A 2-Star Parade

Ohio State hosted a number of prospects this weekend, including some of their top uncommitted targets. Though no definitive news is expected from guests like Brandon Harris and Ohrian Johnson, the Buckeyes did add a pair of Ohio natives to the 2008 class. Jermil Martin and Zach Domicone bring the current class total to 18, with just a few remaining spots still open. So where did these guys come from?

Domicone is listed as an athlete on Rivals, though his initial position sounds like safety. At 6'3" he has the frame to grow into a linebacker, exactly the type of players Jim Tressel likes to have on his roster. Domicone had somewhat of a whirlwind recruiting experience, one of the fast-rising players that pop up at this time of year. He had an offer from Nebraska, but was offered by powers Oklahoma and Ohio State in a 24-hour period.

Martin was somewhat more on the radar, being a product of Ted Ginn's Glenville program. He initially chose Iowa over offers from West Virginia and Wisconsin. Though listed as a defensive end, Martin was recruited as a fullback at Ohio State. With three players at that position graduating, there's certainly room on the depth chart.

Obviously these two become the two lowest rated players in the class. That leads to two questions: first, was this bad move offering them, and second, does it mean bad news on other fronts? The answer to the first question is likely not. Martin fills a clear need at fullback, and the worst case scenario for Domicone is a special teams demon with the versatility to fill in at multiple positions. Coach Tressel has a great track record of identifying sleepers and turning them into productive players, so there's no reason to doubt these two. Not every class can be comprised entirely of 5-star players, lest you end up with attrition and too many prima donnas.

Whether it means OSU is missing on someone else...not sure yet. We're still waiting for the final damage on juniors leaving and transfers. It seems reasonable that this class could number 20, especially if of our current verbals isn't on the final list. Pryor and Wells are the keys to the finish, with Jenkins running a close third. I'm not optimistic about the latter, but our offensive line situation is very stable at this point. I don't personally think either Harris, Johnson or Dean will Buckeyes, though there is a shot with Bayless.