Jim Tressel and the Ohio State coaching staff have undergone one crazy week. At the same time they are trying to prepare the team for their match-up against Arkansas, they hosted a handful of elite prospects that they hope will fill out their recruiting class of 2011, as well as continued to recruit for the year ahead, trying to add to the already solid foundation for the class of 2012.
The week started off with a Wednesday visit for Plantation (FL) LB Ryan Shazier, which resulted in him
switching his commitment from Florida to OSU at his graduation party on Friday night upon his return to the Sunshine State. That news was certainly a sign of good things to come and gave the coaches a ton of momentum as they prepared to host a group featuring some of the best remaining uncommitted prospects in the nation, including DB Doran Grant, LB Curtis Grant, LS Bryce Haynes, ATH Darius Jennings, LB Ejuan Price, and DB Byron Moore. Apparently all of those visits went as good as they possibly could have and from what I'm hearing, it looks like the Bucks have a legitimate shot at landing half of those players, along with OT Aundrey Walker to finish out what is looking like a top 10, and possibly top 5 class nationally.
While it seems like the class of 2011 could be one for the ages, the truth is that the class of 2012 could be even better. The
current commitment list includes LB Joshua Perry, C/G Jacoby Boren, RB Warren Ball, RB Brionte Dunn, and OT Kyle Kalis. The remaining players interested in OSU are made up of some of the best America has to offer, and the Bucks have as good a shot as anyone to land what could end up being the country's #1 class for next year. One player who would certainly be a big part of that is
University School OL Abraham "Nacho" Garcia.
Nacho, who stands at 6-6/340, is being recruited by Ohio State, LSU, Florida, Miami, Wisconsin, Oregon, and other top schools. He plays on the South Florida Express 7-on-7 team in the off-season along with Buckeye commits Shazier and Jeremy Cash, and could be the next southern Floridian to make the move to the Buckeye state. He's a hot enough commodity where even Andy Staples of SI.com did
a nice piece on him earlier this year and we were lucky enough to sit down with Nacho to get the latest scoop on his commitment, how he got his nickname, what he's looking for in his future school, and more.