By: Duane Long (DuaneLongReport.com) —
I don’t know about you but yesterday was all I needed of the coach talk. I am sure we get back to it as I am sure we will see a change but that is going to come later. We had a great weekend with recruiting starting with a verbal from one of the elite skill players in the entire class of 2010 with Pennsylvania RB/WR Corey Brown committing to the Buckeyes.

The timing is the only surprise. I mentioned on this blog that there was so little coming out about him but when we heard something it was always good. He is a high order prescription drugs online school running back that does not fit the mold of a feature back in the Buckeyes run heavy between the tackles offense but I think he could still be a back. He is a solidly built kid and is 6-0. He could top out at 210. He is built a lot like Antonio Pittman. Unlike Pittman Brown is so athletic and has such good hands that a move to receiver is possible, and I say likely. He reminds me most of Percy Harvin. I would like to see him in that role. My biggest question is holding onto him. The verbal came out of the blue. I am concerned that it could be a matter of how caught up he was in the excitement of the atmosphere. Cancelling of the rest of his visits would go a long way toward alleviating my concerns.

The Buckeyes received great news from a number of other prospects. Jordan Hicks left saying the Buckeyes have set the bar high. I will remain confident that the Buckeyes get him until I hear different. One thing I discovered about him. He was not born in Ohio. I don’t know when he came here but I always wondered why a kid from an Ohio State crazy area of the state, playing for a coach who is well connected to the program did not have the Buckeyes way out in front. It could be he has not been here long enough for us to infect him.

Josh Shaw from California had a great trip. He has been saying the right things all along but after this trip you have to think the Buckeyes are the team to beat. I don’t think it has anything to do with Joyner. I think the Buckeyes want both. If you just want a DB you give the edge to Joyner as he could be a corner as easily as he could be a safety but if a safety is the priority, and I think it is, I would rather have the bigger and rangier Shaw. I have seen Joyner be extremely physical but so is Shaw and I think he is going to make a much easier transition to the college game with his size. Tackling high school players and tackling college players is not the same.

The other recruiting buzz that got my attention the most is what is going on with Latwan Anderson. I cannot confirm the offer. Bill Kurelic has not confirmed it. Other legitimate sources have confirmed it. I have mixed feelings about it. I did a blog about Anderson. In fact he has been the subject of two blogs. As a player, there is no question he is an Ohio State caliber prospect. I am much concerned about too many off the field things with Anderson. If Latwan Anderson is offered we see the importance of the relationship that exists between pipeline schools and the program they have established a relationship with. I don’t know if this could happen without that level of trust. Most coaches have a soft place in their heart for their best players, and even when they don’t they feel like they need to do what is in the best interest of that kid so college coaches may not get everything they need to know about a kid. There are several episodes out there that have never been fully explained about Anderson. I was put off by film clips of him in a 7 on 7 tournament. He was really showing out. Strutting and talking on another level. In his defense I saw the entire film on ESPN just about 3-4 weeks ago and all the players were doing it. Not to the degree that Anderson was, but they were all pretty loose. I think it would take the kind of relationship that JT has with a coach like Ted Ginn to make this happen. Is this a kid that just needs to grow up or is this a bad seed? JT needs to be able to trust that that coach is going to tell him the truth. He knows he will get that from Ted Ginn.

The timing of a possible offer to Anderson is interesting. Coming right after Anderson Russell gets benched and we have to move a player into the spot from another position instead of putting in the next kid on the depth chart. I think this was a wake-up call to the coaching staff that we don’t have it at safety.

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