Tag: Early signing period

Five-star edge Eddrick Houston sticks with Ohio State despite rumors of a flip

This is huge. #GoBucks

It’s been an interesting day around the Woody Hayes Athletic Center on this, the first day of the early signing period. Over the last couple of days, there were a couple of flips, some rumored ones, and no doubt some sleepless and nervous times for head coach Ryan Day and staff.

And while there was indeed a flip on Wednesday with a wide receiver to Oregon, the Ohio State was able to fend off a hard charge from Alabama to keep the services of five-star edge rusher, Eddrick Houston, who officially signed with the Buckeyes later in the day.

Houston, out of Buford, Georgia, and ranked as the No. 5 defensive line recruit and 26th overall prospect in the class according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, has been verbally committed to OSU since late August. Late word began to surface that he was seriously considering a flip at the eleventh hour to Alabama. In fact, it was almost a foregone conclusion that the Tide had wrestled him away from the Buckeyes overnight and into this morning.

However, in the end, Houston kept with his word and did indeed send in his national letter of intent to join the 2024 recruiting class.

This is obviously great news for Ohio State and means the Buckeyes have landed five 5-star prospects in the class which is nothing to sneeze at despite a couple of last minute flips and the ups and downs that come with today’s day and age of big-time college football recruiting.

Onward and upward, as they say, and now it’s time to get going on molding this class into one that can compete for really big things.

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Phil Harrison on X.

Georgia signs 4-star TE Jaden Reddell

Georgia signs 4-star TE Jaden Reddell

The Georgia Bulldogs have signed vertical threat tight end Jaden Reddell. The Bulldogs sign the four-star tight end to their 2024 class. Reddell is the sixth-ranked tight end in this class and he’s the 75th-ranked player nationally.

The 6-foot-4, 233 pound tight end is from Peculiar, Mo., and will make it down to Athens for his freshman season. Reddell saw a lot of his action at wide receiver in high school, but will likely transition to more of the traditional tight end position.

He played football at the varsity level for three seasons and he had 97 catches for 1,969 yards and 23 touchdowns. He also played basketball in high school following a similar path that most tight ends do.

He has much more experience splitting out as a tight end compared to putting his hand in the ground. He has strong hands and a feel for catching the ball, but he’s still a raw talent.

He’s the latest top tier tight end recruit that the Bulldogs have netted in the past couple years. He joins a tight end room that will have players ahead of him like Oscar Delp and Lawson Luckie.

WATCH: Ohio State’s Ryan Day reacts live to Jeremiah Smith staying with Ohio State commitment

Day seemed relieved, to say the least

The No. 1 overall prospect in the country is officially an Ohio State Buckeye.

Florida wide receiver, [autotag]Jeremiah Smith[/autotag], who saw rumors leading up to the early signing period of other schools trying to flip him from his Buckeye commitment, stayed the course and in the class.

An interesting part of the timing of his official announcement — even though he was already verbally committed — was that head coach Ryan Day was meeting with the media to discuss the 2024 Ohio State signees. The sigh of relief can visibly be shown on the Buckeyes leader’s face, as he flashes a huge smile keeping the No. 1 overall prospect in the country according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

It seems like every should have had the same reaction as Day did, as it was a bit up in the air what Smith would do leading into the first day of the early signing period.

Now it’s time to take stock in what class Ohio State brought in, develop them, and get back atop the Big Ten and compete for national titles.

Contact/Follow @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Michael Chen on X.

Georgia signs 4-star DL Nasir Johnson

The Georgia Bulldogs have signed four-star defensive lineman Nasir Johnson to their 2024 class.

The Georgia Bulldogs have signed defensive lineman Nasir Johnson to their 2024 class. The four-star defensive lineman is from Dublin, Ga. He committed to Georgia back in November and adds to the No. 1 class in the country.

Johnson is a monster at around 6-foot-4 and 300 pounds. He played both sides of the ball in high school, but will come to Georgia as a defensive lineman. He’s the 12th ranked defensive lineman in the country and 58th ranked player nationally per 247Sports.

Before coming to Georgia, Johnson was committed to Florida. He visited Georgia in November and four days later he flipped his commitment to the Bulldogs.

He adds to a defensive line group that losing a couple players after their senior seasons. He’ll likely be helping plug up the middle with a strong base and longer arms. The Dublin product has the talent and measurements to be a dominant force, he just needs to refine some technique to reach his ceiling.

Johnson also has a background in track and field as a thrower. In his junior year, he was a region champ in shotput and discuss.

WATCH: Ohio State hangs on for the No. 1 prospect in the nation

You could hear all of Buckeye Nation’s sigh of relief with his announcement

It was a bit concerning leading up to Florida wide receiver [autotag]Jeremiah Smith[/autotag]’s official announcement of where he would play college football, but in the end Ohio State kept him in the fray.

