Overview:Ohio signed a class of 18 players from seven different states in this
years recruiting class.Ohio got
five players from their home state, three from California, and also tapped into
Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia and Washington D.C.Four JUCOs were brought in for immediate needs, especially on the
offensive line.The other 15 come
from high schools or prep/military schools.One noticeable trend for Ohio is that both QBs signed are 6-2, so gone
are the days of midget Ohio University QBs who cannot throw the ball downfield.
Highlights:
QB
Austen Everson was a finalist for the Mr. Football Award for the state of
Tennessee and regional POY.This
guy is something OU has been missing from their signal calling ranks, big,
tall, strong, and an accurate passer.The
last QB to play in the MAC from Tennessee was Chad Pennington.
Andrew
Tyson played on a bad football team in high school and was lost in the
recruiting efforts along the way.But
the 6-2 225 pound LB is still growing & should get much bigger.His father played for the Bobcats in the late 1970s.
John
Taylor was the Metro POY in the Richmond (Va.) area and Virginia’s
co-offensive POY.He brings
size and speed to the Ohio backfield and may play as a true freshman.
To
maintain their 3-4 defensive schemes, Ohio signed three players for the
defensive trenches; Ivann Parker (6-1, 290), William Brett Sykes (6-2, 250)
& Paul Johnson (6-2, 285).
TE
Ryan Antle was a JUCO top 101 prospect according to Rivals.com at the
beginning of the 2002 year.
Final
Thoughts:
Ohio did
what they needed to do, get more offensive linemen, a good TE who can block or
catch, and bigger QBs who can give the Bobcats a new dimension in their offense
that is far too run oriented.Although
a lot of these players were not heavily recruited, there is still some talent in
this class.There is good size on
the defensive lines here and some decent speed, although Ohio could have used
some more.Overall this class rate
as AVERAGE compared to the
other schools in the conference, but take note, there are a lot more questions
marks in this class and this may be the sleeper group in the MAC this year.
