Safety McDougald Out of '09 Class

Bradley McDougald, a highly-regarded prospect from Dublin, is no longer considered committed to Ohio State. McDougald was suspended for three games during his senior campaign for unspecified issues, which may have cooled the Buckeyes on the promising safety.

There were whispers that McDougald would not be part of the class for weeks, and his decision to take other visits only added fuel to the rumor mill fire. He recently took a trip to Colorado, and is looking at programs like Louisville and Cincinnati. An official announcement of the de-commitment was provided by his coach. He was a 4-star player in Rivals.com rankings, and a 3-star at Scout.com.


With McDougald off the board, the Buckeyes may renew their pursuit of star-crossed prep Vlad Emilien, who is poised to make an announcement at his high school on November 23. Emilien was a hot name over the summer, but got caught up in a numbers game when the Buckeyes were flooded with verbals over the summer. He is rehabilitating from a serious ACL injury, and is also considering Michigan, Stanford and Wisconsin. Anything is possible given the strange turns his recruitment took, but we consider it a long shot that Vlad joins the Buckeyes.