LIVE BLOG: Ohio State Football Coverage of National Signing Day 2020
Welcome to National Signing Day 2020!
It's a huge week for Ohio State football, both for the current iteration of the program and for its immediate future. The Buckeyes are preparing to play Northwestern on Saturday as they attempt to win a fourth consecutive conference championship, which has never been done before in this storied league.
And while the job of the coaching staff is to develop the talent they have each year to become the best they can be, winning conference championships and competing for national titles starts on the recruiting trail.
According to our recruiting arm at Sports Illustrated, Ohio State will likely sign the best recruiting class in the country for the Class of 2021.
It's no surprise that the Buckeyes have excelled while this senior class has been on the field. They've posted a 43-4 record during their time and have a chance to finish their careers on a special note. And while they've developed talent quite well, Ohio State currently has more former 5-star players on its roster than the rest of the Big Ten does combined. In this class alone, the Buckeyes are expecting to sign five 5-star recruits.
Ohio State Feels They "Have Something to Prove" Against Northwestern
Translation: recruiting matters A LOT, which means today feels like Christmas Day as Ohio State fans officially meet their potential stars of the future.
All in all, the Buckeyes have received 21 verbal commitments from some of the best high school football players in America (and in one case, Australia). 14 of those young men are expected to early enroll in January, while the other 7 will begin their Buckeye careers in June. All 21 are expected to sign their National Letters of Intent during this limited signing period, Dec. 16-18, 2020.
We will update our timeline throughout the day and introduce you to each of the newest members of the Ohio State Football Team as their letters are sent into the school.
Ryan Day is expected to hold a press conference at approximately 11:30 p.m., during which time he can publicly address the players that have officially signed their LOI's for the first time. Assistant AD for Player Personnel Mark Pantoni will be available after Coach Day.
You can check out highlights from each of the new Buckeyes and see their player profiles by clicking on their names below.
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12:03 p.m. - OSU Football says they've signed everyone today they were expecting to sign, but left open the door that others could join this group.
10:48 a.m. - The Buckeyes sign their last known verbal commitment, defensive back Denzel Burke from Scottsdale, Arizona.
10:04 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed wide receiver Emeka Egbuka, the No. 1 wide receiver in the country from Steilacoom, Washington.
10:00 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed linebacker Reid Carrico from Ironton, Ohio.
9:09 a.m. - The Buckeyes officially sign tight end Sam Hart, the newest addition to the Ohio State tight end room.
8:34 a.m. - The Buckeyes officially sign St. Louis native Jakailin Johnson, another star defensive back in this loaded Class of 2021.
8:12 a.m. - The Buckeyes officially sign Donovan Jackson, the top-ranked interior offensive lineman in the country! Jackson is from Bellaire, Texas.
8:10 a.m. - The Buckeyes officially sign offensive lineman Ben Christman from Revere High School in Richfield, Ohio.
8:04 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed defensive back Andre Turrentine from Nashville, Tennessee.
8:01 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed Jantzen Dunn, a defensive back from Bowling Green, Kentucky.
7:54 a.m. - The Buckeyes officially sign Tyleik Williams, defensive tackle from Manassas, Virginia.
7:32 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed defensive back Jordan Hancock from North Gwinnet High School in Suwanee, Georgia.
7:24 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed Jack Sawyer, an edge rusher from Pickerington North High School in Columbus, Ohio. One recruiting service has ranked Sawyer the No. 1 high school football player in the USA.
7:16 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed running back Evan Pryor out of Charlotte, North Carolina.
7:15 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed TreVeyon Henderson, the nation's No. 1 ranked running back out of Hopewell, Virginia.
7:13 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed quarterback Kyle McCord from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
7:10 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed defensive back Jaylen Johnson from Cincinnati, Ohio.
7:09 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed Michael Hall Jr., defensive tackle from Streetsboro, Ohio.
7:07 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed offensive lineman Zen Michalski, an offensive tackle from Floyds Knobs, Indiana.
7:05 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
7:03 a.m. - The Buckeyes have officially signed wide receiver Jayden Ballard from Massillon, Ohio.
7:00 a.m. - The first official member of the Buckeye class comes from the furthest away! Ohio State has officially signed punter Jesse Mirco from Australia.
6:55 a.m. - Below is a list of Ohio State's 21 commits. As players sign they will be removed from the list, so it will become a list of whose signature has yet to be received.
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