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| (Photo: David Richard/Chronicle) |
Demario McCall, a four-star recruit rated as the top running back in the state of Ohio, verbally committed to the Buckeyes. In addition to being highly rated within the state, McCall also rates as the third best running back recruit in the country. As the #2 overall recruit in the state, he had been the highest rated player in Ohio without a commitment prior to Saturday's announcement.
During McCall's junior season at North Ridgeville High School, the 5'11", 185-pound running back served as a multi-purpose weapon, a fact that surely caught the eye of Meyer and his staff. In 220 rushes, McCall totaled 2,302 yards and 35 touchdowns, He also recorded touchdowns via a reception, kick-off, and interception returns. All in all, McCall amassed a total of 2,842 all purpose yards. And if that weren't enough, four rushes of 50-plus yards were also called back on penalties.
In other words, Demario McCall is a stud that should have Buckeye fans salivating. Don't believe me? Then perhaps his junior year highlight tape will sway your feelings just a bit.
And while this is a huge deal because of McCall's talent, it is the bigger picture of his commitment that should have fans excited.
The addition of Demario McCall takes and already loaded 2016 class and essentially puts it on steroids. McCall will be joining other top running back recruits Kareem Walker and George Hill. For those who may not be familiar, Walker is the top rated running back recruit in the country. Hill is rated #4 behind McCall. That means that Urban Meyer has landed three of the top four running backs in the nation from the class of 2016, provided that none of them are flipped. There are already rumors swirling that Michigan State will make a hard push for Hill and Walker also received an offer from Nick Saban and Alabama.
It also further proves what we have known to be true about Urban Meyer and his philosophy when it comes to building a winning program. This is an arms race and it's about acquiring weapons. Bring in as much talent as possible and worry about how to use it when the time comes. To many it would seem that having such a deep stable of top rated running backs would be a problem. Not to Meyer and his staff.
Between the players already on the roster, Ezekiel Elliot, Jalin Marshall, or Dontre Wilson, the players coming in from the class of 2015. Mike Weber, K.J. Hill, and Torrance Gibson, and this 2016 class, the Ohio State offense should be loaded for years to come. And these players should be seen as strictly wide receivers or running backs, etc. They should be viewed as weapons that Meyer will put in a position to succeed and utilize when the time is right.
This also speaks to the importance of depth, which is something we all bore witness to during this past season's championship run. Meyer has made no secret of the importance of depth within the program and the idea of "next man up." Meyer's intent is to build a roster with elite level talent from top to bottom. If someone is not carrying their weight and doing the work necessary, they'll be replaced. It's as simple as that. It's a philosophy that wasn't necessarily seen under Jim Tressel and the results are more than evident as OSU's third string is better than some school's top units.
In the meantime, the addition of Demario McCall should be cause for celebration in Columbus. He is an elite level talent that should fit in nicely within Urban Meyer's high flying offense. The future of the program was already bright, but with McCall expectations were just raised a little bit more, if it were even possible.
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