Ohio State Football Recruiting: Meet the Buckeyes' 2016 Class

Head coach Urban Meyer and Ohio State found themselves in a familiar spot on national signing day, pacing the Big Ten with the conference's top recruiting class for the fifth consecutive year.

The Buckeyes' 25-member class ranked fourth nationally behind Alabama, Florida State and LSU and filled a number of big needs on the roster—primarily at wide receiver and in the secondary. 

With the number of holes to fill in Ohio State's two-deep roster, Meyer envisions plenty of first-year players making an immediate impact.

"I hope 18 of them play," Meyer said of his 2016 recruiting class, according to Ari Wasserman of the Plain Dealer.

Here's a look at the newest Buckeyes.

Player	Rating	Position	Position Rank
Nick Bosa	5-Star	Strong-Side DE	No. 1
Jonathan Cooper	4-Star	Weak-Side DE	No. 3
Demario McCall	4-Star	All-Purpose Back	No. 2
Austin Mack	4-Star	Wide Receiver	No. 10
Dwayne Haskins	4-Star	Quarterback	No. 4
Keandre Jones	4-Star	Linebacker	No. 8
Binjimen Victor	4-Star	Wide Receiver	No. 12
Jake Hausmann	4-Star	Tight End	No. 4
Michael Jordan	4-Star	Offensive Tackle	No. 13
Jordan Fuller	4-Star	Athlete	No. 6
Tyler Gerald	4-Star	Offensive Guard	No. 8
Antonio Williams	4-Star	Running Back	No. 7
Malcolm Pridgeon	4-star	Offensive Tackle	No. 3 (JUCO)
Luke Farrell	4-Star	Tight End	No. 7
Malik Barrow	4-Star	Defensive Tackle	No. 30
Tuf Borland	4-Star	Linebacker	No. 21
Kierre Hawkins	4-Star	Tight End	No. 11
Wayne Davis	4-Star	Cornerback	No. 33
Gavin Cupp	3-Star	Offensive Tackle	No. 40
Jack Wohlabaugh	3-Star	Offensive Guard	No. 20
Malik Harrison	3-Star	Athlete	No. 49
Drue Chrisman	3-Star	Punter	No. 1
Rodjay Burns	3-Star	Cornerback	No. 72
Kareem Felder	3-Star	Cornerback	No. 76
Jahsen Wint	3-Star	Athlete	No. 61

Cherry-Picking the State of Ohio

Ohio State didn't dominate the in-state recruiting scene like it usually does, but it did a good job of cherry-picking some of the top players from its own backyard.

Since Meyer took over the Buckeyes in 2012, he's managed to sign 21 of the state's top 40 players, highlighted by nabbing the No. 1 overall Ohio prospect each year since 2012. This year, Ohio State only signed four of the state's top 10 players—4-stars Jonathon Cooper (defensive end), Demario McCall (all-purpose back), Jake Hausmann (tight end) and Luke Farrell (tight end)—and failed to nab No. 1-ranked Tommy Kraemer (offensive tackle).

In total, nine of the Buckeyes' 25 new players hail from the state of Ohio, so Meyer and his coaching staff did a good job of pulling from the local talent pool. 

Loading Up on Playmakers

Ohio State lost a lot of firepower to the NFL with the departures of running back Ezekiel Elliott and wide receivers Michael Thomas, Jalin Marshall and Braxton Miller. One of Meyer's top recruiting priorities was to load up on offensive playmakers ahead of 2016, and that's exactly what he did with this class.

It starts at wide receiver, where the Buckeyes signed two of the country's most dangerous red-zone threats in Austin Mack and Binjimen Victor. Mack, the nation's 10th-ranked wide receiver, is a 6'2" blazer who can go up and make tough catches. Victor, rated the 12th-best receiver, is nearly 6'4" and a polished route-runner who uses his size to his advantage. 

McCall, who played running back in high school, is projecting to H-back at the collegiate level, and he's the biggest home run hitter in the class. He'll have a running mate in 4-star Antonio Williams, the seventh-best running back in the country.

Behind center, though, Ohio State is excited about 4-star quarterback Dwayne Haskins. The Buckeyes were able to wrangle Haskins away from the home-state Maryland Terrapins, and Meyer thinks he has a special talent in the fold, as he told Fox Sports' Bruce Feldman on The Audible podcast: 

"

Originally, I thought Dwayne would be a redshirt candidate. When I first started recruiting him two years ago, he was very skinny. Then about three weeks ago, I saw him work out. I’ve been blessed to be around some incredible quarterbacks. But he’s the best that I’ve seen at his age since I’ve been coaching.

"

Another Bosa Headlines the Defensive Haul

Superstar defensive end Joey Bosa anchored Ohio State's defense over the last two seasons, and while his departure will leave a big void in the defensive line, his younger brother Nick is on his way to Columbus and headlines a huge influx of defensive talent.

Nick Bosa, Ohio State's lone 5-star prospect, is the top-ranked strong-side defensive end and the No. 8 overall recruit nationally. He tore his ACL during his senior season, but he's ahead of schedule in his recovery and has a good chance of being healthy before fall camp starts.

He's the headliner for a special group of defenders.

The Buckeyes also got a big boost to their pass rush with the addition of Cooper, the nation's third-best weak-side defensive end. The linebacker corps was bolstered by 4-stars Tuf Borland, who enrolled early to take part in spring camp, and Keandre Jones, who Meyer singled out on signing day, per the Ozone's Patrick Murphy:

In the secondary, the Buckeyes loaded up on cornerbacks with the additions of 4-stars Jordan Fuller and Wayne Davis and 3-stars Rodjay Burns and Kareem Felder.

Instant-Impact Potential

When Meyer came to Ohio State, he talked about a philosophy that he and his staff didn't redshirt their freshmen. That wasn't the case last year, however, when only a handful of Ohio State's 25 freshmen saw the field during the 2015 campaign.

But with the mass departure of talent—the Buckeyes are replacing 16 starters and a number of key reserves—there will be a lot of opportunities for young players to crack the two-deep rotation.

Meyer talked about that potential at his signing day press conference, saying he has aspirations that 18 of his new players will see the field this fall. So which Buckeyes are primed for early playing time?

Both Bosa and Cooper are talented enough to factor into Ohio State's defensive line rotation. Meyer is very high on Jones at linebacker, and he and Fuller could get their feet wet on special teams.

Offensively, there's a huge opportunity for wideouts Mack, Victor and McCall, thanks to the attrition on the perimeter. And Haskins, the quarterback Meyer has fallen in love with, will compete for the No. 2 spot with Stephen Collier and Joe Burrow this fall.

Unlike last year, it won't take long for Buckeyes fans to see the new freshmen in action.

All recruiting rankings and information courtesy of 247Sports.

David Regimbal is the lead Ohio State football writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @davidreg412.