QB Taylor Graham Commits to Ohio State for 2010

Ohio State tried three times this recruiting year to get a quarterback into their program that can follow Terrelle Pryor and finally got their man in Taylor Graham. Graham had a number of very good offers including UCLA, Wisconsin, Arkansas, Colorado, Duke, Iowa, and Michigan State. The Wheaten Ill. North high school product is a legacy of the Buckeye program as his father is Ohio State alumni Kent Graham.

Film: QB Taylor Graham 2009 Highlight Film

By Steve Patterson

Pro Style Quarterback

A 6-4, 211 lbs, Graham is more of a pro-style quarterback which makes the scholarship offer a little odd as Ohio State appears to be moving towards the athletic style quarterback with the success they have had with Troy Smith and now Terrelle Pryor. Graham’s father also played quarterback at Ohio State back in 1991 and then continued this career at the NFL level which could be a reason that he committed quickly after receiving an offer.

Comfort with the Coaches

Graham mentions his comfortable level with the coaches and his admiration for the facilities at Ohio State for reasons he selected the Buckeyes over offers from UCLA and Michigan State. He looks to Craig Krenzel as an example of a pro-style quarterback that had great success with the pro-style offense OSU plays. When he arrives in Columbus in 2010 he will be behind Pryor, Joe Bauserman, Justin Seims, and Kenny Guiton.

Glad to be Finished with Recruiting

Graham will now focus on his senior season and isn’t planning on making any addition visits to colleges or camps. His family is very supportive of his decision and growing up a fan of the Buckeyes made the decision to commit to Jim Tressel an easy choice. He is currently ranked a 3 Star prospect by services like Rivals.com. The Buckeyes missed out on Nick Montana and Andrew Hendrix before landing Graham.

Garrett Dornbrook, Ohio State Long Snapper on Spring Ball

Ohio State doesn’t recruit long snappers the way they recruit quarterbacks, linebackers or wide receivers. They go to the local high schools and find good athletes with versatility that have experience playing the offensive line. Then they offer them as preferred walk-ons. They bring in 1 to 2 a year and keep them in the program for 5 years. This strategy has been quite dependable for the Buckeyes since Jim Tressel took over the program.

By Steve Patterson

Preferred Walk-On

Garrett Dornbrook came from Medina Ohio to Columbus to walk-on with the Buckeyes and get repetitions at long snapper. The 6’1” 205lbs freshman had his first spring and enjoyed the experience. “The team performed well during spring camp, we had good attitude and work ethic throughout.” He told us about Ohio State this April.

“Jake Mcquaide is going to be the guy long snapping this year.” He reported about the competition at the position.

Scarlet vs. Gray Annual Game

Ohio State had a NCAA record for attendance at their spring game this year. The large crowd came out to see Terrelle Pryor and the new starters at positions like linebacker, running back, and wide receiver. The rest of the team appreciated the crowd too. “The spring game was great, it was an amazing turn out and it was a lot of fun to play in front of so many fans and really appreciate their attendance.” Dornbrook told us about his feelings on that sunny Saturday.

Summer Practice

Like those given a scholarship to play for Ohio State, Dornbrook is planning to give the team his all as he balances summer practice with work and classes. “This summer there will be lifting and conditioning throughout up until camp starts, then camp will take us right into the season. I plan on working as hard as I can at everything I can attend. My goals for this year are to just continually get better, I feel like I have a lot of potential that I will be able to unlock through hard work and being more familiar with our team and how it works.”

Ticket Super Mall

Ticket Super Mall is a ticket clearing house for your favorite tickets online including sporting events and concert tickets. If you are looking for the best deals on rock concert tickets or sporting event passes, TicketSuperMall is the place to look for good prices and great seats.

The Nick Montana Decision from a Buckeye Perspective

Yesterday the super-recruit Nick Montana, son of NFL Hall of Famer Joe Montana, finally chose a school. Ohio State was among the long list of schools that heavily recruited the junior quarterback star. Jim Tressel even went as far as to promise Montana that he would not recruit any other quarterbacks for the 2010 class if he came to Ohio State.

2010 Quarterback Andrew Hendrix Picks up Notre Dame and Ohio State Offers

Andrew Hendrix has been a fan of Ohio State most of his life growing up in Ohio and a recent offer from the Buckeyes to play quarterback in 2010 has him seriously considering joining the Scarlet and Gray next year. But an offer from Notre Dame within the same week made him reconsider his favorite and now he is weighing the benefits of each program.

Film: Cincinnati QB Andrew Hendrix Highlights

Jr Ferguson, One of the Best Defensive Ends for 2010

At 6'3" 270lbs and with 4.9 speed, Jr Ferguson is rated the 3rd best defensive end in the country for the 2010 recruiting class. He has yet to name a set number of favorites schools and has offers from all over the country including Georgia, Penn State, Oklahoma, Miami, Notre Dame, USC, Florida State and California. Look for this member of the Rivals 100 to be aggressively recruited up until he makes a college selection.

Film: JR ‘Ego’ Ferguson Discusses High School and College Preparation

Weakside Defensive End Chris Martin, Solid with Notre Dame

The #1 rated weakside defensive end in the country committed to Notre Dame on February 4th and remains solid with the Irish. The 6'4" 240 lbs prospect with 4.65 speed joined a recovering program that has recruited better than played but improved last season under Charlie Weis. He turned down offers from Oregon, USC, UCLA, California, Georgia, and Nebraska among others.

Ohio State Very Active at St Thomas Aquinas - Brandon Linder

Ohio State was able to pull Duron Carter out of St Thomas Aquinas last year and is now working on three of his teammates for the 2010 class. Of course Carter's father, Chris Carter, was a wide receiver for Ohio State before starting his long and successful NFL career. With the help of Duron, great facilities, a winning tradition, good academics, and popular coaches, Ohio State has shown interest in Brandon Linder, Lamarcus Joyner, and Cody Riggs with the hope of pulling them all out of Fort Lauderdale.

Film: Brandon Linder - A Highly Recruited 2010 Offensive Lineman

Matt James 2010 Offensive Lineman from St Xavier

After attending the Bearcat's 2009 Spring Game recently, Matt James still is undecided about his college selection but has reduced his favorites to three schools, Cincinnati, Notre Dame, and Ohio State. He is also still going to take a look at Boston College and Florida with his official visits. James father was a player for Cincinnati and being close to home is attractive to the Ohio native.

Film: Matt James Cincinnati St Xavier Junior Film

Seantrel Henderson, Rivals Early #1 2010 Recruit

Seantrel Henderson is the number one recruit in the nation for the 2010 class. Teams such as Michigan, Ohio State, Florida, Michigan State, Oregon, USC, UCLA and Wisconsin have already offered him a scholarship. A visit to Michigan in March left Henderson impressed with the Wolverines but there is still plenty of time for schools to catch the 6'8" 300 lbs tackle from Saint Paul Minnesota.

Film: Seantrel Henderson Manhandles High School Lines