Ohio State Basketball: Chris Holtmann Must Recruit These States Hard
- Jaquan Lyle Bradenton, Florida
- Daniel Giddens Marietta, Georgia
- Austin Grandstaff Rockwall, Texas
- A.J. Harris Dayton, Ohio
- Mickey Mitchell Plano, Texas
The 2015 Ohio State recruiting class was ranked No. 5 in the country and I was excited to see these guys play. Who could have expected what was about to take place with this group?
Grandstaff left Ohio State before the Big Ten schedule was underway, and three other players transferred out at the end of the season. Then Jaquan Lyle left this spring.
Like I wrote before, this was a lost recruiting class for the Ohio State basketball program. Not much more needs to be said.
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Urban Meyer likes to say there is theory and then there is proof. I think there is proof that when Thad Matta had a majority of his players in a recruiting class from Ohio and Indiana, along with an occasional one from Illinois he had success. When he chose to put an emphasis on players outside of these three states, things didn’t go so well.
It’s hard to say why this has been the case but I have some ideas why recruits from Ohio, Indiana and Illinois tend to perform well at Ohio State. The relative close proximity to home and an occasional home cooked meal by mom could be one. Having family and friends be able to watch them play could be another.
On the basketball side, possibly the high school coaches prepare them for Big Ten basketball better than in other states. Also, many of these players compete against one another in high school or AAU ball and they may form friendships.
Some guys from different states have even played on the same AAU team. Greg Oden, Mike Conley and Daequan Cook played together, as did Jared Sullinger, Aaron Craft and Deshaun Thomas.
Next: Holtmann's job nice so far, must land top prospect
After taking a look at the successful Ohio State recruiting classes, and ones that weren’t, I would suggest Chris Holtmann choose to recruit the majority of his players from Ohio and Indiana, along with one from Illinois every now and then. It has worked in the past, so why wouldn’t it work going forward?