Signing Day!

[Jason]

OSU is racking them up again. Depending on who you ask their class is rated between #1 and #4.

Interesting factoid about one of their recruits, LB Jordan Whiting. He is the #1 wrestler in the state of Kentucky in the 285 pound weight class.

But he only weighs 228.

[McBallerson]

I've been keeping track today as well. My brother signed on to play at Indiana.

[Bengals1181]

some are saying this is Tressel's best class to date.


Ohio State is going to have some serious speed (SEC caliber) at the WR position next year between Thomas, Posey and new guys like Duron Carter and James Jackson (sounds like a DeSean Jackson type).

[quote]Ohio State recruiting class ranked number one on national signing day
1 comment February 4, 5:32 PM
by Radames Santiago, Jr., Cleveland Sports Examiner
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Head Coach Jim TresselHead coach Jim Tressel's Buckeyes only return 11 starters next year, so Ohio State needed to sign an exceptional recruiting class on national signing day to keep the Big Ten champions' roster at an elite level.

The Buckeyes have come through again as Ohio State's recruiting class should be ranked #1 at the end of the day. Rivals.com and Scout.com have the Buckeyes' class both ranked at the top of all Division 1 schools according to verbal commitments heading into today. The Buckeyes have snared seven of the top 100 prospects, which is second only to the University of Southern California, which has eight.

The Buckeyes return three of their four starting offensive linemen from their 2008 squad, so this new crop will keep the Buckeyes' line one of the best in the country.

As usual for Tressel, he has made sure that the cream of the crop in the state of Ohio is staying home. The top four offensive linemen in the state will be signing with the Buckeyes later today.

At the head of that group is Marcus Hall from Glenville High in Cleveland. Hall is ranked the 52nd best player (Rivals.com) in the country. The 6-6, 300-pound tackle had his choice of offers from Michigan, Miami (FL), Tennessee, Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota, and West Virginia.

The other top-rated offensive linemen include Corey Linsley, 6-4, 285 pounds from Boardman High School from the Youngstown area, Jack Mewhort, 6-6, 285 from Toledo St. Johns, and Sam Longo, 6-5, 270 pounds from Bellbrook, Ohio.

WIth running back Chris "Beanie" Wells headed to the NFL, the Buckeyes had to find another talented back to keep their depth strong at that position.

Enter Jaamal Berry, 5-10, 185 pound, 4.4 (40 yards) speedster from Palmetto High in Miami, Florida. Berry is a four-star recruit ranked the fifth best (56th overall) back in the country. The Buckeyes also found a replacement for Brandon Smith, recruiting another four-star recruit in Carlos Hyde, a 6-1, 230 pound bruiser with 4.55 speed from Naples, Florida, who is rated the second best full back coming out of high school.

Sophomore Dan Herron and junior Brandon Saine are the incumbents to replace Wells, but Berry should push them to a higher performance level.

Replacing wide receivers Brian Robiskie and Brian Hartline will be a daunting task. The Buckeys have started by signing the 10th best (90th overall) receiver coming out of high school, Duron Carter. The 6-3, 185-pound receiver is from Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The Buckeyes have also snared 6-0, 175-pound, 4.3 speedster James Jackson from Grand Ledge, Michigan. Tressel also convinced Chris Fields, 6-0, 180 pounds from Painesville Harvey to become a Buckeye. Fields is rated the best receiver in Ohio.

The Buckeyes only lose four defensive starters from their 2008 team, but they are quality defenders. Linebackers James Laurinaitis and Marcus Freeman will probably be first-round picks in the NFL draft in April, along with cornerback Malcolm Jenkins. Defensive tackle Nader Abdallah will be an NFL draft selection, too. So, Tressel has a daunting task ahead to find quality replacements.

He has a great start getting three five-star rated prospects to sign with Ohio State. All three are top 30 overall rated players who will keep the Buckeyes at the top of the Big 10 defenses. The third best defensive end in the nation, Melvin Fellows, 6-5, 245 pounds, from Garfield Heights, just outside of Cleveland, probably will be in the starting lineup very quickly. Teamed with the fifth-ranked tackle (27th overall), John Simon, 6-3, 285-pounds from Youngstown Cardinal Mooney, the Buckeyes' defensive line should be even better in the years to come.

Ohio State's other five-star recruit and the 33rd best player coming out of high school is linebacker Dorian Bell, 6-2, 220 pounds from Gateway High School in Monroeville, Pennsylvania. Bell has 4.55 speed and is rated the second best (33rd overall) weak side prep linebacker.

Buckeyes' fans need to brace for a coming storm as in Storm Klein, 6-3, 220 pounds with 4.5 speed from Licking Valley in Newark, Ohio. Among strong side linebackers, Klein is ranked the 10th best. Klein was the Gatorade Player of the Year last season and a Division III All-Ohio pick.

