Eight Buckeye commits are members of the new Rivals250

On Monday, Rivals began to roll out its latest update to the 2022 rankings by revealing a group of 22 five-star prospects. Ohio State was represented well to kick off the week as three of their commits were labeled as top 10 overall players in the country.

This afternoon, we saw the unveiling of the brand new Rivals250, and the Buckeyes once again dominated when it comes to the number of highly ranked commits they have.

A total of eight tOSU verbal pledges retained their spots in the Rivals250, with one of them having made a 35-spot leap.

While CJ Hicks kept his spot at No. 10 in the updated rankings, Ohio State’s other two linebacker commits slid just a little on Tuesday.

Gabe Powers fell from No. 24 to No. 28, while Dasan McCullough fell a couple of spots to No. 34. Both of them remain the third- and fourth-ranked outside linebackers in the nation, respectively.

Looking at Powers, he’s somebody who I expect to stay in the top 40 when it’s all said and done.

He’s a physical linebacker who wreaks havoc in the backfield and can blow up a play before it even develops. The 6-foot-4, 220-pounder isn’t as fast as Hicks is, but does have good enough speed to hunt down ball carriers or rush off the edge.

With McCullough, I believe he’ll stay in the top 50 or top 60 by the time the final rankings are unveiled.

The son of a coach and the grandson of a former NFL player, McCullough is hoping to continue to his family’s rich tradition of having football success at the professional level. He’ll have the chance to show off all of his tools in Columbus as McCullough excels in pass coverage, can make plays when barreling downfield and has great length, making him a versatile player for Kerry Coombs and company.

Powers is a SAM linebacker capable of potentially filling in as a defensive end, McCullough may see time as a hybrid linebacker/safety, and Hicks likely will end up as a WILL linebacker, so Ohio State’s future looks bright with these prospects in the fold.

Some Buckeye fans will view this as the surprise move of the week as Rivals100 wide receiver Caleb Burton fell nearly 20 spots in the latest update. Burton went from No. 34 to No. 53, dropping 19 spots in our rankings.

Even though this drop won’t be well-received, it’s important to mention a couple of things about Burton before continuing.

First off, Burton missed almost all of his junior season after suffering a season-ending knee injury in his first game. As a result, it’s likely that our analysts are waiting to see how Burton returns from his injury.

Secondly, Burton recently posted a video of him returning to the gridiron on Monday. He looked good with the cut in the route he ran, so it seems like he’s made a full recovery.

Burton is a very talented pass catcher who gains separation with his long yet fast strides, and also excels when cutting on a dime on his routes. He checks in just outside the top 50 as of today, but I expect him to get back to his previous ranking, or higher, before it’s all said and done.

The only Ohio State verbal commit to make a rise in the new rankings was Jyaire Brown. It was a significant bump for Brown, who jumped 35 spots to check in as the No. 121 overall prospect in the country.

It appears as if Brown benefited from an in-person evaluation as the publisher of our Kentucky site, Justin Rowland, saw him play back in October. This is what Rowland had to say about Brown following his outing against Mason.

"Ohio State commit Jyaire Brown is an impressively athletic cornerback," Rowland wrote. "Although Brown is on the small and slight side -- somewhere around 5-foot-10 and 165 pounds -- his impressive speed, agility, burst and leaping ability allow him to close on the football and suffocate receivers. Brown showed off those same skills in the punt return game, where he was a shoestring tackle away from housing a 60-yard return."

While Brown saw his stock rise dramatically in this update, his teammate, Tegra Tshabola, did fall seven spots. Tshabola peaked at No. 107 in our first update back in August, but is now down to No. 142 overall on our rankings service.

Either way, Ohio State has eight commits inside the top 150 in the new rankings, with a handful of them being top 55 overall prospects. There have been some "Booms" hinted at recently, so we'll see if they can add to this impressive group.

Out of the remaining targets on Ohio State’s board, Kyion Grayes made the biggest jump this week.

The four-star wideout went from a fringe Rivals250 prospect to No. 158 overall in the nation. Grayes has been a stud on the camp circuit, and will continue to move up as he turns in more solid performances.

Several months ago, Goodwin was barely inside the Rivals250.

Now, after moving up 15 spots, he’s the No. 54 overall junior on Rivals. Goodwin has been told that he’s Ohio State’s top target at tackle in this cycle, and he would be a, both literally and figuratively, huge get for the Buckeyes.

Along with Caden Curry, Malaki Hamrick and Enai White, Omari Abor is a key pass rushing target for the Buckeyes in the 2022 cycle.

He ascended once again in the rankings as he moved up from No. 89 to No. 68. Ohio State and Oklahoma are the programs in the best position to land the Texas-based defensive end.

Ohio State only has a trio of uncommitted wide receivers they have offered, with Kojo Antwi being one of them.

The pass catcher out of Suwannee, Georgia, climbed up the rankings from outside the Rivals100 to No. 87. Antwi recently received a FutureCast in favor of the in-state Bulldogs, but the Buckeyes are very much in the mix here.

Dallan Hayden, one of Ohio State’s top running back targets, made an impressive leap as he moved up 70 spots today.

Hayden still has the Buckeyes as one of the top programs in his recruitment. He currently has a top four of Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon, and Tennessee, but a commitment date has not been locked in.

Ryan Turner, a recent DB offer for the Buckeyes, is one of the new entries in the updated Rivals250.

Turner now checks in as the No. 197 overall junior in the country. The Florida-based prospect could become more of a priority for Ohio State with Will Johnson likely to wind up committing to Michigan later this week.

Stay tuned to BuckeyeGrove.