Ohio State Football: A Thanksgiving Day Commitment

The Ohio State football team has received a Thanksgiving Day commitment as Michigan native and former Northwestern recruit Gabe VanSickle announced via X that he has decided to further his football career at The Ohio State University.

VanSickle, who was previously committed to Northwestern, is the first Michigan high school athlete in the class of 2024 to commit to Ohio State. Playing his high school ball at Coopersville, Michigan, the three-star interior lineman is ranked 613t nationally, 41 at his position, and 13 in the state up north according to the 247Sports composite rankings.

VanSickle is the fourth offensive lineman in this class and replaces former commit Marc Nave, who committed on March 8 of this year, only to turn around and de-commit on September 30. He then committed to Kentucky last week.

VanSickle joins current OL commits Ian Moore, and Deontae and Devontae Armstrong.  Moore and Devontae are considered interior offensive linemen while Deontae will be a tackle. VanSickle could start as a center. His 6-foot-5, 283-pound frame is perfect for the center position, or he could add a little more weight and muscle and become a guard.

Despite being committed to Northwestern, VanSickle visited Ohio State during the Penn State game. Ohio State then offered him a few weeks later before he took an official visit on November 10 for the Michigan State game. Eleven days later he decommitted from Northwestern and two days after that he decided to become a Buckeye.

According to an interview conducted by Eleven Warriors, VanSickle was impressed with the atmosphere he experienced while visiting Ohio State for the Penn State game.

"“The atmosphere there was crazy. And the coaches talked to me about building a relationship with them.”"

It’s important for this coaching staff to know what kind of person a possible recruit is before they offer him, thus the idea of building a relationship first.

The Ohio State football team might not be finished recruiting offensive linemen for this class despite currently having 23 commitments. The name that everyone is watching closely is five-star Jordan Seaton. He would be the prized recruit in this class if Ryan Day, Brian Hartline, and Justyn Frye could land him before National Signing Day.