All along, Ron Johnson knew there would be a who’s who list of college football programs recruiting McKinley defensive end Se’Von Pittman. The who’s are starting to get names.
McKinley’s head coach fielded three more offers in the last week.
Ohio State, Michigan and Michigan State made “unofficial offers” last week for Pittman through Johnson. The 6-foot-4, 225-pounder was offered by Alabama, West Virginia and Notre Dame previous to the Big Ten offers.
None of the offers are official, but they are practically as good.
NCAA rules forbid FBS schools from officially offering players with scholarship papers until August. What happens now is college coaches verbally offer through the high school head coach.
“I think ‘Pitt’ is one of the finer players in this whole part of the country,” Johnson said. “He’s an outstanding prospect. There is nothing I can think of that he doesn’t do well. He’s a good football player in every aspect. He runs well, he changes direction, he plays strong and he plays angry. He has a great motor. He’s going to continue to grow, which will help him even more.”
Pittman also plays for McKinley’s basketball team. But don’t think the big defensive end isn’t thinking about football, too.
“I think he thinks about football every day,” Johnson said.
“He knows that’s going to provide him an education, and, hopefully, a livelihood. That’s important to him, but I know he’s committed to helping our basketball team making a run in this tournament, too.”
Earlier this month, McKinley senior Steve Miller signed a letter of intent with Ohio State. He could figure into early playing time on the Buckeyes’ defensive line.
Might that give OSU a recruiting advantage? Maybe not.
“He is wide open,” Johnson said. “There are a lot of different things he’s interested in. He’s going to go through the whole process and really get to meet guys. There are a lot of new staffs involved; guys he’ll want to meet and get to know.
“I just hope they go where they want to be, and where they’re going to have a chance for a good career.”
One of those places is Michigan. The Wolverines hired Brady Hoke to replace Rich Rodriguez. Hoke is from Ohio and seems to be making a renewed commitment to battling the Buckeyes in their backyard
“I know they’re going to make a concerted effort in Ohio with Brady being an Ohio guy,” Johnson said. “I think it’s gonna be a big difference.”
Actually, of the three new offers, Michigan State came in first near the beginning of the week. Then Michigan offered late and Ohio State shortly after the Wolverines.
Ohio State already has received verbal commitments from five players for its 2012 class. The Buckeyes are expected to sign between 15 to 19 players, depending on the roster size after the 2011 season.
GlenOak running back Bri’onte Dunn is one of those commitments. He verbally committed during his junior season. Running back Warren Ball (Columbus DeSales), offensive lineman Kyle Kalis (Lakewood St. Edward), offensive lineman Jacoby Boren (Pickerington Central) and linebacker Josh Perry (Olentangy) are the other four.