Losing cornerback Malcolm Jenkins will be a hard blow for the Buckeyes, but Tressel has convinced three outstanding prospects to sign with the school. Five-star cornerback Corey Brown, the ninth-rated (31st overall) back in the country, will bring his 4.5 speed to the Buckeyes' defensive backfield. Brown, 6-0, 180 pounds is from Gateway High School in Monroeville, as is his high school teammate and fellow recruit, linebacker Dorian Bell.

Also signing with Ohio State is four-star recruit Jamie Wood, 6-2, 190 pounds from Pickerington Central in Pickerington, Ohio. Wood is rated the ninth best (74th overall) safety in the country. Cornerback C.J. Barnett from Northmont High in Claymont, Ohio is 6-1, 180 pounds with 4.5 speed, who is also a four star prospect. Barnett was also a Division 1 All-Ohio selection this past year. Another four star recruit is Dominic Clarke, 5-10, 170 pounds with 4.4 speed from Frederick, Maryland. Teamed with Brown, these four prospects should keep the Buckeyes' secondary at the top of not only the Big 10, but among the best in the country.

Although every school in Division 1 tries to catch those five-star rated players, a lot of times it's the three star rated players who turn out to be collegiate stars. Linebacker A.J. Hawk, WR Santonio Holmes, CB Malcom Jenkins, and LB James Laurinaitis are high school recruits who became, or are going to be, first-round NFL picks. All of them were three-star rated prospects coming out of high school.

Three-star recruits at Ohio State this year are OL Sam Longo, 6-5, 270 from Bellbrook, Ohio, DL Adam Bellamy, 6-4, 275 from Aurora, Ohio, LB Adam Homan, 6-2, 230 out of Coldwater, Ohio, QB Kenny Guiton, 6-2, 182, and LB Zach Boren, 6-1, 245 from Pickerington Central. Two or three of these prospects will probably rise to the top of their position in the country.[/quote]



[url="http://www.examiner.com/x-1287-Cleveland-Sports-Examiner~y2009m2d4-Ohio-State-recruiting-class-ranked-number-one-on-national-signing-day"]http://www.examiner.com/x-1287-Cleveland-S...nal-signing-day[/url]

There are some youtube videos in the link, though 1 of them includes some of last year's draft class.

[Bengals1181]

[quote]2009 Signing Class
Switch to BasketballOhio State 2009 Football Commitments (25)

Commitment Lists: Ohio State____________________

SIGNED LETTER OF INTENT Pos Stars Ht Wt 40 RR Video Enrolled Hometown
Dorian Bell LB 6-0 226 4.5 6.1 Monroeville, PA
Corey Brown DB 6-0 180 - 6.1 Monroeville, PA
Jaamal Berry RB 5-10 185 4.43 6.0 Miami, FL
Marcus Hall OL 6-5 290 - 6.0 Cleveland, OH
Jamie Wood DB 6-2 190 4.48 6.0 Pickerington, OH
C.J. Barnett DB 6-1 181 - 5.9 Clayton, OH
Duron Carter WR 6-2 183 - 5.9 Fort Lauderdale, FL
Chris Fields WR 6-0 181 4.4 5.9 Painesville, OH
Dominic Clarke DB 5-10 183 4.41 5.8 Frederick, MD
Melvin Fellows DE 6-5 245 - 5.8 Garfield Heights, OH
Jordan Hall ATH 5-9 180 - 5.8 Jeannette, PA
Carlos Hyde RB 6-1 230 4.55 5.8 Naples, FL
James Jackson WR 6-0 175 4.31 5.8 Grand Ledge, MI
Storm Klein LB 6-2 220 4.5 5.8 Newark, OH
Corey Linsley OL 6-4 285 5.2 5.8 Youngstown , OH
Jack Mewhort OL 6-6 292 5.35 5.8 Toledo, OH
Jordan Whiting LB 6-0 230 4.71 5.8 Louisville, KY
Adam Bellamy DT 6-4 270 4.8 5.7 Aurora, OH
Reid Fragel TE 6-8 251 4.74 5.7 Grosse Pointe, MI
Sam Longo OL 6-5 270 4.7 5.7 Bellbrook, OH
Jonathan Newsome DE 6-2 221 4.8 5.7 Cleveland, OH
John Simon DT 6-3 274 4.7 5.7 Youngstown, OH
Zach Boren ATH 6-0 246 4.61 5.6 Pickerington, OH
Adam Homan RB 6-2 230 4.7 5.6 Coldwater, OH
Kenny Guiton QB 6-2 178 4.7 5.5 Aldine, TX[/quote]

[url="http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/commitlist.asp?SID=880&Year=2009&School=56"]http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/commi...9&School=56[/url]