You cannot permanently compete for national conference and championship titles in a place like Ohio without continuing to recruit at a high level. Of course, Buckeyes have been doing this for a long time and, because of that, are among the elite programs year after year.
It’s no different with Ryan Day. In fact, he may even have increased recruitment a little by what we say with Urban Meyer. He has just finished consensus ranking class 2 consensus in the country for 2021, with several of them already on campus as first applicants.
Several will be the main contributors, and there is little doubt that at least a handful (probably more) will also end up in the NFL when their careers end on the banks of Olentangy.
But who has the best chance with the greatest potential? These opinions vary, but ESPN offered an option (subscription required) for each of the teams that participated in one of the top 25 recruiting classes in 2021. Who did Tom VanHaaren choose in the OSU class? Questioning minds want to know.