interest in Ohio State. Sharrow runs
a 4.95 40 and has played both offensive guard and offensive tackle.
He has excellent strength, bench pressing 375 pounds. He will likely
be a guard in college. Sharrow has a 3.5 GPA and says that he is pretty
much looking at the Big Ten and Midwest schools including Michigan,
Michigan State, Purdue and Notre Dame. He also has some interest in
Ohio State and mentions that Central Michigan, Bowling Green and Toledo
have offered a scholarship, but says that right now Michigan is probably
his favorite.
Andrew Crummey from Van Wert, Ohio says that the Buckeyes
have been to his school. The 6-5, 280 pound Crummey, who runs a 5.2
40, told me that Luke Fickell was at his school, and Crummey added
that he plans to attend OSU's senior camp in June. Crummey also has
been to an OSU junior day. Crummey played offensive tackle his sophomore
season before moving to offensive guard his junior year. He said that
coaches from OSU, Purdue, Michigan State, Bowling Green, Cincinnati,
Kent State and Iowa have been to his school. He has offers from Cincinnati,
Kent State, Bowling Green, and Eastern Michigan.
Another OL the Buckeyes have looked at is Mike
McGlynn form Austintown Fitch High School. McGlynn is a
6-5, 315 pound OL with 5.2 40 speed. He says that Maryland, Syracuse,
Pitt, North Carolina, Boston College and Ohio State are some of the
schools in which he is interested. He says coaches from all of those
schools have been to his high school. McGlynn plans to camp this summer
at OSU, Pitt, Syracuse and Maryland. He says that right now Maryland
would probably be his favorite.
Bill Kurelic May 2002 Posts