INKED: EARLY-ENROLLEE AUSTIN MACK BRINGS UNIQUE BLEND OF SPEED, SIZE, AND CHARACTER TO ZONE SIX.
The future stars of Ohio State football officially begin their Buckeye careers as standouts from all over the country put pens to their National Letters of Intent.
Followers of Buckeye recruiting — and fans of wide receivers who are really good at catching the football — have likely been familiar with Austin Mack for some time. Identified early on as one of Urban Meyer and Zach Smith's top pass-catching targets, the Fort Wayne, Indiana standout has seen his stock soar since the early summer months.
The recruiting process for Mack began in the summer of 2013 before he even started a varsity game for Bishop Luers High School. After camping at Cincinnati, Michigan State, Ball State and Toledo, the soon-to-be sophomore earned his first offers from the University of Indiana and the University of Cincinnati. Having grown up a Hoosier basketball fan, getting that first offer from Indiana meant a lot, as he would then make multiple visits to nearby Bloomington.
The spring and summer of 2014 — following his sophomore season — is when Mack's recruitment really went into high gear. During his first season on varsity, he hauled in 57 passes for 805 yards and a trio of touchdowns. The strong sophomore showing was enough to attract coaches from some of the nation's premier programs to the halls of Bishop Luers. Kerry Coombs led the way for the Buckeyes and Brady Hoke also sent assistants to Fort Wayne.
Fast-forward to June and the 6-foot-2, 205-pounder saw what was probably the turning point in his recruitment. At Ohio State's one-day camp, Mack stood out amongst a large group of highly-talented prospects. He also had a chance to work one-on-one with Smith, the Buckeyes' wide receivers coach, as the two continued to build a solid relationship.
"It was unreal," he said. "He's a super down to earth guy. With him, you can have fun but he knows when it's time to get down to business and when it is, we hit it hard. It's all thumbs up with him, we have a really good relationship."
Days later Mack was rewarded with the coveted Buckeye offer and Ohio State was quickly identified as one of his favorites. A source close to the Buckeyes had this to say about the newly-offered wideout:
"(Mack) came out and competed and earned it in camps," the source said. "He dominated at a June one-day and then again at Friday Night Lights. He established himself as that top guy by showing great talent, but also his competitive nature. He's an Alpha-Dog type."
Entire article:
http://www.elevenwarriors.com/ohio-...-mack-brings-speed-size-character-to-zone-six
