Tressel's amazing recruiting.

[crazybuckfan40]

Tress's recruiting has been nothing short of amazing. With the big win and all the guys that seem to be making an impact on this season I got to thinking, and I probably typed to much.

Lets first start with 2001. He had little time to pull a class together, but was able to pull in guys like Gamble, Mo Hall, and most of all in that class that he actually pulled in Mike Nugent. Overall he did a pretty good job to keep the guys we already had and bring in some other guys.

He really took off in 2002. He brought in one of the best classes if not the best class in tOSU history. The class totaled 24. Obviously one of his bigger classes, but the amazing thing is that we got production out of pretty much everyone of them.

Overall there have been 4 first rounders and probably will be 2 more with Pittcock and Smith.

There were also 3 other guys that were drafted last year and one in Clarrett that was drafted a couple years ago. Also I envision 6 other guys being drafted and a couple more maybe getting a look in camp.

Looking back guys like Smith(Heisman), AJ(Butkus(IMO)), Bobby C, Holmes, MoC, Salley, Mangold, , Downing, Datish, Sims, Pittcock, Kudla, Everett, Schafer, Hall, Penton, JRich, BMitch, and Stan White all had their hands in the 02 NC or the great seasons we had in 03, 05, and this seaosn in 06.

To have 19/24 guys pan out and play very important roles is just amazing.

The only guys that could be listed under the bust category are EJ Underwood, Michael Roberts, Mike D'andrea, R.J. Coleman, and Justin Zwick.

- EJ Underwood - his dad tried to get invovled a little too much and there were other problems that caused him to transfer. He still made it to the NFL

- Michael Roberts - He was one of the very few reaches in Tress's carreer where he tried bringing in a speed guy, that just never panned out.

- Mike D'andrea - I really hate putting him in this category. He was the best high school LB in 02 and it is too bad that he couldnt get rid of the injury bug. He did win the MLB job his junior year away from Schlegs, but couldnt stay healthy. Was a great get.

-R.J. Coleman - He was another guy that couldnt shake the injury bug. He was a solid TE when healthy.

- Justin Zwick - In terms of being a buckeye he should be the number one recruit, but he just couldnt pan out. I think at times he coudlnt handle the fact that buckeye faithful was annointing him the best qb ever b4 he ever took a snap. He really helped recruit this great class and he has done a great job as a backup QB this year and did a good job when called upon in the Alamo bowl.

2003 will probably be Tress's worst recruiting class he ever has here. The main problem really was the fact we didnt have a huge number of schollies and a lot of the guys we did bring in had some off the field issues or injury problems again.

Overall we have 5 guys that will all be drafted in the first 3 rounds of the draft. Whitner and Youbouty have already went. Barton, Patterson and Gonzo will all go when it is their respective time. Also the jury is still out on Boeckman, but he is the front runner for the QB spot and I think he will be a very good one. Keep in mind his dad is a high school coach and he will be 4 years removed from high school with lots of practice time under his belt.

In terms of the busts, off the field issues, and injuries there were quite a few in this class.

- Marcel Frost - just left after he was suspended. Just coulndt become accountable for his actions and it finally caught up with him.

- Guilford and LI - Their issues have been well documented.

- Sian Cotton and Brandon Maupin - Both had great talented, just were too lazy to get it together and eventually got booted.

- Darius Hiley - Superman, was always upset we never got to see him play here, but he couldnt stay eligible.

- Devin Jordan and C. Lukens - Both of these guys coudlnt shake the injury bug.

- Reggie Smith - Another guy that got bitten by the off the field issues.

2004 was another good class for Tress and staff. While alot fo these guys are either junior or sophmores so it is hard to get a judge on their careers, quite a few of them have seen a lot of time on the field, and menaingful time. This was another huge class of 25.

Guys like Terry, Gholston, Teddy, Barrow, Trappasso, Petrey, Nicol, B. Smith, Dionte Johnson, Freeman, Skinner, Rehring, Pittman, and Person have all been important parts for our team this year. We have one first rounder in Ginn that will leave early and quite a few others that will find their place in the NFL when their time is ready.

We have 5 guys that are yet to make their mark.

- Lyons - There have been rumors that he is battling a career ending injury.

- Lane - He has been a cog on Steams, but not envision him ever making an impact in terms of being a starter.

