OSU football: Third choice makes good first impression
Saturday, August 29, 2009
By Ken Gordon
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
JEFF HINCKLEY | Dispatch
Third-string quarterback Kenny Guiton, the last player to commit to the 2009 class, has shown improved patience in recent practices.
If Terrelle Pryor, in his first scrimmage as an Ohio State quarterback, had been 5-of-11 passing for 8 yards, concern would have rippled throughout the team.
Kenny Guiton, though, posted those statistics last weekend, and coaches and teammates continue to praise his progress.
That's the difference that hype and expectations can make.
Pryor came to Columbus last year as the nation's No. 1 recruit -- a vastly talented prize. Guiton arrived this summer as a curiosity -- a throw-in to the 2009 recruiting class.
The upside is that Guiton can progress at an unhurried pace, away from the scrutiny and without the pressure.
"I'm loving it so far," he said early in camp. "It's a lot of fun -- it's everything I expected, man, maybe even better."
By now, most fans are familiar with the last-minute scramble that resulted in Guiton's becoming a Buckeye.
Ohio State was waiting on heralded recruit Tajh Boyd of Hampton, Va., in January. The Buckeyes had put Austin Boucher of Kettering Alter on notice that he was their backup choice.
But on Jan. 26, nine days before national signing day, Boyd announced Clemson as his choice. Ohio State quickly offered Boucher a scholarship, but he chose to honor his commitment to Miami.
The Buckeyes were down to Plan C. Assistant coach John Peterson visited Guiton's school -- Aldine Eisenhower near Houston -- on Jan. 28. Ohio State made an offer the next day, and he committed Feb. 1.
Guiton was asked where, back in January, he thought he would end up.
"I'd say probably Kansas, or Rice," he said.
Guiton said he worried about whether he would be considered a second-class citizen when he arrived for summer workouts in June.
"I didn't know if I was going to fit in, because I was the last person to commit," he said. "When I got up here, they treated me like a family, they took me in. No one looked down upon me because I was maybe a third or fourth choice."
