Ahh, the day has finally come.
Except it’s not that exciting if you’re a fan of Ohio.
Most of the enthusiasm for today’s National Signature Day has been erased by the fact that the Buckeyes have almost entirely ended their 2021 recruiting class during the initial hiring period in December. They signed all 21 of their commits, and there are only two uncommitted and unsigned players left on the board for Ohio to potentially land.
But that’s okay, though. There are still some intriguing events that will emerge from the day’s half-car, and we take a look at five of these stories:
Where will Raesjon Davis go?
Prior to his visit to Columbus more than two weeks ago, I felt very good about Ohio State’s prospects for launching Mater Dei (California) four-star linebacker Raesjon Davis. Even though I left the visit, I thought the Buckeyes were prepared to take the lead and finally hire him today.
Davis and his family already had a great relationship with Al Washington, and I felt good about his visit to Columbus closing the deal there.
“We don’t even talk about football,” said Davis Eleven Warriors before your visit. “We are just talking about things in normal life. I know he is out there with his family now in Florida, just enjoying family time. We don’t talk much about football, it’s more like a family. This is really what it is; that’s why I love him so much. Whenever I’m thinking about where I want to go, I’m always keeping Ohio in my mind.
“I think it’s the personality because my dad doesn’t really like that many coaches. So he really likes him a lot. ”
Raesjon Davis is likely to sign with the USC when he announces his decision today. (Ken Ruinard / USA Today)
But then there were crickets. No wave of real momentum emulating that Buckeyes would be the choice.
And while we’re here today, I’m not confident that Davis will sign with the state of Ohio. My choice, like almost everyone, is for Davis to stay in Southern California signing with the USC. He will give the Trojans the general player number 48 of the country and the number 4 of the external linebacker, to pair with the fellow and prospective top 50 and the Californian Korey Foreman, the number one player in the country.
Game waiting for Tuimoloau
When Ryan Day was asked on January 22 – not ironically the day Davis and his family flew to Columbus – how much space was left in the Buckeyes’ 2021 class, he gave what seemed like an enigmatic answer at the time.
“We really don’t have much,” Day said. “We are pretty full now. Quite healthy list. This can always change. There may be a place available. But other than that, we are pretty full. But let’s keep evaluating, keep looking. We are certainly continuously recruiting some guys here for the next subscription day. And we would probably have a spot for a guy. ”
We weren’t sure if Day’s answer was to be a message to Davis to block his name in class, or maybe it was a hidden way of saying that Davis wasn’t going to end up at Ohio State.
Anyway, at 11:30 am – when Davis announces his decision – we’ll probably find out that the “one guy” Day was referring to is Washington’s five-star defensive side, JT Tuimoloau.
The country’s third general player outside Eastside Catholic High School, Tuimoloau’s decision will not come today, and will not happen next month.
Tuimoloau has already said that his decision will not come until at least April, which means that today will not be the landmark day that will give Buckeyes half of the players ranked in the top 10 overall in the 2021 recruitment ranking.
That day may be coming this spring, however, once visitors open again (What if visits open again, we must say with caution) and he is allowed to go to the state of Ohio, Alabama and the trio of schools Pac-12 in his last five.
And speaking of one of these Pac-12 programs, how incredible it would be if the USC surprised everyone by making Tuimoloau give the Trojans a pair of five-star defensive tips ranked in the top three overall (Tuimoloau, Foreman) and No. 4 OLB (Davis)? I’m sure that’s exactly what Ohio fans wanted to hear from me today.
Buckeyes have no chance to recruit the crown …
Speaking of things Ohio State fans definitely wanted to hear it today, the Buckeyes have no chance of finally winning their first recruiting crown.
Approximately two decades ago, in March-April 2020, it seemed that anyone who was tremendous in football in the 2021 recruiting classes would launch a graphic on Instagram and Twitter that said “1,000 percent committed to Ohio State University” .
This is the kind of momentum the program has had. (You should see the number of commit pieces actually prepared at that time, in case more news comes up.)
And then Alabama came and ruined the Buckeyes’ party. After the five-star running back Camar Wheaton, America’s second running back, signed with Alabama, this will officially give Crimson Tide the best recruiting class ever (325.95 points), passing the 2010 class of Florida (324.62), and if the top 50 security Terrion Arnold signs with Tide, they will end up with 327.91 points.
… and they don’t care
As a warning to the next, I worry about who wins the recruiting crown. We at Eleven Warriors are concerned. It is fun to talk about it, even if there are only a few points separating the two programs and even if one team (Ohio State with 21 signatories) brought in significantly fewer signatories (Alabama with 27 likely signatories) than the other.
So, let’s write and talk about rankings and title recruitment until the end of time, because it’s great to debate and talk about it.
Do you know who doesn’t give a shit (because this is a family site) about who wins the recruiting crown? Ryan Day and Mark Pantoni.
Day, in his first signing period, about having the country’s No. 1 class is important to him: “It’s the best class in the country for the state of Ohio. What is the best class in the country for another school? This is not the same for us. One of the things you know if you come here is that it will be difficult. You will have to compete to enter the field. You have to compete to compete in a national championship. That’s what we’re looking for here. ”
Pantoni: “I heard what Ryan said and I honestly agree 100 percent with him. It’s not a big deal. We’ve had classes in the past for four or five years and probably had more NFL recruiting choices in the first two rounds than some of those other classes, so for me, the way I rate recruiting classes is how they end. NFL being a big part, but also important contributors, beginners too, so let’s wait here in three or four years and see, this is how we will evaluate. ”
Best average shot per player
Now with all That said, the state of Ohio still has a chance to get its best class ever when it comes to average player ratings.
The famous class of 2017 ended with an average rating of 94.59 players, the best of the modern recruitment era. Whatever Alabama ends in this cycle (projected at 95.00 if Arnold signs) will end up being the best of all. But the state of Ohio has a chance of getting second-class all-time in that regard.
If Tuimoloau signs with the Buckeyes, they will end up with an average per player of 94.77 (with a total of 316.01 points). It would still be incredible.