The Buckeye State’s Top 2013 Football Prospects
By Adam
The ink is barely dry on most of the Letters of Intent that were accepted for the 2012 recruiting classes across the country. In some cases (i.e. Stefon Diggs) the letters have not even been filled out yet, but that seems like the perfect time to touch on some of Ohio’s best prospects for the 2013 class. Players and coaches don’t sit back and wait to make decisions and think about their futures, so why should you have to wait to hear some of these names until next winter?
Rivals has already listed its first Rivals 100 for the 2013 class, so without further ado, here are the six players on their list from the great state of Ohio.
Jake Butt
Rivals 100 ranking: #96
Height: 6’6″
Weight: 230 lbs
Hometown/High School: Pickerington, OH/Pickerington North HS
Position: Tight End / Defensive End
Jake Butt has been offered a scholarship by plenty of schools so far, with the top programs being M*chigan and Stanford. OSU will be losing two TEs after the 2012, technically only one if Reid Fragel moves to OT, and even with the addition of Blake Thomas in this year’s class, would like to add some more depth at this spot. Also, if one local tight end named Jake has paid off so far, why not try another? Although the Buckeyes will have to be stingy with their 2013 class (roughly 17-20 scholarships available), I foresee an offer to this local tight end coming after, or at the tail end of, his senior campaign in Pickerington.
Evan Lisle
Rivals 100 ranking: #83
Height: 6’6″
Weight: 265 lbs
Hometown/High School: Centerville, OH/Centerville HS
Position: Offensive Tackle
No thanks to Jim Bollman, the offensive line cupboard is finally beginning to fill again, despite his best efforts to recruit as few linemen as possible year in and year out. Help may be on the way, but Urban will be looking to continue adding depth and searching for the right linemen for his system. Lisle should fit into that plan, as Meyer has been it crystal clear that he plans on keeping Ohio’s best players at OSU. Lisle has already received offers from West Virginia, Oklahoma, and M*chigan, so again, I expect to hear about a Buckeye offer in his not-too-distant future.
Dymonte Thomas
Rivals 100 ranking: #77
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 175 lbs
Hometown/High School: Alliance, OH/Marlington HS
Position: Defensive Back
Dymonte Thomas is an very good athlete, and will most likely be a very effective defensive back at the next level. He has currently received offers from most of the Big Ten, including OSU, but was a very early commit to M*chigan, hence the ugly jersey in his photo. You can bet that OSU and Urban Meyer will be using Thomas’s first cousin and 2012 Buckeye commitment, Bri’onte Dunn, as leverage to stay in the young man’s ear until NSD 2013. If we’ve learned anything, it’s that the recruiting game isn’t over until the player has signed, but Thomas certainly seems like a solid commit to TSUN right now.
Mike McCray
Rivals 100 ranking: #44
Height: 6’4″
Weight: 230 lbs
Hometown/High School: Trotwood, OH/Trotwood-Madison HS
Position: Outside Linebacker
Most of the players on this list have already received offers from most of the Big Ten schools, but again, McCray is still waiting on OSU to send something his way. With the 2012 class including David Perkins, Josh Perry, Camren Williams, and Jamal Marcus, it would certainly be understandable if the Buckeyes passed on McCray, but his overall athletic ability would be hard to pass up. As a junior, McCray intercepted 5 passes and was able to take 3 of them back for 6 points. If Urban has a spot open in this class, it wouldn’t hurt to stock pile another talented LB and see who ends up earning a spot in the starting lineup.
Jalin Marshall
Rivals 100 ranking: #41
Height: 6’0″
Weight: 190 lbs
Hometown/High School: Middletown, OH/Middletown HS
Position: Athlete
As someone recently said, “If there are 40 players better than Jalin Marshall, then this will be one of the best recruiting classes that I’ve ever seen.” Although we currently have our hopes set on hearing that Stefon Diggs will be a Buckeye and having him fill that role in 2012, if that does not happen and we have to wait until 2013 for our dynamic playmaker, then Marshall is the guy. He apparently did not want to draw out the recruiting process, and has already announced that he plans to attend OSU. He lines up at the quarterback position on most offensive plays, but you can see immediately that the reasoning for that is that he’s guaranteed to touch the ball. I see Marshall ending up as a returner and slotback for OSU and serving as our Harvin-esque player in Meyer’s system. Watch his 2011 highlight film and you can easily see how quickly Marshall’s unique skill set could translate into playing time in 2013.
Cameron Burrows
Rivals 100 ranking: #7
Height: 6’1″
Weight: 195 lbs
Hometown/High School: Trotwood, OH/Trotwood-Madison HS
Position: Defensive Back
Burrows is not only the top ranked player from the Buckeye State, but he was the first player to commit to OSU from this class. This cover corner has the speed and athleticism to be a very good CB in college, but also has the physicality and size to switch to safety, if need be. It’d also be nice to see Burrows can sway any other top players, as early commitments are often able to do. Even if Burrows doesn’t help the recruiting cause for the 2013 class any further, it’s nice to see that Urban has already gotten the nod from Ohio’s top two prospects.
Although OSU has received commitments from the top two players in Ohio, their smaller recruiting class next season will certainly make it interesting to see where Urban Meyer and his team of ruthless recruiters decide to go in search of the best talent. A few early names to keep an eye out for are Robert Foster (WR from Virginia, #26 on Top 100 list), Malik Zaire (Dual-threat QB from Kettering, OH), Adam Breneman (TE from California), and Derrick Green (RB from Virginia, #64). Green, as you can see in this highlight video, wears #27 in honor of his favorite running back, Eddie George. Sounds like a future Buckeye to me.
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