Urban Meyer and the Ohio State Buckeyes have made a habit of beating Michigan.
The Buckeyes have dominated on the field, coming out with victories in 12 of their last 14 meetings with the Wolverines. On the recruiting trail, Ohio State has signed the higher-rated class in each of the last eight years.
And over the course of the last two recruiting cycles, the Buckeyes have found a new way of besting their chief rivals—by invading their backyard and raiding their top in-state recruiting pipeline.
Detroit’s Cass Technical High School—which is to Michigan what Glenville High School is to Ohio State—routinely produces some of the state’s top football prospects. For years, those recruits were sending their letters of intent 42 miles west to Ann Arbor, pledging to play for the home-state Wolverines.
But that hasn’t been the case since Meyer got involved.
It started in January of 2013, when Cass Tech’s top prospect—4-star cornerback Damon Webb—spurned Michigan in favor of Ohio State. It was a surprising move, as most expected the ball-hawking defensive back to wind up at Michigan, but Webb told Miles Joseph of Eleven Warriors that the Wolverines were never at the forefront.
“Michigan was never my leader,” Webb said, via Joseph. “I think people thought they were because I live near the school and a lot of my Cass teammates have gone to Michigan.”
At that point, those assumptions were fair. It would have been…
Continue Reading: Can Ohio State, Urban Meyer Continue Raid of Michigan’s Top Recruiting Pipeline?
