Dave Thurman (9:07 pm)

As winter drags on and little news comes out of Columbus concerning the 2009 Buckeyes, let's take some time to look back over the past 8 National Signing Days and assign grades to Tressel's recruiting efforts thus far, position by position.  Individual player rankings are based off of a consensus arrived at by combining and averaging the ratings from various recruiting services (such as Rivals, Scout, SuperPrep, etc.).

Quarterback:

Highest Ranked Signing: Terrelle Pryor (consensus #1)

Biggest Surprise: Troy Smith, brought in as an athlete at the last minute he merely went on to win the Heisman Trophy!

Biggest Flop: Justin Zwick, who was tagged as a superstar before he even started shaving

Overall Position Grade: B (Some excellent recruits here although a few transferred out)

Running Back:

Highest Ranked Signing: Pick between Maurice Clarett and Beanie Wells (both #1's) 

Biggest Surprise: Antonio Pittman

Biggest Flop: Lydell Ross, but he could soon be passed by Brandon Saine if he doesn't get his act together

Overall Position Grade: B+ (Brought in some great ones but also suffered through the Ross and Hall era)

Wide Reciever:

Highest Ranked Signing: If you don't count Teddy Ginn, who came in as a cornerback, then it would be DeVier Posey

Biggest Surprise: Santonio Holmes, considered a 3 star recruit

Biggest Flop: Roy Hall, thought to be a superstar but failed to contribute until late in his career

Overall Position Grade: B- (Saved by Teddy and Gonzo who were recruited as defensive backs, but overall filled with many 3 star recruits)

Tight End:

Highest Ranked Signing: Probably Jake Ballard, unless you consider Jake Stoneburner a TE as some services did

Biggest Surprise: ? (Maybe Brandon Smith who wasn't highly recruited and did contribute at TE and FB)

Biggest Flop: Chad Hoobler, who was highly ranked, then switched positions, then left school

Overall Position Grade: C (Some decent recruits were hurt by the offensive strategy, but overall the numbers brought in at this position have been low)

Offensive Line:

Highest Ranked Signing: Alex Boone (consensus top 5 lineman)

Biggest Surprise: Nick Mangold, who became a star though he wasn't a huge national recruit (honorable mention to Kirk Barton)

Biggest Flop: You pick!  Honestly, it has to be Kyle Mitchum, who averaged out as the #6 ranked recruit at OL in the '04 class but failed to develop partially due to injuries (Connor Smith is on the prowl to unseat him, however)

Overall Position Grade: C (Guys like Mangold, Sims, and Barton help the overall grade, but too many guys have not performed and it is obvious that Bollman has done a poor job in developing this position.)

Defensive Analysis: coming tomorrow

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