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Football
Flash Forward: Major Changes Ahead at WR in 2011
By Brandon Castel

It’s amazing how quickly things change in the world of recruiting.

Just a few weeks ago Ohio State was looking at a 2011 class that might be maxed out at 20 players, but already it looks like the class could go anywhere from 22-24 with the departure of a few transfers.

One of those transfers was defensive end Keith Wells, but the other was wideout Duron Carter, who was expected to be OSU’s No. 3 receiver in 2010. The son of former Buckeye great Cris Carter is headed for Coffeyville Community College in Kansas, which could alter Ohio State’s plans at wideout for 2010 and beyond.

Already the Buckeyes are listing class of 2010 signee Verlon Reed as a receiver on their official roster, and he will join classmates and fellow wideouts T.Y. Williams, Corey Brown and James Louis on the field this fall.

The Buckeyes are also set to lose a pair of seniors in Dane Sanzenbacher and Taurian Washington (officially the No. 2 and 3 receivers heading into the fall), along with the possibility of No. 1 wideout DeVier Posey making an early exit to the NFL.

In our latest “Flash Forward” piece we take a look at how the wide receiver position is shaping up for Ohio State in 2011. 

Key losses in 2011: Dane Sanzenbacher, Taurian Washington, Grant Schwartz

Projected 2011 Returning Depth Chart:

X RECEIVER (SPLIT END)
*8 DeVier Posey (6-2, 200, Sr.)
18 T.Y. Williams (6-5, 218, Class of 2010)
14 Verlon Reed (6-0, 190, Class of 2010)

Z RECEIVER (FLANKER)
80 Chris Fields (6-0, 185, RSo.)
6 James Louis (5-10, 176, Class of 2010)
83 Joe Cech (6-2, 186, Jr.)

SLOT RECEIVER
15 James Jackson (5-10, 184, RSo.)
10 Corey Brown (5-11, 170, Class of 2010)
2011 Offers at Receiver: 6

2011 Commitments: (2)

Evan Spencer (6-1, 185, Vernon Hills, Ill.)
With the likelihood of Verlon Reed playing receiver, at least to start, Ohio State took four wideouts a year ago making the receiver position one of the less critical ones in the class of 2011. The Buckeyes entered the month of June still looking for their first commitment at receiver, but it didn’t take long as legacy Evan Spencer become the 13th member of the class on June 5th.

The son of Tim Spencer, a former OSU tailback who led the Buckeyes in rushing from 1981-82, Evan was rumored to be a Buckeye lean for quite some time but continued to weigh his offers from the rest of the Big Ten along with Notre Dame and Cincinnati.

But Evan grew up around the OSU football program and couldn’t pass up a chance to follow in his father’s footsteps. With 3,553 yards, Tim Spencer is the third-leading rusher in Ohio State history behind only Archie Griffin (5,589) and Eddie George (3,768). After a three-year stint in the USFL and five years with the San Diego Chargers, he returned to Columbus in 1994 to coach the running backs for John Cooper. He took the same position with the Chicago Bears in 2004.

Devin Smith (6-1, 175, Massillon Washington)
Less than two weeks after landing their first commitment at receiver, the Buckeyes picked up another from Massillon wideout Devin Smith. Although he already held offers from Penn State, Notre Dame, Michigan State and Michigan, Smith had to make an appearance at OSU’s senior advance camp in June before finally getting the offer he was looking for.

Before showing off in front of receivers coach Darrell Hazell, Smith seemed destined for either Cincinnati or Pitt, but it took only four days for him to pull the trigger in favor of the Buckeyes. He is a tremendous athlete who can make tough catches, and one that already has a relationship with classmate and future OSU quarterback Braxton Miller.

2011 Targets:

High: Shane Wynn (5-7, 147, Cleveland Glenville)

Wynn is the only non-committed wideout who holds an offer from Ohio State and seems like only a matter of time before he commits to the Buckeyes. Like many Glenville players in the past, Wynn could choose to hold out for a big Signing Day announcement, or at least until after the New Year, but it’s hard to imagine him ending up anywhere but Columbus despite the fact he recently ranked Miami (Fla.) as his top school.

We’ve seen this charade before with Glenville kids (Marcus Hall comes to mind), where they start talking up another school being ahead of OSU in order to create some drama at a school where great players are just expected to become Buckeyes.

The speedy return man grew up rooting for the Buckeyes, but also for the Hurricanes, which could make things a little more interesting. He also has North Carolina and Oregon in his top four, but this is a two horse race and the smart money has Ohio State winning by more than a nose.

The real question is where he ends up once he gets to Columbus. Wynn caught 45 passes for over 700 yards last season but it’s hard to see him playing too much receiver on the outside in the Big Ten at 5-foot-7. He does have tremendous speed—made obvious by the fact he got an offer from OSU despite his size—and a knack for the end zone (18 touchdowns as a junior), so the Buckeyes could use him in the slot. They could also try some “Shot-Ginn” formations with Wynn, but it’s possible he will end up as a return specialist.

Low: DeAnthony Arnett (6-0, 167, Saginaw, Mich.), Darius Jennings (6-0, 180, Baltimore), A.J. Sebastiano (Coconut Creek, Fla.),

The Buckeyes were after Florida prospects Ja’Juan Story and Phillip Dorsett, but both opted to stay closer to home with Story picking Florida and Dorsett going with Miami last month. That leaves Arnett as the one real sleeper to join the class. Tressel and his staff already have two receivers committed for 2011—thought to be their target number—but Duron Carter’s departure could open the door for them to add a third wideout in the class.

That could depend on how the staff views Wynn. As of now they seem content with the idea of finishing the class with Spencer, Smith and Wynn, but Arnett would probably be the guy to get an offer if they decide to add another. A highly-rated recruit out of Michigan, Arnett holds offers from most other Big Ten schools but is claiming a top seven that includes Iowa, Michigan State, USC, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Cal and Miami (the only one of those schools that has yet to offer). He has also received offers from Michigan, Alabama, Notre Dame, Nebraska and Wisconsin among others.

Wide Receivers in Last Five Classes

2010: T.Y. Williams (Cleveland Shaw), James Louis (Delray Beach, Fla.), Corey Brown (Springfield, Pa.), Verlon Reed (Marion Franklin)
2009: Duron Carter (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.), Chris Fields (Painesville Harvey), James Jackson (Grand Ledge, Mich.)
2008: DeVier Posey (Cincinnati La Salle), Lamaar Thomas (Fort Washington, Md.)
2007: Dane Sanzenbacher (Toledo), Taurian Washington (Orchard Lake, Mich.)
2006: Ray Small (Cleveland Glenville), Grant Schwartz (Dana Point, Calif.)

 

 

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