Day impresses Jacoby, Potter during visits

A pair of Mentor Cardinals will sign their national letters of intent with Ohio State during the early signing period and enroll in January.

New Ohio State coach Ryan Day and members of his staff made inhome visits to Mentor defensive end Noah Potter and offensive tackle Ryan Jacoby on Dec. 5.

Afterward, Jacoby took to Twitter and posted a photo of himself, Day and offensive line coach Greg Studrawa, writing, “Great home visit with my future coaches!! Excited to get started in a month! #GoBucks”

A short while later, Tim Potter - father of Noah Potter - confirmed that his son will sign early and will report to Ohio State for winter semester classes on Jan. 6.

“Great visit,” Tim Potter said of the lengthy visit with both day and OSU’s defensive line coach Larry Johnson. “We had a wonderful time together.

“Noah has already received his acceptance letter and will report by Jan. 6.”

The early signing period for football is Dec. 19-21.

Urban Meyer shocked the college football landscape on Dec. 4 when he announced that he would be retiring from his position at Ohio State immediately after the Buckeyes’ Rose Bowl game against Washington on Jan. 1.

Immediately after being named the new coach, Day said recruiting Ohio players would be a top priority.

Speaking at his introductory

news conference, Day said recruiting in Ohio will be placed as a high priority.

“We have the best coaches and some of the best high school programs in all of America here at Ohio,” Day said. “It will continue to be our first priority to recruit Ohio football players. Every young football player in the state of Ohio should dream about one day becoming a Buckeye. And it’s our staff’s responsibility to make sure we recruit them at the highest level.”

Day, Johnson and Studrawa wasted no time in showing that commitment to Potter and Jacoby.

“Coach Johnson was at our house at 10 this morning and was with us for three hours,” Tim Potter said. “Every since Noah was in eighth grade, Larry has been like a father to him. Noah’s heart is with Larry.”

Though Ohio State has made no official announcement as to who will be on Day’s staff going forward, Johnson’s appearance at the Potter household and Studrawa’s at Jacoby’s suggests they will remain on staff.

Jacoby, a 6-foot-5, 275-pound All- 0hioan, gave his verbal commitment to the Buckeyes on March 1. The four-star tackle chose Ohio State a number of suitors, including Michigan, Michigan State, Oregon, Purdue, West Virginia and Kentucky.

Potter, a 6-foot-5, 260-pounder, is rated four stars as well. He gave his verbal commitment on April 16, choosing Ohio State over a long list of offers including Notre Dame, Penn State, Michigan, Michigan State, Georgia, Alabama, Florida and others.

The Potter family came away impressed with Day.

“He’s a wonderful, wonderful guy,” Tim Potter said. “You can see why Urban had confidence in him and why the coaches who were under him during his interim earlier this year have confidence in him. It was just a great visit.”

Both Potter and Jacoby will take official visits to Ohio State this weekend.

Mentor coach Steve Trivisonno said the meetings went very well and that

both Potter and Jacoby remain firmly committed to the Buckeyes.

“Oh yeah. I’d be shocked if they weren’t,” Trivisonno said. “They’re in a good place. They’re ready to be Buckeyes.

Trivisonno said the official visits this weekend are highly anticipated.

“They’re excited for the big weekend,” Trivisonno said. “I don’t think there was any wavering when Coach Meyer stepped down. They were just surprised. But today they got to talk with Coach Day and talk about the direction of the program.

“They’re excited and ready to go.”

As of mid-afternoon on Dec. 5, only two players who had previously committed to Ohio State had de-committed and re-opened their recruiting process.

Offensive lineman Jake Wray, from Marietta, Ga., and defensive end Lejond Cavazos, from IMG Academy in Florida, both have de-committed but said Ohio State is still high on their list of schools as they reopen their recruitment.