Ohio State Secures One of its “Great Classes”
2/1/2017 12:00:00 AM | Football
Feb. 1, 2017
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COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio State football program will have 21 new players when fall camp opens later this year with the addition of 11 more prospects-turned-Buckeyes Wednesday and on top of the nine mid-year enrollees and a junior college player who signed in December. The class is shaping up to be one of the best in Ohio State history.
“This could go down as one of the great classes,” Meyer said Wednesday. “We’re pretty fired up about this class.”
The staff should be fired up. Five players were listed as the No. 1 player at their position by one of the four recruiting services and seven received a five-star ratings.
Number one at their position included both Jeffrey Okudah, from Grand Prairie, Texas, and Shaun Wade, from Jacksonville, Fla., at cornerback, with Okudah earning the honor from 247Sports and Wade from ESPN.
Linebacker Baron Browning, from Fort Worth, Texas, and one of five from the state who signed with Ohio State, is the top outside linebacker per Rivals, 247Sports and Scout. Wyatt Davis, from Bellflower, Calif., is the No. 1 offensive guard by those same three organizations.
Junior college transfer Kendall Sheffield, from Missouri City, Texas, and by way of Blinn College, is the No. 1 junior college cornerback in his class.
Browning, Davis, Okudah and Wade all earned five-star rankings by one or more of the services, as did wide receiver Trevon Grimes, from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., quarterback Tate Martell, from Las Vegas, and defensive end Chase Young, out of Hyattsville, Md.
In addition, handfuls of new Buckeyes are considered among the Top 5 at their positions, including: RB J.K. Dobbins (No. 2 all-purpose by 247Sports; No. 3 athlete by Scout; No. 5 RB by ESPN), DT Haskell Garrett (No. 4 DT by Scout), Grimes (No. 4 by Rivals; No. 5 by ESPN), K Blake Haubeil (No. 2 247Sports), OG Josh Myers (No. 2 by 247Sports and Rivals; No. 3 by Scout); SAF Isaiah Pryor (No. 3 by ESPN), ATH Brendon White (No. 2 by Rivals; No. 3 by 247Sports) and Young (No. 2 WDE by 247Sports; No. 3 WDE by ESPN and Rivals).
Ohio State’s recruiting class includes seven players from the state of Ohio and 14 from around the country. In addition to those two states, Ohio State’s class of recruits includes three from Florida, two from Nevada and one apiece from California, Indiana, Maryland and New York.
From a positional standpoint, and with six defensive backs declaring early for the NFL the past two years, the class is heavy with six defensive backs. It also features three offensive linemen, three defensive linemen, three wide receivers, two linebackers and one quarterback, running back, kicker and “athlete.”
2017 Ohio State Recruiting Class Roster
| Name | Pos. | Ht. | Wt. | Hometown/High School |
| Baron Browning | LB | 6-4 | 230 | Fort Worth, Texas / Kennedale |
| Jerron Cage | DT | 6-3 | 280 | Cincinnati, Ohio / Winton Woods |
| Wyatt Davis | OL | 6-4 | 310 | Bellflower, California / St. John Bosco |
| J.K. Dobbins | RB | 5-10 | 199 | La Grange, Texas / La Grange |
| Ellijah Gardiner | WR | 6-4 | 200 | Kemp, Texas / Kemp |
| Haskell Garrett | DT | 6-2 | 286 | Las Vegas, Nevada / Bishop Gorman |
| Trevon Grimes | WR | 6-4 | 202 | Fort Lauderdale, Florida / St. Thomas Aquinas |
| Jaylen Harris | WR | 6-5 | 205 | Cleveland, Ohio / Cleveland Heights |
| Blake Haubeil | K | 6-3 | 200 | Buffalo, New York / Canisius |
| Tate Martell | QB | 5-10 | 203 | Las Vegas, Nevada / Bishop Gorman |
| Thayer Munford | OL | 6-6 | 325 | Cincinnati, Ohio / Massillon Washington |
| Josh Myers | OL | 6-6 | 306 | Miamisburg, Ohio / Miamisburg |
| Jeffrey Okudah | CB | 6-1 | 190 | Grand Prairie, Texas / South Grand Prairie |
| Isaiah Pryor | SAF | 6-2 | 195 | Bradenton, Fla. / IMG Academy |
| Amir Riep | CB | 5-11 | 183 | Cincinnati, Ohio / Colerain |
| Kendall Sheffield | CB | 6-0 | 183 | Missouri City, Texas / Blinn College |
| Shaun Wade | CB | 6-2 | 175 | Jacksonville, Fla. / Trinity Christian Academy |
| Pete Werner | LB | 6-3 | 215 | Indianapolis, Indiana / Cathedral |
| Brendon White | ATH | 6-2 | 200 | Powell, Ohio / Olentangy Liberty |
| Marcus Williamson | CB | 5-10 | 180 | Westerville, Ohio / IMG Academy |
| Chase Young | DE | 6-5 | 240 | Hyattsville, Maryland / DeMatha Catholic |