- Abdallah - He has the size, but has struggled with his motor and his stregth. I wouldnt be suprised to see him step up and have a nice season next year with the lack of DT depth might force him to play some.

- Dukes - I think that little deal where he missed the summer a couple years ago hurt his growth. He has all the athletic ability in the world, but has been stuck behind some very good receivers. I think he will make an impact b4 he leaves.

- Patterson - He has played all season, but was a little bit of a dissapointment in his play at safety in the first game and hasnt seen the dbackfield very much since. he has been a main cog on Steams all season tho.

Bust and off the field issues.

- Dennis Kennedy - didnt make the grades to get in here.

- Bauserman - Never came to school as he went the baseball route.

- E Haw and Hoobler - Transferred to lesser schools as they had some issues.

- Welch - Don't think he went anywhere, but had trouble with academics.
Overall another huge class with great production. There is a chance that this class could put out another rate of 18/25 that make an impact, with some guys still looking to make an impact and have a good chance to do so.

2005 was a fairly small class of 17, but has some of the best players on our team this year. The development of some of the guys in this class is pretty amazing. We have 6 flat out studs in Robo, Hartline, Animal Jr., Boone, Jenkins, and Denlinger.

We also have 5 other guys that have made an impact this year in JamO, Russell, Mo Wells, Washington, and Wilson.

Some guys that are yet to make an impact are:

- Spitler - He has had some huge plays on Steams and in mop up time always seemed to making plays. Only a redshirt frosh so has 3 more years to make an impact and I envision him doing so.

- Worthington - Had an inury setback, but he will see lots of pt at DT next year.

- Amos - He has seen some important time, but not enough to put him in the other category. He is one that will eventually be in the other category as well.

- Robbie S - Yet to be determined, but he seems to be second in the QB derby.

- Ryan Williams - He is another that had an injury. I think that he will eventually be on the D-line making an impact when he is healthy. I do know that he was coming on strong b4 he hurt his knee.

- Cordle - He has also played some this season, but was overtaken by Whaley as the backup center, but he will be a main cog in the line rotation in a couple years.

Overall I think Tress may hit on 17/17 in this class. No one has trasferred out yet and all to have a great chance to make an impact b4 they leave. Lennix was a casuality b/c he didnt make admissions standards.

2006 - It is really hard to get a read on this class b/c only a couple of them have made any impact, but there has been a lot of good info on most of them and none of them have gotten into any trouble yet.

Guys that have made an impact or werent redshirted are Grant, Small, Gant, Rose, Coleman, Ballard, Homan, and Beanie. Of that small group I would say that Small, Rose, Coleman, Homan and Beanie have stud written all over them.

Of the redshirts there have been good things said about most of them.

- Gibson - Should be a future stud at lb with some addition of weight.

- Olson - Have heard good things about him after struggling with an early injury.

- Browning - Many have said he was much more impressive than they expected.

- Miller - Havent heard anything.

- Dublin - Took a little time getting use to the speed of the game. Should be ok.

- Johnson - He had the shoulder injury, but this kid is built like a truck. I think he will be a great MLB.

- Chekwa - Heard he was doing great in fall camp, just needed some added weight.

- Larimore - He is going to be a future stud on the d-line.

- Schwartz - It was between him and Gant to play and I think Grant wanted to keep the redshirt year so he could have more time to develop.

- Moeller - Add some weight and there is no keeping him off the field.

- Smith - Once he gets the pass blocking down he is going to be another in the line of lineman to the nfl.

- Henton - Have heard comparison to Smith and the fact that he is farther ahead in his progression and he has had time to learn from Troy which can only help.

Overall in the past two years I don't think we have many misses. We have not had one person leave and only had one denied admission. Overall I think the standards and the fact that the staff is really paying attention to the character of the guys we are bringing in are really helping with the lack of guys leaving the programs. Also it doesnt matter if these guys are 5,4,3 or even 2 stars the guys we are brining in most of them are going to the NFL after they graduate.

The best part is it is only helping in terms of the product we are putting on the field and helping recruit future studs.

Overall the main position that we are going to need to develop over the next couple years is QB. Hopefully guys like Boeckman, Robbie, and Henton can leave their mark on the position. If so we will be putting a NC contendor on the field for years to come.

[victor64]

Great post. I think Welch transferred to UC.

