Ohio State football recruiting battle for 5-star LB Sammy Brown

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Breaking the top 35 marks Ohio State goals for the 2024 recruiting class heading into the summer:

WHO: Sammy Brown, a 5-star linebacker who plays at Jefferson High School in Jefferson, Georgia.

SIZE: 6-foot-2, 230 pounds.

INVESTMENT: Class of 2024 No. 1 player, 12th player.

FIGHT: Brown has offers from 28 schools and has yet to narrow down his list, though Ohio State has already emerged as a favorite.

HOME HOLDER: The Bulldogs are a defensive juggernaut who have won back-to-back titles while 15 minutes away from home.

GEOGRAPHY: Jefferson is 416 miles from the Ohio States campus.

OTHER CANDIDATES: Brown has scheduled official visits with Clemson, Georgia and Ohio State so far this summer, probably the top three.

Right now, UGA might have the lead, having hosted him on 10 visits, including this spring. Clemsons had him on campus eight times, including twice this year. Meanwhile, he hasn’t returned to Columbus since the Notre Dame game, which makes the June 16 official visit all the more important, especially now that James Laurinaitis is on staff.

OSU NEEDS: This should be a three linebacker class and maybe four if a third comes along while Brown is still on the board. Those three numbers replace Steele Chambers, Tommy Eichenberg and Cody Simon, though Simon could still return for a fifth year.

Already committing Garrett Stover and Payton Pierce gives the Buckeyes some wiggle room with who else they can add, but if a five-star recruit wants to come, they’ll certainly make room for it. But even so, linebackers shouldn’t be considered at the top of the list of needs when considering what’s behind the three upperclassmen and ready for more.

WHAT THIS STORE DOES: After watching the clock Jim Knowles was able to turn Tommy Eichenberg into a four-year recruit in the mid-300s for his class, one can only imagine what he can do with someone with Brown’s athletic profile.

Any questions about his natural speed are answered with a time of 10.7 in the 100 and 21.82 in the 200. He also won a state title as a freshman in the 400. He moves like someone who is much lighter than List and has the instincts and coverage skills you want in a linebacker in modern day football.

Knowles likes to turn players into weapons, which meant Eichenberg had 120 tackles in 2022. Those are numbers that could be on Brown’s desk in Knowles’ system.

WILL THE BUCKEYES GET HIM?

A lot of recruiting is built around fit both as a player and as a personality. It’s hard to have a kid who Homeschools collect rings the way Georgia does, which hits the player side. Clemson can win the personality contest as a kid who fits their culture.

It wouldn’t be wise to rule out the Buckeyes, but it’s hard to see them beating either of those schools to Brown.

To view Ohio States’ entire 2024 recruiting class, click here.

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