DESOTO, Texas - Recruiting wide receivers in Texas has not been too tall of a task for Ohio State to handle in recent years.

The program has signed Elijah Gardner, Garrett Wilson and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, and they currently hold a commitment from Rivals100 prospect Caleb Burton.

They’ve also extended an offer to Longview (Texas) sophomore Jalen Hale, but another 2023 pass catcher is high on their radar: Johntay Cook II. Cook, the No. 44 overall recruit on Rivals, has yet to haul in an offer from the Buckeyes, but says he’s been in weekly contact with the staff.

“I've mainly been talking to the quarterbacks coach, Coach Corey Dennis,” Cook told BuckeyeGrove. “We’ve just been staying in touch every week. I mean, we talk twice a week. No offer yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if I get it within like the next weeks or months or so.

“We’re just building a relationship because Dontre [Wilson] is from here, and they feel like they can get me just like they got Dontre. They’ve just been telling me they like my game, how dynamic I am and they can just use me in the offense.”

While talking off-camera before the interview, Cook told us that the next step will be for him to schedule a call with Ryan Day. It’s not always the case, but a conversation with a head coach sometimes leads to a recruit being given the green light by a school.

If they’re able to set up this conversation in the near future, then Cook will look to soak up even more information about the Buckeyes.

“I'm just hoping to hear good things about me and just learn about the campus because I don't know that much about outside of the football aspect,” Cook said. “If I'm going to go there, I want to know actually what I'm going in to, like the culture, what's around the campus, working out, the education… so just about the campus, really.”