Ohio State Football Recruiting: Grading Every Commitment

Ohio State's 2012 recruiting class is nothing short of strong, finishing in the top five in most recruiting services with the exception of ESPN.

This class helps the Buckeyes in almost every position, especially on both the offensive and defensive line.

But in true Urban Meyer fashion, he has found quite a few incredible athletes to round out a class that looked anemic until his grand arrival at the end of November.

Here is how the 2012 recruiting class grades out.

Offensive 3-Star Commits

Ohio State does have an assortment of 3-star prospects on both sides of the ball.

Here are the offensive 3-stars:

OG Joey O'Connor (Windsor, Colo.): A powerful lineman with a high motor. He projects to being a guard at the college level.

TE Blake Thomas (Cleveland, Ohio): With Reid Fragel's move to tight end, Thomas slides into his role. He is a better blocker than a receiver at this point, but was a major player for St. Ignatius in their Division I State Championship this year.

OG Patrick Elflein (Pickerington, Ohio): Elflein impressed coaches well enough in summer camps to earn a scholarship offer and committed quickly. He is a strong player that will be on the interior.

WR Frank Epitropoulos (Upper Arlington, Ohio): Epitropoulos has talent that makes him more than just a legacy commit. He could be an offensive sleeper in this class.

OG Jacoby Boren (Pickerington, Ohio): The third Boren to play at Ohio State, Jacoby projects to the guard position like older brother Justin. He is already enrolled and working out with the team already.

QB Cardale Jones (Cleveland, Ohio): Jones committed to Ohio State last year, but couldn't go to school because of grades. He has mobility and a strong arm to with with 6'5" size.

Defensive 3-Star Commits

MLB Luke Roberts (Lancaster, Ohio): Roberts is an intelligent MLB prospect that committed after impressing Buckeye coaches in summer camps.

S Tyvis Powell (Bedford, Ohio): Powell was another impressive prospect at summer camps and has intriguing size for a safety prospect at 6'3".

LB Jamal Marcus

Marcus is a 3-star prospect, but he gets singled out amongst the other 3-stars because of the praise Meyer has for him.

A signing day commit, Marcus chose Ohio State over in-state East Carolina.

Meyer said Marcus' highlight film was "ridiculous," and based on said film, he doesn't look like a 3-star prospect.

But watch above and you be the judge.

Grade: B+

WR Michael Thomas

Thomas is one of two prep-school players in the Ohio State recruiting class and a teammate of QB Cardale Jones.

His size can be a huge advantage, as his 6'4" frame is a change-up to the smaller, faster receivers that the Urban Meyer spread offense typically calls on.

His route-running is an excellent asset, as he will likely be used in shorter routes and use his frame to get yards after the catch.

Grade: B

DB Devan Bogard

Devan Bogard's commitment continues the long run of Glenville prospects that come to Ohio State every year.

Bogard is an athletic safety that loves to make big hits.

He will need to work on his coverage skills, but he has the closing burst that is very tough to coach.

Grade: B-

OT Kyle Dodson

Kyle Dodson of Cleveland Heights was the last commitment to Ohio State as of now and did so in probably the most awesome way.

Dodson could possibly be a very good right tackle because of his strength and physicality.

His style is a road-grader, a player that specializes in being a player that can push people off the line and open up holes in the running game.

After playing his final four games of high school with a torn labrum, he might not see much action his freshman year.

But he has the opportunity to be a very good RT.

Grade: B+

LB David "Boom" Perkins

South Bend, Indiana's David Perkins is what you would describe as an unbelievable athlete.

Perkins played both linebacker and running back in high school and has great speed to go with his 210-lb. frame.

He will remind Buckeye fans very quickly of Ryan Shazier, who had an amazing freshman season for Ohio State last year.

He might not get to start like Shazier did, but his speed is something that should get him on the field in some capacity, either in punt block formations or in blitz packages.

Grade: A-

RB Warren Ball

Ball is a local product from DeSales H.S. in Columbus who plays like his name: a wrecking ball.

He is a tough, physical back, much like how Meyer said he would like to have at Ohio State.

Meyer wasn't able to get the big back at Florida that he now has at Ohio State with Ball and Bri'onte Dunn.

But with the depth at the RB position, it's not very likely that Ball sees the field as a freshman this year.

Grade: B

DB Najee Murray

Murray was another player who impressed the Ohio State coaches at camp before accepting a scholarship offer to the Buckeyes.

He soon became a hot commodity in recruiting cycles, as his rating grew to 4-stars on the heels of an outstanding senior season for Steubenville H.S. (Steubenville, Ohio.)

Like Bogard, Murray is always capable of laying down huge hits at will.

