Ohio State football: Top-10 DE predicted to Buckeyes

The Ohio State football team is hitting the recruiting hard this month. It looks like it’s paying off.

We knew going into this month it was going to be the busiest recruiting period in Ohio State history. The hard work being put in by Ryan Day and his staff appears to be paying off. Chicago wide receiver Kaleb Brown committed early last week during his unofficial visit. One player who took an official visit this past weekend has already been predicted to commit to the Buckeyes.

Defensive end Wilfredo Aybar of The Cheshire Academy in Connecticut loved his visit, according to an article by Brian Dohn for Bucknuts. Dohn feels so strongly about how much Aybar enjoyed the visit, he gave a confident prediction yesterday that the nation’s ninth-ranked edge rusher will join Ohio State’s 2022 recruiting class at some point. Aybar’s head coach, David Dykeman, said the Buckeyes have been high on his player’s list,

"“He’s really enjoyed the whole process with them, with their whole staff, (defensive line) coach (Larry) Johnson, (assistant) coach (Matt) Barnes and coach (Ryan) Day.”"

Aybar checks in at 6’4”, 240 pounds. He’s the top player in Connecticut and 163rd nationally. Dykeman says he’s much like former Buckeye Chase Young,

"“He’s a weak side defensive end, outside linebacker. He can drop into coverage.”"

I’m all for athletic and versatility being added to the defense. It remains to be seen if he can be as effective as Young, but I like his skill set.

Aybar has been to Boston College and will visit USC and Stanford. He has not set a date for his announcement. He would fill a definite need into the Ohio State football program’s 2022 recruiting class because they do not have a defensive end in the fold at this time.

One player who has set a date is defensive tackle Curtis Neal (6’1”, 290) of Cornelius, North Carolina. Although he’s ranked just 58th at his position, he holds offers from the likes of Alabama, Oregon, Penn State, Georgia, and USC.

He’s whittled down his choices to Ohio State and Wisconsin and set a date of June 27th to announce his decision. Both schools have gotten predictions of his commitment. If I had to make my own based on Neal’s comments, I’d go with the Badgers. He seems to love them.