Rivals.com 24/7Sports on3 TIGHT END •6'4" | 220 LBS •CLASS OF 2024 SAVANNAH, GA | CALVARY DAY Ohio State has offered.
Blessed to Receive an Offer from The Ohio State University #GoBucks @OSUCoachKDub @ryandaytime pic.twitter.com/4z34VJFcnw— 𝗚𝗘𝗥𝗢𝗡𝗜𝗠𝗢!𐦂 (@ayeemikee1_) June 28, 2022
Check out *Updated* Sophomore Year Highlights 🅿️ by Michael Smith on @hudl https://t.co/TJKCiSuYNK #hudl— OSUBasketballJunkie (@ScarletBuckeye2) June 29, 2022
Country's No. 6 TE who visited #OhioState over the weekend tells @247Sports Georgia recruiting insider @Mansell247 #Buckeyes are one of three teams recruiting him the hardest. On @Bucknuts247. VIP https://t.co/saQ2n52YfL @OSUCoachKDub— Bill Kurelic (@Bill_Kurelic) September 27, 2022
BUCKEYES RECRUITING SMITH HARD Ohio State’s continued pursuit of 2024 tight ends Christian Bentancur and Damarion Witten has been well-documented. But another four-star tight end prospect in that cycle is also feeling the love from the Buckeyes. Georgia tight end Michael Smith told 247Sports this week he believes Ohio State is one of three schools recruiting him the hardest, along with Arkansas and South Carolina. Smith, who has been recruited by both Tony Alford and Kevin Wilson, was in attendance for the Buckeyes’ 52-21 victory over Wisconsin. “I just went this past weekend,” Smith told 247Sports. “The energy was live. I liked the atmosphere. The energy was just off the charts. Plus, it was a blackout game, so I felt like everybody in the crowd was into it. There was like no basic person in the crowd. Everybody was into the game.” Smith is considered the 138th-best prospect and the sixth-best tight end nationally per 247Sports’ composite rankings. He picked up his offer from the Buckeyes on June 28.
4-star 2024 TE Michael Smith high on three programs right nowhttps://t.co/HVIMmc4Rrw— Lettermen Row (@LettermenRow) September 28, 2022
🚨NEW🚨 2024 4-star TE Michael Smith has narrowed his list to 8👀More from @ChadSimmons_ (On3+): https://t.co/sYIHszPGqV pic.twitter.com/FKyDSqGcUc— On3 Recruits (@On3Recruits) October 31, 2022
Elite 2024 tight end Michael Smith has Ohio State in trimmed listhttps://t.co/k0eCneIY60— Lettermen Row (@LettermenRow) November 2, 2022
BUCKEYES CRACK TOP 8 FOR SMITH Heyward wasn’t the only key 2024 prospect to include the Buckeyes in a top schools list. Four-star Georgia tight end Michael Smith released a top eight on Monday: Ohio State, Penn State, Tennessee, South Carolina, Alabama, Arkansas, Florida and Texas. Smith, who Ohio State offered in June, attended the Buckeyes’ victory over Wisconsin earlier this fall and said after the visit the Buckeyes are one of the schools recruiting him the hardest. “They’ve been contacting me since the spring,” Smith told On3. “Coach (Kevin) Wilson, he’s really been doing a good job keeping in contact with my family. The communication is real big with Ohio State. It’s always checking in. I feel at home when I’m there or on the phone. I went for the Wisconsin game. That was the blackout game. I loved it. The atmosphere was just off the charts, hearing the fans go crazy. I liked how they used a lot of their tight ends in their playbook.” Smith is considered the 152nd-best prospect nationally and the sixth-ranked tight end. Other top tight end targets for OSU in 2024 include Damarion Witten, Christian Bentancur and Kylan Fox.
🚨NEW🚨 2024 4-star TE Michael Smith is set to commit on January 24th.Read: https://t.co/MzHeQJwLMy pic.twitter.com/qDSD6uFDPW— On3 Recruits (@On3Recruits) December 6, 2022
BAILEY VISITS 2024 TE MICHAEL SMITH With offensive coordinator and tight ends coach Kevin Wilson now set to be Tulsa’s head coach following Ohio State’s College Football Playoff run, his recruiting duties have shifted to OSU senior advisor to the head coach Keenan Bailey, a potential candidate to take Wilson’s place on staff. Bailey was on the road recruiting for the Buckeyes on Thursday, stopping at Calvary Day High School in Georgia to check in on four-star 2024 tight end Michael Smith. Bailey’s visit to Georgia was crucial as Smith intends to commit on Jan. 24, the 6-foot-4, 225-pound tight end told On3. Smith will choose from a top three of Ohio State, South Carolina and Arkansas. The Georgia prospect told the recruiting network Wilson’s departure will have no impact on his decision because he believes a family environment will be in place despite the coaching vacancy. “It was really like a family environment with all three of them,” Smith told On3 of his upcoming decision. “I felt at home when I visited, it didn’t feel like a first time thing. I felt like I belonged there and the atmosphere felt like it was built for me. Plus the communication was always there. We always communicated. I always had a coach to talk to; if I wasn’t on the phone with one coach, I had another coach that I could talk to.”
MICHAEL SMITH TO COMMIT TUESDAY One of Ohio State’s top tight end targets in the class of 2024, Michael Smith, is set to make his commitment at 12:05 p.m. Tuesday. Smith is expected to choose from a final four of Ohio State, South Carolina, Arkansas and Tennessee. Of the four schools vying for Smith’s commitment, South Carolina is the projected favorite to land the 6-foot-4, 225-pound Georgia tight end.
Commitment Breakdown: Georgia 2024 four-star TE Michael Smith @ayeemikee1_ pledges to Gamecocks: https://t.co/Q1FpUwBEnk pic.twitter.com/VvBv2nNwSO— Ryan Wright (@RyanWrightRNG) January 24, 2023