Ohio State has a firm grasp on the country's No. 1 recruiting class, and with the momentum gained from winning the first-ever College Football Playoff in 2015 and an epic NFL draft class last May, the Buckeyes are chasing a historic haul of 5-star talent.
Urban Meyer already has a trio of 5-star prospects in the fold with commitments from offensive tackle Josh Myers, cornerback Shaun Wade and offensive guard Wyatt Davis. Even if Ohio State closed out with just those three in its class, it would equal or eclipse the 5-star talent that the Big Ten signed as a conference in three of the last four recruiting cycles.
Simply put, the Buckeyes already have a wave of talent coming to Columbus that the Big Ten hasn't seen in a very long time.
And with the targets still left on Meyer's recruiting board, that wave could turn into a tsunami by national signing day.
It starts at wide receiver, where the Buckeyes have three big-time playmakers on their radar.
There's Trevon Grimes, the No. 5-ranked wide receiver out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, who's almost unanimously picked to land with the Buckeyes, per 247Sports Crystal Ball Predictions. That same feature gives Ohio State a 68 percent chance of landing Tyjon Lindsey, the No. 4 receiver in 2017 and former high school teammate of 4-star quarterback and Buckeyes commit Tate Martell.
And a small possibility exists that Meyer could reel in Donovan Peoples-Jones, the country's top-rated receiver, to join Grimes and Lindsey in Columbus.
Shifting to the backfield, Ohio State is trying to get a workhorse to put behind its 5-star combo of Myers and Davis along the offensive line. That process led Meyer to Cam Akers, a Clinton, Mississippi product who's rated the No. 2 running back nationally and the No. 16 player overall.
Akers, a one-time Alabama pledge who was on the Ohio State campus just days after decommitting from the Crimson Tide, is high on the Buckeyes. His interest in heading north has surged since reopening his commitment, and now Ohio State sits as co-leader in his recruitment with home-state Ole Miss, per 247Sports.
The Buckeyes could surge in front for good next month, when Akers visits Ohio State again for its signature recruiting event—Friday Night Lights.
On the defensive side of the ball, Ohio State is looking south at a pair of Texas standouts in Jeffrey Okudah and linebacker Baron Browning.
Okudah is the nation's top safety and No. 5 player regardless of position, and he's had Ohio State at the top of his list for months. That's why 247Sports gives the Buckeyes a 59 percent chance of landing the ball-hawking defensive back, who would join Wade in a formidable secondary.
Browning will be tougher to land, but there is a small window of opportunity there. The No. 2 outside linebacker and No. 8 prospect overall, Browning was warm enough to the Buckeyes to visit in late May, and the trip went so well that he'll be joining a host of recruits at Friday Night Lights in Columbus on July 22.
If Meyer aces that visit, Ohio State could be a real factor in his recruitment moving into the fall.
That brings us to the defensive line, where Ohio State's top remaining target—5-star Chase Young—is trending the Buckeyes' way.
The weak-side defensive end was leaning toward staying home with the Maryland Terrapins for a long time, but Ohio State defensive line coach Larry Johnson has done a fantastic job in his recruitment. He helped the Buckeyes pull ahead as the favorite, per 247Sports, and established that he's their priority with no current defensive ends committed for 2017.
In total, that's eight 5-star prospects that Ohio State is very much in the running for as the recruiting cycle hits the summer camp circuit. As things stand now, the Buckeyes are either favored or co-leaders to land five of those players: Grimes, Lindsey, Akers, Okudah and Young.
If Meyer can gain commitments from those five, it would give Ohio State eight 5-star commitments for the class of 2017—more than any single class in recruiting history.
Pete Carroll never did that during USC's dynasty. Nick Saban has gotten close with six 5-star pledges at Alabama (2013, '14), but no one has ever signed eight.
And if Meyer can close the deal, he'll be in a league of his own on national signing day.
All recruiting rankings and information via 247Sports.
David Regimbal is the lead Ohio State football writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter @davidreg412.
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