There was a time, years ago, when Ohio State and Penn State, two of the nation’s premier football powerhouses, went head-to-head for a number of the region’s football recruits. However, thanks to the ridiculous success of Urban Meyer’s Ohio State football program on the field — and perhaps in part to Penn State’s inability to escape the shadows of NCAA sanctions levied in 2012 — coaches from the two schools haven’t crossed paths in living rooms nearly as often in the past five years. Though the two schools have seen each with less regularity, Meyer’s first recruiting class at Ohio State — which ranked No. 5 nationally despite only three months to build it — may not have been able to pick up the momentum it did without the catastrophe that was happening simultaneously in State College. While the Nittany Lions were reeling, Ohio State was perusing the Penn State commitment list — and top target list — and stealing from it. The Buckeyes swooped in at the end of the 2012 cycle — as they announced the hiring of Meyer — and stole 5-star defensive end Noah Spence (Harrisburg, Pa.), who was considered major Penn State lean. They didn’t stop there, though. Ohio…
Continue Reading: Separation in recruiting profiles has caused fewer Ohio State battles with Penn State battle since 2012, but that could change
