The Ohio State Buckeyes and head coach Ryan Day stayed the course and were rewarded with the commitment of Rivals100 defensive lineman Caden Curry after a long, drawn out recruitment. One of the top prospects in the Midwest, and among the best defensive line prospects in the nation, Curry will look to continue the long stretch of dominant defensive line play in Columbus.

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HOW IT HAPPENED

It does surprise me this recruitment lasted almost until Signing Day, especially considering the outcome. From the time Ohio State offered in May of Curry’s sophomore year, they were considered the team to beat for the Indianapolis-area defensive lineman. Even the main players were set early in this recruitment. I remember speaking with Curry almost a year ago previewing the National Championship contest between Alabama and Ohio State. Those were the two schools that stood out in his recruitment then, and the schools his recruitment ultimately came down to.

Officially, the last Top 5 Curry released this past summer also included Clemson, Indiana and Oregon, but this was an Ohio State-Alabama fight down the stretch. After Nick Saban re-routed his travel plans last week when he was expected to be in-home with Curry, though, is one was essentially over. The four-star prospect made it official with his public announcement Tuesday afternoon.

SCOUTING REPORT

Curry came onto the scene as a sophomore when he started terrorizing central Indiana offenses. Not only did he live in the backfield, employing quickness and strength to overwhelm opposing lineman, but he was always going 110mph to the football. Although Center Grove High School tries to mute the dissemination of their prospects’ film, Curry’s eventually started making the rounds with college football coaches, and the offers started rolling in shortly after that sophomore season concluded.

Although he has primarily lined up at a three-technique defensive tackle spot in high school, Curry has a game that would be maximized by kicking out to the five-technique defensive end position. Early on he drew comparisons to former Ohio State defensive end Nick Bosa, and the resemblance in their styles of play are apparent. Although listed at 6-foot-4, Curry does not look that tall in-person and it has been suggested he is closer to 6-foot-2. That may hinder his ability to play on the edge in college and keep him on the interior of future Buckeye defensive lines.

WHICH SCHOOL IT STINGS MOST

Alabama was the team that gave Ohio State the strongest competition down the stretch, but schools like Clemson and Oregon were also strong contenders during the course of this recruitment. Curry was always Ohio State’s to lose, though, and any of those schools stealing the Indiana product away from the Buckeyes would have been a surprise, so calling his loss a “sting” for any of those schools would be a stretch. The teams it stings the most, then, are the Buckeyes’ Big Ten foes who have seen players of Curry’s ilk wreak havoc on opposing offenses often in the last decade.