Buckeyes bulk up with line recruits
Doug LesmerisesPlain Dealer Reporter
The big guys were roaming the sidelines at the Scarlet and Gray game last weekend, and soon enough they will fill up the field at Ohio Stadium. More than 900 pounds worth of offensive linemen already have given oral commitments to Ohio State's 2008 recruiting class, and there should be more to come.
Typically slower to sign recruits than some schools, the Buckeyes already nailed down eight players, including three offensive linemen considered among the best in the nation. Last week, after watching the Buckeyes at their spring game, 305-pound Michael Brewster of Orlando, Fla., and 299-pound J.B Shugarts of Klein, Texas, joined previous commitment Mike Adams, a 308-pounder from Dublin, Ohio.
Ohio State remains in the mix for linemen Josh Jenkins of West Virginia and Kyle Long of Virginia.
"If they pull those guys, it could go down as maybe one of the best offensive line classes we've ever seen," said national recruiting analyst Jeremy Crabtree of rivals.com.
Rivals has Brewster ranked as the top line recruit in the country and also lists Shugarts and linebacker/running back Devoe Torrence, who recently transferred from Canton South to Massillon Washington, among the top 100 players in the class of 2008.
A year ago at this time, the Buckeyes had only one commitment, Nate Oliver of St. Edward. But the friendships established between some of the recruits created a domino effect of early decisions. In the Rivals' top 100, 33 players committed so far, and six schools claimed at least three of those players: Oklahoma, Georgia, Texas, Nebraska, UCLA and Ohio State.
"Ohio State definitely set out to get the best of the best," Crabtree said.
A top prize still on the Buckeyes' radar is quarterback Terrelle Pryor of Jeannette, Pa. The 6-6, 220-pounder is the top player in the class according to Rivals, and he is drawing interest from everyone. Crabtree believes Terrelle Pryor is a long way from making a choice, but building a wall of linemen to protect him isn't a bad way to draw his interest.
Turf time:
The spring game was the farewell for watching the Buckeyes on grass. Ohio State is in the process of installing FieldTurf in Ohio Stadium after the grass surface inside the Horseshoe had to be replaced twice during a wet 2006 season. Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin already have the synthetic surface in their home stadiums.
[More
at www.cleveland.com]