There were rumors that he could be wavering from his original commitment to the Buckeyes which he made over a year ago. Miami came on hard at the end, as did Florida State, but Ohio State kept the course and ultimately won out for the No. 1 overall prospect according to the 247Sports Composite Rankings.

After a difficult last few recruiting days, this is a huge sigh of relief for the Buckeyes’ coaching staff and fans alike. Watch below as Smith makes it official and stays with his commitment to “The Ohio State University.”

Smith could be the next in a long line of superb wide receivers do don the scarlet and gray, and it’s a sliver of good news in a week when other big-time commitments have flipped.

Contact/Follow @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio State news, notes, and opinion. Follow Michael Chen on X.

Georgia signs athletic 4-star LB Chris Cole

Georgia signs athletic 4-star LB Chris Cole

The Georgia Bulldogs have signed linebacker Chris Cole out of Salem, Va. The four-star linebacker gives Georgia an athletic defender that can play in pass coverage or tackle in the trenches.

Cole, a 6-foot-3, 210 pound linebacker, is the No. 3 ranked linebacker in the 2024 class and could make an impact immediately with several linebackers entering the portal. Cole committed to the Bulldogs in September and hasn’t visited any other school

He made a transition from defensive back to linebacker in his junior year in high school. He has the speed to play at linebacker, but will likely need to put on weight consistently get off blocks. He has a good feel for tackling angles and he doesn’t often get caught looking in the backfield.

Football runs in the family as his uncle is Rohan Marley, who played linebacker for Miami in the early 90s. Marley’s son and Cole’s cousin, Nico, also played linebacker at Tulane.

Cole will be fighting for playing time alongside fellow recruits Justin Williams and Kristopher Jones.

Five-star WR Ryan Wingo signs with Texas

Fans were anxiously awaiting Ryan Wingo’s National Letter of Intent to arrive on Wednesday.

Most commits sign with their school of choice on the morning of Dec. 20. Continue reading “Five-star WR Ryan Wingo signs with Texas”

Watch: Notre Dame’s epic signing day announcement video

Must watch video of the day…

Two seasons into Marcus Freeman’s tenure as Notre Dame head football coach the Fighting Irish are 18-7 (18-8 if you count the 2021 Fiesta Bowl) on the playing field.  They may however be unbeaten when it comes to video content created by their in-house media team.

That perfect record stayed intact Wednesday as Notre Dame had a rare, quiet morning as the early signing period for the 2024 recruiting class opened.  Within just a couple of hours every anticipated commitment had sent in their national letter of intent and drama was avoided.

In doing so, Notre Dame was able to release a short movie they created based on unlocking the talented members of the class.  I don’t know if Marcus Freeman or any of the other assistant coaches are going to be nominated for Academy Awards after their coaching careers are done, but for what this is it’s an epic three-minute production.  Take a watch below:

[lawrence-related id=80301]

Early signing period: Cole Harrison signs with Tennessee football

Early signing period: Cole Harrison signs with Tennessee football

The 2023 early signing period is taking place Wednesday-Friday for Tennessee’s 2024 recruiting signing class.

The 2023 early signing period is Josh Heupel’s third as Tennessee’s head coach. He was hired as the Vols’ head coach in Jan. 2021.

Tennessee’s 2023 recruiting class ranked No. 10 nationally (247Sports Composite). The Vols’ first recruiting class under Heupel in 2022 ranked No. 17 nationally (247Sports Composite).

Cole Harrison signed with the Vols on Wednesday during the early signing period.

Cole Harrison’s recruiting bio:

  • Position: Tight end
  • Height: 6-foot-5
  • Weight: 220 pounds
  • School: JunĂ­pero Serra High School (San Mateo, California)

READ: Tennessee football early signing period tracker for 2024 class

READ: Tennessee football NCAA transfer portal tracker

Social media reacts to Vols’ signing class during early signing period

Social media reacts to Tennessee football’s signing class during the early signing period.

The 2023 early signing period is taking place Wednesday-Friday for the 2024 recruiting signing class.

The 2023 early signing period is Josh Heupel’s third as Tennessee’s head coach. He was hired as the Vols’ head coach in Jan. 2021.

Tennessee’s 2023 recruiting class was ranked No. 10 nationally (247Sports Composite). The Vols’ first recruiting class under Heupel in 2022 ranked No. 17 nationally (247Sports Composite).

Defensive lineman James Pearce Jr. ranked as Tennessee’s top recruit in 2022, while quarterback Nico Iamaleava was Tennessee’s top player in 2023 (247Sports).

Wide receiver Mike Matthews signed with the Vols on Wednesday during the early signing period. He is listed as Tennessee’s highest-rated signee by 247Sports in the Vols’ 2024 recruiting class.

READ: Tennessee football early signing period tracker

READ: Tennessee football NCAA transfer portal tracker

Below is social media reaction for Tennessee’s signing class during the early signing period.