Nation's No. 2 TE in the 2023 class puts the Buckeyes in his top eight

The Buckeyes have taken another key step in their pursuit of Oklahoma-based tight end Luke Hasz.

Back in March, the coaching staff extended an offer to Hasz, who is the second-ranked player at his position in the 2023 class. Last month, Hasz wound up taking a visit to Columbus to meet the coaches for the first time in person.

It's safe to say Ryan Day and company made a good first impression on Hasz.

Just moments ago, Hasz narrowed his recruitment from 30 schools to eight, with Ohio State making the cut. Joining the program on this list were the in-state Oklahoma Sooners and Oklahoma State Cowboys, as well as Alabama, Arkansas, LSU, TCU and Texas.

It's clear to see why Hasz has been offered by a flurry of Power Five schools and is highly rated on Rivals.com. As a sophomore, the 6-foot-4, 220-pounder hauled in 32 catches for 703 yards and nine touchdowns in 11 games played.

Oklahoma is not a state that the Buckeyes have had a lot of success in over the years. In fact, the only player they've signed from the state in the Rivals.com era was Josh Proctor in the 2018 cycle.

Ohio State is hoping to change their fortunes in Oklahoma, however, as they are currently viewed as the leader for Chris McClellan. It will be a tall task to poach Hasz from the Sooners, but the Buckeyes are going to put their best foot forward in their attempt to land back-to-back Rivals100 prospects from the state.

If Hasz picks another school, then Day and his staff will still have a number of options at tight end when it comes to 2023 targets. Nine other incoming juniors at the position hold offers from the Buckeyes, including Rivals100 members Duce Robinson, Jaxon Howard, Mac Markway, Mathias Barnwell and Ty Lockwood.

With 10 tight end offers in the 2023 cycle, Kevin Wilson could be aiming to take two tight ends in back-to-back classes. Benji Gosnell and Bennett Christian are in the fold right now, but their offer list indicates Ohio State may be going for another pair of tight ends in the following class.

Stay tuned to BuckeyeGrove.