Ohio State Football: 10 Recruits Who Are Must-Haves in the Class of 2012

The future of Ohio State football as far as the program is concerned is still a major question mark.

But the future players of Ohio State football will still be strong the same way they have in the past few years.

The Buckeyes' recruiting efforts have been tremendous lately, with three top-10 recruiting classes in four years.

What makes this upcoming recruiting year, 2012, interesting is that the state of Ohio is loaded with more talent even than last season, especially at DE and WR.

The Buckeyes have six commits already, including two on the offensive line and two more at RB.

Here is a look at 10 uncommitted prospects that are must-haves for Ohio State to continue their dynasty atop the Big Ten.

10. Se'Von Pittman, DE, Canton (McKinley), OH

A teammate of 2011 OSU commit Steve Miller, Se'Von Pittman is a very quick lineman who uses pure burst to get around the edge to make plays in the backfield.

In almost any other class, Pittman would be in the top two. But even though he may only be the No. 4 or No. 5 DE in Ohio, that does not make him a slouch by any stretch.

Pittman was one of the earliest offers for the 2012 class and could be a near lock to Ohio State with the thought of starting opposite Miller on the line.

With some question marks abound on the defensive front, snagging Pittman would help to bolster a unit that has become a force for the Buckeyes in the past few seasons.

9. James Ross, LB, Orchard Lake (St. Mary's Prep), MI

Even though Michigan has gotten a couple of solid defensive prospects for 2012, their main rivals have made some major inroads to landing Scout.com's top player in Michigan.

Ross is a strong MLB at about 220 lbs and is a big-time tackler in the middle of the defense.

Although Ohio State will still have Etienne Sabino and Curtis Grant most likely platooning the middle of the defense for the next few years, history has shown you can never have too many good LBs.

Ross has reportedly told insiders that he grew up an Ohio State fan, and adding the big LB would only add to the deep corps that the Buckeyes have loaded up on in the past few seasons.

8. Jaquay Williams, WR, Tyrone (Sandy Creek H.S.), GA

Ohio State's spring football reports have so far shown a glaring, growing weakness at the WR position, hence a push for Georgia product Jaquay Williams.

Williams is a lanky WR at 6'4", just under 200 lbs, although he will definitely grow out his frame and maybe be closer to 215 lbs by his sophomore or junior season.

Williams may not be the best route-runner or great after the catch, but he has fantastic hands and body control, similar to A.J. Green in high school.

Like Ross, Williams has liked Ohio State, at least in some capacity, since he was young, and raved about an earlier visit to Columbus.

This may be more of a long shot for OSU, but they have landed some Southern wideouts in the past and seeing a vacant depth chart could be appealing for a talented wideout like Williams.

7. Chris Wormley, DE, Toledo (Whitmer), OH

Of all the Ohio kids that are among the top prospects for 2012, Chris Wormley might be the most likely to go to Michigan to play for Brady Hoke.

Wormley is unlike Se'Von Pittman because he uses his pure, physical strength to power his man off the edge and make plays.

He would project well in the Cameron Heyward role in the OSU defense at SSDE and will be checked to see if he can improve his hustle and motor before getting to the next level.

It would be unlikely for OSU to land Wormley due to their pushes for other recruits and Hoke's staff possibly putting a full-court press on the young man. But Jim Tressel's record in Toledo is much better than most other OSU coaches, so almost anything can happen here.

6. Jordan Diamond, OL, Chicago (Simeon Vocational), IL

In spring football, Ohio State only has 11 offensive linemen, including walk-ons.

While they will have three more coming in the fall and two more already committed in 2012, they need more linemen badly.

Enter big Jordan Diamond, who stands just shy of 300 lbs and is a very athletic and balanced tackle prospect, strong at both pass and run blocking.

This class will be the ones who replace the Brew Crew of 2008, and finding another cornerstone linemen or two to go with Scout.com 5-star OT Kyle Kalis will be critical to the success of the Buckeyes.

5. Dwayne Stanford, WR, Cincinnati (Taft), OH

As mentioned earlier, the Buckeyes are likely to be in a big hole at the WR position, especially when DeVier Posey graduates after this season.

Luckily, they have another talented wideout prospect nearby in Dwayne Stanford.

Stanford, who according to some Ohio recruiting insiders may be the best WR prospect Ohio has had in quite some time, is a very intriguing prospect with his height and speed combination.

In a way, he is very similar to Jaquay Williams in hands, size and body control. 

While they would love to get both Williams and Stanford, if they are going to get one, odds are high that Stanford would be that guy.

4. Ifeadi Odenigbo, DE/OLB, Centerville, OH

Arguably no other recruit in America has blown up quite as much as Centerville DE Ifeadi Odenigbo has in the past couple of months.

Although he has only played football for a couple of years, Odenigbo has all of the physical tools, including size and blistering speed (reportedly a 4.44 40-yard time) that could make him a special player in time.

In the past three or four months, he has gotten offers from Stanford to Alabama and so many major schools in between.

But it seems right now that Ohio State is a heavy favorite to land this kid with skyhigh potential, especially due to the Buckeye lineage of Centerville, OH, with players such as Kirk Herbstreit, A.J. Hawk and 2011 commit Michael Bennett all hailing from there.

3. Deaysean Rippy, LB, McKees Rocks (Sto-Rox), PA

The race to land the top player in Pennsylvania for 2012 right now appears to be a horse race between Ohio State and Florida.

The Buckeyes, who have landed Pennsylvania's top prospect in three of the past four recruiting years, would love to make it four out of five by landing this fast LB with a great ability to drop into coverage.

Although Rippy's lack of size could push him to safety, he is very adept both at rushing the passer and stuffing the run, making him the ideal OLB in a 4-3 defense.

The idea of having an LB corps of Rippy, Curtis Grant and Ryan Shazier could be a salivating thought for Buckeye fans if they can land this stud.

Rippy is the type of player that can add so much juice to any defense, especially a perennially-strong one like Ohio State's.

2. Adolphus Washington, DE, Cincinnati (Taft), OH

If there is any player in Ohio that Jim Tressel's staff needs to lock inside the state, Cincinnati Taft's superstar end Adolphus Washington is that guy.

Washington is a great combination of size and speed at 240 lbs and will be an impact pass rusher wherever he goes.

Reportedly, him and teammate Dwayne Stanford are a package deal, and thus OSU has decided to try to recruit them together.

The Under Armour All-American is a guy that Buckeye fans know is the guy that the Buckeyes need to keep out of all the guys in the state of Ohio, even as deep as the talent pool is. 

That shows the type of special talent that Washington is and can be for the Buckeyes. 

1. Dorial Green-Beckham, WR, Springfield (Hillcrest), MO

By now, everyone knows that Dorial Green-Beckham may be the best 2012 recruit in the country. 

With his incredible combination of size and speed combined with great hands, Dorial has gotten offers from almost every single FBS school in America.

But what might make OSU an attractive place for Dorial is the lack of a top receiver on the depth chart at the start of the 2012 season.

In addition, Jim Tressel has decided that he plans on personally recruiting Green-Beckham instead of one of his assistants, something that he doesn't always do.

But having the head coach of one of the most consistent programs in America being the main recruiter on Green-Beckham is a move that couldn't hurt.

While he might be more of a longshot than Jaquay Williams, if Ohio State can get Dorial on an official visit in the season, anything can happen.

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