3-2-1: Buckeye Bash adds more star power

In this recruiting-themed edition of "3-2-1," which is presented by Infinit Nutrition, BuckeyeGrove takes a look at some of the most recent news relating to Ohio State basketball and football recruiting.

Down below, we talk about three things we learned recently, a couple of questions that we still have and dish out one bold prediction about Ohio State's 2022 class.

Some of the topics below include a section on the details we've gathered about the Buckeye Bash on Oct. 24, a key visitor set to be in Columbus this weekend, Ohio State's recent 2022 offers and much more.

1. Detailing the Buckeye Bash

Over the past few weeks, Andy Anders and I have been collecting information about the upcoming Buckeye Bash. This is a commit-organized summit, and no football staff personnel will be able to interact with them during their time in Columbus.

We know that part of the event will take place at Jack Sawyer’s house, and some prospects could end up visiting Ohio State’s campus at some point while on their visit. Based on the responses we’ve received, it still appears as if the exact details of what they will be doing is still up in the air, but we’d imagine that watching the Buckeyes take on Nebraska – on television, of course – would be the main activity of the weekend.

The important note here is that this summit is for members of the 2021 cycle. Every junior recruit I have reached out to has never even heard of the event, so it’ll exclusively feature prospects in this class.

Speaking of which, two known senior targets are slated to be in attendance for the Buckeye Bash: Derrick Davis and Tristan Leigh. Leigh is a five-star offensive lineman, while Davis is a top-100 player and Ohio State’s top defensive back target.

While it would have been preferable to get all of their remaining 2021 targets on campus and to hang out with the fellow commits, Ohio State’s future players will relish the opportunity to spend quality time with one another. This event presents an opportunity for them to meet each other for the first time and interact in a way that is not through text message.

It also gives someone like TreVeyon Henderson, who has never visited Columbus before, a chance to step foot on campus and see where he’ll be spending the next three-to-five years of his life.

The Buckeye Bash will feature a couple of big names and is going to give future Buckeyes a chance to hang out together, so it is shaping up to be a good weekend for those in attendance.

2. Derrick Davis is ready to commit, but has a key visit set for this weekend

In just over two weeks, Rivals100 safety Derrick Davis will announce where he will be taking his talents to at the next level.

Last week, Davis revealed on Twitter that his decision is going to be made public on Nov. 7 to ensure that there will not be any conflicts with Gateway High School’s schedule. His top five consists of Georgia, LSU, Ohio State, Penn State and Pittsburgh.

With him set to commit next month, the Nittany Lions appear to be the heavy favorite to land the product out of Monroeville, Pennsylvania. They hold 88 percent of the FutureCast predictions on Rivals, and has been viewed as the school to beat for quite some time.

Even so, Davis does have ties to the state of Ohio, is fond of the Buckeyes’ program and how they would utilize him in their defense, and is very familiar with the campus.

While Davis does not conduct full interviews too often, I spoke with his father recently about the appeal of Ryan Day’s program. According to Davis Sr., his son appreciates the persistent pursuit from the coaching staff, led by Matt Barnes and Kerry Coombs.

"Coach Barnes, he's been there from Day One, and he's still there," Davis Sr. said of the relationship with the staff. "I actually just talked to Coach Barnes last week, and he's letting us know how heavy they are on Derrick and how interested and everything.

"Coach Coombs, he brings personality and he brings that NFL coaching experience into the equation. Teaching the kids what they need to know to get to the next level.

Looking at the other schools in his top five, Pittsburgh is interesting because they are the hometown team and they were his first offer. The Panthers should not be completely ruled out, but I highly doubt they add Davis to their class next month.

What piques my interest here is Georgia. As someone who has been covering Florida Gators recruiting for over three years, one of my top rules is to never count out the Bulldogs if they want somebody. Davis has never visited Athens, and was supposed to go to the school this weekend, but made a late switch. If gets down there later this month, however, that would be a noteworthy visit to monitor.

For this weekend, Davis is now slated to visit Ohio State for the Buckeye Bash, which is huge for the program’s pursuit of him. If all goes well, I may be close to submitting a FutureCast prediction in favor of Ohio State.

So, to sum it all up, I have Penn State with the slight edge over Ohio State here, and the Bulldogs as a potential dark horse.

3. Pair of juniors net an offer from the Buckeyes

Back on Tuesday, Ryan Day and company extended offers to a pair of out-of-state recruits in the 2022 cycle: Kyion Grayes and Tyler Booker.

Starting with Grayes, the product out of Chandler, Arizona, committed to the University of Arizona just over two months ago. Other notable offers on the table for him at this time include Arizona State, Miami and Michigan State.

Based on this offer sheet, it may be fair to say that the Buckeyes are the biggest offer Grayes has received to this point. Given his production this season, however, the three-star prospect should expect some more programs to dip into his recruitment soon.