[wadc45]

GPA

[LordJeffBuck]

I don't know.... Let's just say, he's gotten better over the years, and now is at the top of his game.

Despite signing two superstars in Gamble and Nugent, the 2001 class was pretty lousy, with a lot of career back-ups.

2002 was a phenomenal class, but with 18 signees being from Ohio and one being a legacy (Stan White, Jr.), it was an "easy" class to recruit to Ohio State. Kudos for bringing in Holmes, Salley, and Mitchell from the south.

2003 was an absolute disaster, with 9 of the 15 signees (that's a whopping 60%) never seeing the field. Fortunately, Whitner, Youboty, Patterson, Barton, and Gonzalez are/were above average to great. Boeckman is still an unkown commodity.

It is disturbing that so many of the class of 2004 have already been passed by younger players (Abdallah, Barrow, Dukes, Lane, Lyons, Mitchum, Patterson, Smith). The supposedly star OL class has been disappointing, with only Rehring playing like a legitimate starter (Person, Skinner, and Mitchum really need to step it up next year). Freeman has played below expectations. Gholston, Ginn, and Pittman are stars, Johnson, Nicol, Terry, and Trapasso are solid. Too many early exits (Haw, Hoobler, Kennedy, and Welch, with Underwood's status always in a state of flux). BTW, Pettrey was a gray shirt, and counts as part of the class of 2005.

At the time, I said that the class of 2005 would be a great one, and it looks like it already is: Boone, Jenkins, Laurinaitis, Robiskie, Russell, and Washington are all starters (Robo in three-wide sets, DW3 in nickel), with the first three players already being (at least) All Big Ten candidates. Amos, Cordle, Denlinger, Hartline, O'Neal (now starting due to Russell's injury), and Wilson have already bypassed older players on the depth chart, and should start next season. Spitler is a solid special teamer. Williams and Worthington are still recovering from injury. Mo Wells has been disappointing, but if used correctly, he could still contribute. Schoenhoft has a chance to emerge at QB. Only one early exit so far - Freddie Lenix.

It is far too early to judge the class of 2006, but it looks promising. Ballard, Coleman, Gant, Grant, Homan, Rose, and Small have all seen meaningful playing time as true freshmen, and Chris Wells is your next Buckeye Heisman Trophy winner (after Troy takes home the hardware this year).

The class of 2007 is shaping up nicely.

So, with the exception of 2002, Tressel's recruiting has followed a fairly predictable path - a slow start with some lean years early, but now he is bringing in top classes filled with recruits who fit his system/philosophy (not necessarily five-star, blue-chip, all-universe players).

BTW, I noticed a change in recruiting philosophy beginning with the class of 2005; not coincidentally, the recruiting classes have been significantly better (more productive in college) since then.

[crazybuckfan40]

I do agree with you, to some extent, but you say in 02 how the whole class was from Ohio, but Tress has done everything he can to put a fence up around Ohio. There are only a handful of players that have got out of the state that we wanted. Guys that come to mind are Fred Davis, Mario, Burgess, Crable.

Overall Tress struggled early on while taking these kids word, and at times it has backfired. But IMO I don't want kids like that on my team.

You also have to remember that Tress had to recruit thru the MoC investigation and all the negative recruiting tactics from other schools.

I wouldnt say that the 2004 o-line class has been a dissapointment, they have all gotten extended playing time and will all be contributors next year. Remember everyone was writing Datish off as well and look at where he is today. Probably one of the best on the team if not the best.

Also for guys being passed over you have to remember that some guys just take longer than others to develop and Roy Hall is a perfect example as he showed up in the Michigan game, b/c seniors under Tress seem to do special things.

I also think alot of the credit can go to his hiring of recruiting coaches and coach Peterson.

[LordJeffBuck]

Originally Posted by crazybuckfan40

Also for guys being passed over you have to remember that some guys just take longer than others to develop and Roy Hall is a perfect example as he showed up in the Michigan game, b/c seniors under Tress seem to do special things.

Roy Hall is the poster child for career under-achievement. He was the next David Boston, remember? So, Hall finally showed up in his 63rd game at Ohio State? (Well, he showed up for one drive at any rate.) Talk about late developing....

Tressel has become a great recruiter, but let's not sugar-coat his entire career at Ohio State.