Ohio State Football: National Title Could Trigger Recruiting Dominance for OSU

Ohio State is the king of college football after beating Alabama and Oregon to win the national title, but Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes will have to wait a year to reap the rewards on the recruiting trail.

With a 2015 recruiting class that already boasts 25 commitments, Ohio State doesn't have room for an influx of new prospects. But the recent championship run will pay off with the Buckeyes' future classes.

In fact, that process has already started.

Since the night of the national championship, Meyer has secured commitments from four 5-star prospects and one 4-star recruit. Five-star running back Kareem Walker and 4-star tight end Jake Hausmann pledged to join the 2016 class, while a trio of 5-stars—offensive tackle Josh Myers, cornerback Shaun Wade and athlete Bruce Judson—committed for 2017.

The string of commitments kicked off the day Ohio State rolled its way past Oregon. Wade, the No. 2 ranked cornerback in 2017, gave Ohio State the good news four hours before kickoff. Later that night, as Buckeyes running back Ezekiel Elliott bulldozed his way for 246 rushing yards and four touchdowns, 2016's top-ranked ball-carrier announced that he wanted to join the Buckeyes via Twitter.

"

Proud to announce that I will be furthering my education and football career at THE Ohio State University. #Buckeyes pic.twitter.com/xLnEwFJJak

— AlⓂ️ightyReem (@_KareemWalker) January 13, 2015"

It only took a day for Judson, the No. 3-ranked athlete and a dual-threat quarterback for 2017, to join the fold. The wave of commitments continued two weeks later as Hausmann and Myers (the top offensive tackle and the No. 3 overall prospect for 2017) committed to the Buckeyes the day after the national championship celebration in Columbus.

Ohio State's wave of good fortune shouldn't be a surprise.

It's not uncommon for schools to sign highly rated classes the year after they win the title. Since LSU won the national championship in 2007, only two teams failed to sign the country's top class a year later. The only exceptions were Auburn, which was the only school that fired its coach within two years of winning its title, and Florida State, which is on pace to sign the nation's No. 2 class this year.

Year	Title Team	Recruiting Ranking One Year Later
2007	LSU	No. 1
2008	Florida	No. 1
2009	Alabama	No. 1
2010	Auburn	No. 11
2011	Alabama	No. 1
2012	Alabama	No. 1
2013	Florida State	Currently No. 2

Meyer is looking to continue that trend.

Currently, Ohio State's six-member class for 2016 ranks fourth nationally. But two of three schools ranked ahead of the Buckeyes are there more because of quantity—Miami already has 12 commitments while Ole Miss has eight. Only Florida State, which ranks third, has an average star rating that's on par with Ohio State. 

That could change quickly. According to the recruiting experts in 247 Sports' Crystal Ball, the Buckeyes are the favorite or have a great shot to land elite prospects such as 5-star Nick Bosa (Joey Bosa's younger brother), and 4-stars Jauan Williams, Demario McCall, Prince Sammons, Brendan Ferns and Liam Eichenberg.

Meyer explained why recruiting success is imminent after winning the national title.

"The door's open," Meyer said, according to Ari Wasserman of The Plain Dealer. "You move to the front of the line."

If history repeats itself, Ohio State could be on the brink of dominating the recruiting trail like it did the college football world in 2014. 

All recruiting information via 247Sports.

David Regimbal covers Ohio State football for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @davidreg412.