According to MaxPreps, Grayes has hauled in 12 catches for 316 yards and six touchdowns in just three games played this season. He has not uploaded a compilation of those games just yet, but be sure to check out Grayes’ sophomore season highlights HERE.

Switching over to Booker, this is a player who was expected to make the transition to the defensive line in 2020, but has apparently stayed along the offensive line. His offer sheet is more expansive than that of Grayes as nearly three dozen colleges, including the likes of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, LSU and USC, have given him the green light.

He does indeed play at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, but Booker is from the Northeast. Booker was born in New Haven, Connecticut, explaining his interest in Big Ten schools like Michigan and Penn State.

It’s too early to say anything definitive, but I think Ohio State could be a contender in Booker’s recruitment down the line.

1. Where does Ohio State stand with Tristan Leigh?

This has been a burning question for Buckeye Nation over the past several months, especially following J.C. Latham’s commitment to Alabama and the program’s need for offensive tackles.

It really is hard to tell considering the amount of times Leigh’s leaderboard has seemingly changed over the past 10 or so months. Penn State held 100 percent of the FutureCast predictions from last October to January 2019. Then, Clemson held the lead on his Rivals profile page until June of this year.

LSU started gaining momentum shortly after, but now Oklahoma has all of the momentum in Leigh’s recruitment. Given this information, it is not a guarantee that the Sooners will be the team to stick and wind up with a commitment from Leigh.

Despite all of these changes, the Buckeyes have remained a top contender for Leigh, who lives just a few hours away from Ohio State pledge TreVeyon Henderson. Henderson actively communicates with Leigh, and the staff is putting the full-court press on the coveted offensive lineman.

We also know that Leigh works out with former Buckeye Matthew Burrell, and he has tweeted a few photos of him training in Ohio State gear. The Buckeyes also are in the market for tackles of Leigh’s caliber, and a selling point to him is that they both want and need him along their o-line.

From everything I have gathered, Day and company seem to be third in the pecking order for Leigh. If he decided to commit today, Oklahoma would probably be his choice.

With that being said, however, Leigh’s mother, Laura Rigney, did inform me that her son intended on committing at the 2021 All-American Bowl, which has since been canceled. There will be a two-hour special airing on Jan. 2 recognizing the game’s commits, so Leigh could still potentially commit on that day.

Leigh does not appear to be close to a decision, giving Ohio State over two months to continue their pursuit of him and hope that this weekend’s trip to Columbus is a home run.

2. What are realistic rankings bumps for Ohio State’s commits?

The next Rivals rankings update will not be for another several weeks, but I wanted to include this section since the 2020 season has ended, or is still going on, for a multitude of future Buckeyes.

Kyle McCord has been off to an excellent start this season, so it would be hard to imagine him not earning his fifth star if he continues to put up stellar performances. His running mate, Marvin Harrison Jr., is also making a case to get back into the Rivals100.

If you recall, Harrison Jr. was once the No. 39 overall prospect in the country, but fell to No. 120 nationally in the latest update.

Even though he missed a couple of games due to an injury, Michael Hall has been impressive with 36 total tackles (28 solo) this season. I can see him jumping 10 or 15 spots in the next update, possibly even higher than that.

With him returning to the field after initially opting out of his senior campaign, Jordan Hancock will be one to watch out for. I believed he should have cracked the Rivals100 back in August, but a solid season could land him in that group.

I’m also in the mindset that Jaylen Johnson and Zenuae Michalski could be in line to earn their fourth stars. I would probably give the edge to Michalski right now if I had to pick one of them to get their fourth star in the next update, but both have been impressive this fall.

Unfortunately for players like Evan Pryor, TreVeyon Henderson and Tyleik Williams, their senior seasons were pushed to the spring, so they were unable to put out any film this year. I thought Henderson and Pryor could’ve pushed for a spot in the top-50 and that Williams may have creeped into the Rivals250, though this all seems unlikely without them playing in 2020.

Overall, I see several Ohio State commits jumping in the rankings and adding to their point total for the 2021 class. With where they stand with their top targets, coupled with some potential boosts in the rankings, I still believe the Buckeyes will finish with the top class over Alabama.

I do not necessarily know when it will happen, but I envision Rivals250 offensive tackle Kiyaunta Goodwin ultimately committing to Ohio State.

He’s a player Greg Studrawa and Ryan Day are both after as the program will be in need of some bonafide tackles in the 2022 cycle, especially if Leigh signs elsewhere.

Goodwin recently told me that Ohio State is one of his favorite schools; though when asked which are his other favorites, Goodwin was broad with his answer.

This will be a tough one as over four dozen schools have offered the Indiana-based junior, but the Buckeyes should be seen as the program to beat at this time. Also, I recently submitted a FutureCast prediction on his profile page in favor of Ohio State.

Stay tuned to BuckeyeGrove.