Urban Meyer Hits Another Recruiting Home Run with Tony Alford Hire

COLUMBUS, Ohio — As he does so often this time of year, Urban Meyer got his man.

And it may just prevent the Ohio State head coach from losing another one.

After the departure of running backs coach Stan Drayton blindsided 2015 recruit Mike Weber one day after national signing day, Meyer quickly went to work, wooing Notre Dame assistant Tony Alford from South Bend. Alford's first task in Columbus will be mending fences with Weber, a 4-star prospect, who according to his high school coach is currently weighing his options.

"Just trying to build and move forward. It's about him and his family—that's what it's all about," Detroit Cass Tech head coach Thomas Wilcher told Angelique S. Chengelis of The Detroit News. "I think he'll be all right."

If Weber, who chose the Buckeyes over archrival Michigan, were to renege on his recently signed national letter of intent, he'd need to do so with the blessing of Meyer and OSU. It could be up to Alford to ensure the Weber situation never comes to that, and there's already reason to believe it won't.

A Notre Dame assistant for each of the past six seasons, Alford is already plenty familiar with Weber, as he had recruited him to play for the Fighting Irish. And while the nation's ninth-ranked running back ultimately chose between the Buckeyes and Wolverines, he did make multiple trips to South Bend throughout his recruitment and has spoken highly of Alford in the past.

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"Coach Alford said he really liked my film and that he's looking forward to building the relationship with me and my family," Weber told Scout.com's Anna Hickey upon being offered by Notre Dame last November. "He is a guy that seems like he loves his players and has been very successful with his running backs in recent years."

That bodes well for the Buckeyes, who won't be starting from scratch with Weber after the messy circumstances surrounding Drayton's decision to leave for the Chicago Bears on short notice. In recruiting, relationships are everything, and Alford's history with Weber was almost certainly taken into consideration when Meyer nabbed him from Notre Dame.

It's not just Weber who was kept in mind with Ohio State's most recent hire, either, and the addition of Alford has been well received by both the present and future in Columbus. Upon the initial reports of Alford's hiring, current Buckeyes star running back Ezekiel Elliott took to Twitter to express his excitement.

Alford had also recruited Elliott during his time at Notre Dame, and apparently left a positive impression, just as he did with 2016 5-star prospect Kareem Walker. The nation's top-ranked running back and No. 8 overall player, Walker has been committed to Ohio State since the day of the Buckeyes' national championship victory in January and is apparently also pleased with Alford's hiring.

Given how highly sought-after Walker is, Ohio State will need to continue to recruit the Wayne, New Jersey, native until next year's signing day, but it appears Alford will allow the Buckeyes to maintain their edge in the race for his services. Ohio State, who currently lays claim to the nation's fourth-ranked class in 2016, also possesses a commitment from 4-star running back George Hill.

It won't just be the Buckeyes' current commits Alford will be tasked with recruiting, but future ones as well. A former Colorado State running back who played under Meyer in 1990, Alford has recruiting connections all over the country, including Florida, Georgia and Texas.

That surely was attractive to Meyer, who is hoping to maintain a pipeline in the Lone Star State after the departure of offensive coordinator and new Houston head coach Tom Herman. Ohio State has also long recruited Florida and Georgia, and the addition of Alford should only strengthen its ties in each.

Meyer's no stranger when it comes to replacing coaches, and he surely took both the short- and long-term consequences in mind when hiring Drayton's replacement. Given his recruiting history and Walker's reassuring words, Alford appears to be nothing short of a home run hire when it comes to 2016 and beyond.

And as for the short-term, that will be judged by how the Weber saga ultimately plays out. In recruiting, every edge matters, and Meyer seems to have regained one with his latest hiring.

Ben Axelrod is Bleacher Report's Ohio State Lead Writer. You can follow him on Twitter @BenAxelrod. Unless noted otherwise, all quotes obtained firsthand. All statistics courtesy of cfbstats.com. Recruiting rankings courtesy of 247Sports.