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Monday, February 4, 2013
 Ohio State: Top five recruiting moments
By Brad Bournival

 Every recruiting class can take a look back and say it all turned around at one point or another.

Ohio State’s second class under Urban Meyer is shaping up to stay in the top five in the nation -- the Buckeyes are currently fourth as signing day approaches on Wednesday.

Here’s a look back -- and little bit ahead -- in what has been a very wild 2013 recruiting season for Ohio State.

In order, here is what BuckeyeNation thinks are the top five moments from the battleground that shaped up this year’s recruiting class:

1. The Buckeyes get a linebacker, wait, two linebackers: What better way to fill a gaping hole in the class than by grabbing two ESPN 150 linebackers? The first came on Jan. 4 during the Under Armour All-American Game when Trey Johnson said he’d be a Buckeye. A day later, Mike Mitchell did the same at the U.S. Army All-American Game. The two combined for 326 tackles and 14 sacks as seniors.

Gareon Conley
Standout CB Gareon Conley flipped from Michigan to Ohio State.
2. Hail to the Vic...Buckeyes: There’s nothing better for Ohio State fans than sticking it to a Michigan Wolverine. On Dec. 9, the Buckeyes grabbed the seventh-ranked cornerback in the country in Gareon Conley, giving Ohio State three of the top nine defensive backs in the nation. Conley had been a longtime Michigan commit, but dropped his commitment on Nov. 27, just days after the Buckeyes’ 26-21 over the Wolverines.

3. You’re home, now work: Cam Burrows, Eli Apple, J.T. Barrett, Tracy Sprinkle and Tyquan Lewis signed grant-in-aid, binding papers and enrolled at Ohio State on Jan. 7. That put two ESPN 150 cornerbacks and an ESPN 300 quarterback on the campus and made the quintet unquestionably Buckeyes. It also let the team focus on filling the remaining pieces of the class.

4. Buckeye booster: Jalin Marshall became the second commitment in the Class of 2013 for Ohio State on Jan. 30, 2012. The quarterback-turned-ESPN 150 wide receiver also became the mouthpiece for the Buckeyes recruiting class and was key in landing Johnson and others. At the Under-Armour Game he was talking Ohio State to anyone who would listen.

5. Like Christmas in February: No more drama over Ezekiel Elliott, or Donovan Munger, or Johnson, or, well, anyone else. Feb. 6 is the day recruitniks have been waiting for. The fax machine hums, the papers come in, and at last pledges, targets and recruits instantly become Buckeyes. There will likely be surprises. There usually are. Ohio State grabbed Kyle Dodson and Jamal Marcus on signing day last year. What’s in store this time around for the Buckeyes?