He does need to improve his coverage skills, but Murray has a great foundation to build off of.

Grade: B+

LB Camren Williams

Williams is one of four players on Ohio State's class that was once committed to Penn State, but flipped because of the scandal involving Jerry Sandusky.

Williams' build is similar to that of David Perkins, but he has some more experience at the linebacker position.

He fits the profile of the outside linebackers that Urban Meyer prefers to have in his defense—undersized but fast, very fast.

His ability to hit and wrap ball carriers up is fantastic.

Grade: B+

OT Taylor Decker

Taylor Decker was not even on Ohio State's radar until Notre Dame's offensive line coach Ed Warriner, the man who had recruited Decker to Notre Dame, came to OSU.

Soon after, Decker committed to Ohio State and is the model for the new type of offensive tackle that Ohio State wants to have in the future.

His size and frame, along with his aggressive mentality, probably makes him the left tackle of the future in Columbus.

With the lack of good OT depth on the roster, Decker has a chance to step in immediately and help fill in the void left behind by Mike Adams.

Grade: A

LB Joshua Perry

Josh Perry of local Olentangy H.S. (Lewis Center, Ohio) was the first player to commit to Ohio State for the class of 2012 and saw three different OSU head coaches during his commitment.

He has great size for an LB at 225 lbs. and likely projects to be an outside backer.

Perry has good enough pass coverage skills to be a multi-dimensional OLB, not just as a run-stopper or pass-rusher, but one that can cover running backs in the flat.

The local LB is already enrolled at Ohio State and learning the playbook.

Grade: B+

DE Se'Von Pittman

Pittman was the second of several flips Urban Meyer was able to make on a Big Ten rival since his hire.

A former Michigan State commit, Pittman is a relentless edge rusher that is able to use a great combination of power and speed to get to the quarterback.

He is the second Canton McKinley DE to commit to Ohio State in two years, joining second-year DE Steve Miller.

Miller is more of a speed rusher, while Pittman uses more strength.

Grade: B+

DB Armani Reeves

Ohio State needed more of an infusion of speed across the board, and they got it in Armani Reeves.

The speedster from Massachusetts came with Camren Williams, both of whom committed to Penn State and left after the scandal to come to Columbus.

Reeves is a smaller corner at only 5'10", but his 4.41 40-time more than makes up for that. He also is a dynamic punt returner as well, something Ohio State needs explosiveness at.

Fun fact: Reeves is the cousin of everyone's favorite NBA analyst, Sir Charles Barkley.

Grade: A-

RB Bri'onte Dunn

The recruitment of Bri'onte Dunn has been an interesting story, as he was committed to Ohio State early on in the process, then waivered for months before Meyer became head coach.

Dunn is a powerful runner that specializes in going between the tackles.

He runs similarly to Chris "Beanie" Wells, expect maybe without the breakaway speed that Wells possessed.

But Dunn has all the makings of a feature back, even in the spread look that Ohio State will operate with.

Grade: A

DE Adolphus Washington

Ohio State hit quite a long recruiting drought before landing a monster fish days before Meyer was announced as head coach.

Adolphus Washington from Taft H.S. (Cincinnati, Ohio) was considered the top player in the state of Ohio this season because of his amazing athleticism.

He lit up the Army All-American Bowl with six tackles, 1.5 sacks and another tackle for a loss.

Washington has the frame to play at about 270 lbs. without losing much of the explosiveness that has made him an effective player.

He should be a mainstay on the Buckeye defense for years to come.

Grade: A+

DT Tommy Schutt

Ohio State possesses three five-star defensive line recruits, and each one has great athleticism and explosiveness out of their stance.

Tommy Schutt does that very well in the interior of the DL.

Schutt, who has drawn comparisons to Green Bay's B.J. Raji, is basically a disruptive force in the interior of the defense.

He might not see the field right away because of John Simon's impact in the middle, but he has the ability to be just as disruptive if not more than Simon.

Still, don't be surprised if he gets on the field in passing situations to create an interior pass rush.

Grade: A+

DE Noah Spence

Without a doubt, Noah Spence would be the flagship recruit in almost any recruiting class in the country.

The edge rusher from Harrisburg, Penn. has amazing athleticism to get to the quarterback to go with an incredible motor, both things that will really make him a terrifying force in the Big Ten.

He put up three sacks in the Under Armour All-American Game and earned the Maxwell Club's National High School Player of the Year Award, won by Florida's Jeff Driskel last year.

Spence is a consensus top-10 prospect and should be able to get on the field right from the beginning.

It's going to be tough for Urban Meyer to keep Spence off of the field this season.

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