Losing to Florida in the national title game didn't hurt Ohio State's recruiting effort in the Sunshine State. In fact, the Buckeyes landed arguably Florida's top recruit Monday.
During a weekend visit to Ohio State, offensive lineman Michael Brewster told OSU Head Coach Jim Tressel he would be a Buckeye in 2008.
The pint-sized head coach gave the 6-foot-6, 305-pounder a bear hug, Brewster said.
"It feels natural to be a Buckeye," Brewster said.
Brewster will graduate from Edgewater High School near Orlando early and enroll at Ohio State in January. He will play spring ball next year.
Brewster, who spent last weekend in Stark County with longtime family friends, said the fact there are friends in Canton and some in Columbus made the decision easier.
"It's a long story how this came about," said Duane Long, recruiting editor for Ohio High magazine. "It's one of those coincidences where the right people met the right people and Ohio State got on him early. He became enamored with Coach Tressel and Coach (Jim) Bollman and his family is ecstatic about it."
This signing brings to six the number of commitments for the 2008 class, and that will likely grow today. Texas offensive line J.B. Shugarts (6-7, 285) is expected to commit to Ohio State today.
The Buckeyes also got a commitment from Dublin Coffman lineman Mike Adams (6-7, 290), which gives Tressel the best offensive line class in the country. The Buckeyes have the No. 1 lineman prospects in Ohio, Texas and Florida, according to most services.
The three have become a close-knit group during the recruiting process. The fourth linemen in that circle of friends is Kyle Long, the son of Howie Long.
Long is a baseball player at St. Anne's Belfield High in Virginia. He and Brewster are close friends.
"I'm closer with Kyle than any of the guys," said Brewster, who attended the Ohio State-Florida national title game with Long. "He's doing the baseball thing right now. If he plays football, I think he'll end up joining me, but I don't want to put words in his mouth."
Brewster said the Buckeyes' lopsided loss to the Gators didn't have any bearing on his decision. He did, however, inform Florida Head Coach Urban Meyer that he chose Ohio State over the Gators, LSU, USC and Georgia.
"There were a couple of things at work," Brewster said. "First, I couldn't see myself playing for anyone other than (offensivce line) Bollman. He's going to put you in the NFL if you do what he says.
"The national title game, my brother (Billy) told me should not affect my decision. He said, 'None of the guys playing in this game are going to be there when you're there.' I thought about that, and it's true."
OSU's 2008 recruiting class will be about the same size as this past year's class, which was 15. The Buckeyes already have six verbal commitments, including one from DeVoe Torrence. He was a running back at Canton South, but recently transferred to Massillon.
"There is no way anybody will have a better class in the conference in 2008," Duane Long said. "Mike Adams, Shugarts and Brewster are three of the top 10 linemen in the country. Now when you look at the rest of the class, there isn't a guy in there you have a question about, period. So far, these guys are all big-time players."
Quote: "There is no way anybody will have a better class in the conference in 2008," Duane Long said. "Mike Adams, Shugarts and Brewster are three of the top 10 linemen in the country. Now when you look at the rest of the class, there isn't a guy in there you have a question about, period. So far, these guys are all big-time players."
Hmmmm..... addressing the offensive line. How is that supposed to work? (end sarcasm) The Ohio State offensive line has been one of the main reasons for their success these last 6 years. Now if only certain people in the Browns organization realized this.
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Quote: Hmmmm..... addressing the offensive line. How is that supposed to work? (end sarcasm) The Ohio State offensive line has been one of the main reasons for their success these last 6 years. Now if only certain people in the Browns organization realized this.
From what I heard from the spring game, the O-Line was not at the same level it has been in the past years, especially in depth. Possibly why we are getting all of these top-notch recruits? They know that they will likely get some playing time, if not starting time, right away?
I think we'll be fine on the O-line. It might not be as good as previous years, but I'm not too concerned. I'll be interested to see how these two recruits perform their freshman year with Maurice Wells as the tailback. That could be a huge year if they live up to their hype. Quarterback concerns me though. All 3 of them stunk in the spring game. That will be the downfall of this year's team.
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Quote: the Buckeyes landed arguably Florida's top recruit Monday.
Only an argument for those not in the know.
