Ohio State Football Recruiting 2012: Does 2012 Postseason Ban Kill Recruiting?

A solid recruiting class can either make or break your football program.

At the same time, the slightest little thing can destroy your recruiting class. Coaching changes, a scandal or even other recruits are just some of the things that can sway away top players from joining your program.

What has just happened to Ohio State will really have an impact on what direction the recruiting goes from here.

The Buckeyes have been banned from bowl games for one season and have lost scholarships for the next three seasons. This, of course, has to do with the tattoo scandal that took place last year, where players received tattoos in exchange for memorabilia.

This may be the worst thing that can have a huge impact on recruiting. Telling a top recruit that he won't be able to participate in a bowl game for a season. That includes a possible national championship or even a Big Ten Championship, regardless of the record the team ends up finishing with.

Since the Buckeyes have hired Urban Meyer, he has landed four recruits, and all four of them were highly recruited and top players at their position.

Defensive tackle Tommy Schutt had appeared he was going to Penn State, but Meyer was able to convince him to become a Buckeye. The same goes for defensive end Noah Spence, who was also considering the Nittany Lions.

Running back Brionte Dunn was flirting with the rival Michigan Wolverines and refused to play in the spread offense, which Meyer runs. He not only committed to the rival Buckeyes, but will be playing in a spread offense during his college career.

Ohio State was also able to pick up another top defensive end in Se'Von Pittman, who is extremely athletic and only adds depth to the defensive line.

We all knew Urban Meyer was a fantastic coach and a top recruiter, but what he's been doing at Ohio State has been remarkable. He's pretty much stealing all of the top recruits, and other elite programs really can't do anything about it.

Now that the NCAA has dropped this bombshell on the university, you can bet it will make things a lot more difficult for the Buckeyes.

Recruiting has gotten a lot more interesting with this ruling, and players will think twice now about joining the school everyone was so eager to jump at.

Randy Chambers is a B/R Featured Columnist that covers College Football and the NFL. You can contact him @Randy_Chambers or [e-mail]