April 1-3 was marked down heading into the weekend as the most anticipated of the spring for Ohio State.

And if we want to include Monday, April 4 – and we do want to include Monday, April 4 – for the visit from Caleb Downs, who doubles his billing as the nation’s No. 1-ranked safety as the Buckeyes’ No. 1 target at the position, then there was no question of its magnitude.

The Buckeyes knocked it out of the park. That four-day run was a spark plug that earned national reviews in the recruiting industry as one of the most impactful for any program across the country across March and April.

And there’s a chance – a really good chance – that it’s going to go down as one of the most important single recruiting weekends Ohio State has had in a long time. It was the next big step for the Buckeyes to build a fourth straight top-five class under Ryan Day. And it was the door opener for what emerged since and what was firmly established Monday night: The Buckeyes have broken through as the early favorite to sign the nation’s No. 1-ranked class in 2024.