The Ohio State Buckeyes are a powerhouse college football program, and they have the ability to bring in some of the best of the best high school athletes, not only to visit in Columbus but to play there as well.
The talent pool for the next generation is always a top of conversation for collegiate programs, and having incoming prospects and recruits to high-energy games is immensely beneficial for all parties as they get to see the type of environment that a college can have on the brightest stage.
However, when it is a noon ET game and high school football playoffs are still ongoing, it makes matters a bit tougher, and the Buckeyes are figuring that out the hard way as they will miss out on a chance to have No. 1 overall Class of 2026 quarterback Jared Curtis to Columbus.
Curtis is the No. 1 quarterback, the No. 1 player from Tennessee and the No. 4 overall prospect from the Class of 2026 per 247Sports Composite scoring.
Per On3’s Steve Wiltfong, Curtis won’t be able to make the game due to having a third-round playoff game and logistics just won’t be able to work themselves out.
Ryan Day kind of shrugged off my question last week when I asked him how noon games impact Ohio State’s recruiting efforts.
This, folks, is what countless noon games mean to the program. It extends well beyond stadium atmospheres. https://t.co/AUhmE6rzZs
— Dillon Davis (@DillonDavis56) November 20, 2024
The game was announced as FOX’s Big Noon Kickoff several days ago and will also have ESPN’s College Gameday prior. It is a big deal as the regular season college football slate only has so many top-five games.
With Indiana No. 5 and Ohio State No. 2, it is bound to be the most high-profile battle this weekend.