Brewster is a 4star prospect ranked as the top O-lineman in central Florida. A decent signing no doubt, but far from the top line prospect in the state let alone the top prospect in the state.
I will add, it is possible he was the top prospect in the state yet to declare his intent.
As an example, I know we signed a 5 star guard from St Augustine...#2 ranked in the country some time back....so while Porter might be able to claim accuracy, he sure as heck isn't giving information in proper perspective.
Last edited by Ballpeen; 04/24/0702:08 PM.
If everybody had like minds, we would never learn.
Nice video, right up until the artist singing .....er, uh rapping I guess, said the "b" word, the "n" word, and the "h" word...........at that point in time, I had to quit listening to it. I don't need Jesse and Al at my door calling me out for listening to that.......
I think we're going to be much more an old-school Tressel team this year. Chris Wells is going to get a ton of touches. I think Boeckman has the greatest ability to manage a game as of now. The other 2 need time to develop although I truly don't see Schoenhoft ever getting better. He's the same guy he was in high school. He has a laser arm but can't hit anyone wearing his team's jersey. This year's OSU team imo will not come close to resembling last year's. It will be much more like the Krenzel/ Clarett team. I like our wideouts but they're very young. Chris Wells is a beast. QB is a total mystery and the O-line should be solid. Who knows what Tressel will be able to get out of this team. I'm confident we'll be fine come September.
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Quote: Dont forget Brandon Saine. Hes gonna be a stud at OSU.
I hope so...but I've been seeing highlights of this McGuffie kid for two years now...and he's currently only a junior, with Ohio St. in his sights. With that said, he'll probably end up at Texas.
Name Position Ht Wt School Adams, Mike OL 6-8 305 Dublin (Oh.) Coffman Brewster, Mike OL 6-6 305 Orlando (Fla.) Edgewater Shugarts, J.B. OL 6-7 300 Klein (Tx.)
Not a bad sized line....
I'm coming home, I'm coming home, tell the world I'm coming home
The other two are ranked in the top 100 players and are four stars....not sure these really mean anything as AJ Hawk, Nick Mangold, Malcolm Jenkins, and others can tell you....
I'm coming home, I'm coming home, tell the world I'm coming home
Ohio State football Offensive lineman joins fold Texas prospect rated among nation's elite Wednesday, April 25, 2007 3:41 AM By Tim May
Ohio State added a third towering offensive lineman to its 2008 football recruiting class yesterday with the commitment of J.B. Shugarts of Klein, Texas.
Shugarts, 6 feet 7, 299 pounds, joins 6-6, 305-pound Michael Brewster, who committed Monday, and 6-8, 305-pound Mike Adams. All are considered among the elite linemen available nationally. Shugarts was rated No. 2 in Texas by two recruiting services.
His coach, Stan Labay, knows why.
"He is just a good athlete, first of all," Labay said. "When you think of a kid that size, the first thing that might come to mind is an awkward type, but he has good feet to go along with his good size. He can do a lot of things."
That explains why a herd of colleges already had offered Shugarts, including Texas A&M, Florida, Louisiana State, Oklahoma, the University of Miami and Michigan. But his decision, on the heels of a visit to Ohio State last weekend when he took in the spring game with Brewster and Adams, came easily, he said.
"One school stood out above the rest," he said at a news conference announcing his choice. "I am honored and proud to pledge my commitment to coach (Jim) Tressel and the Ohio State University. I am 110 percent Buckeye and I can't wait to get started."
So much so, he said he wants to graduate from high school early enough so he can enroll at Ohio State in January.
The Buckeyes added an eighth commitment last night when linebacker Nathan Williams of Miami Trace said yes to an offer from Tressel. Williams, 6-4, 235 pounds, is ranked 12th overall in the state by The Ohio Football Recruiting News.
Tressel said in February that the 2008 class likely would have about 15 members, which means he and his coaches are now more than halfway home, and it's not even May.
How is that supposed to work? (end sarcasm) The Ohio State offensive line has been one of the main reasons for their success these last 6 years. Now if only certain people in the Browns organization realized this.![[Linked Image from iveyfiles.com]](http://www.iveyfiles.com/my_weblog/images/me.jpg)
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