Ohio State trending for top-100 WR Vernell Brown III
Ohio State is trending for Wildwood (Fla.) Jones four-star wide receiver Vernell Brown III, according to the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM).
The Buckeyes lead at a 93.2 percent chance of landing Brown, per the RPM. Expert predictions favoring OSU have been logged by Buckeyes insiders Alex Gleitman and Matt Parker at 70 percent and 65 percent confidence levels, respectively.
Brown visited Columbus in March and afterward said the Buckeyes were “definitely at the top of the list.”
“They are definitely at the top of the list, along with a few others,” he told Lettermen Row. “I didn’t set an official visit date just yet, but Ohio State will definitely be getting one from me.”
Brown said he got the chance to view a practice and speak with Ohio State head coach Ryan Day and wide receivers coach Brian Hartline.
“The receivers looked really good in practice,” he said. “Their practice was run very efficiently.
“I talked to both Coach Day and Coach Hart. They both reiterated how much they would like me to be in the 2025 class and what makes me different from the guys in the already-stacked wide receiver room.”
Brown is the nation’s No. 84 overall prospect, No. 10 wide receiver and No. 11 recruit from Florida in the 2025 cycle according to the On3 Industry Ranking — a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.
More on Buckeyes recruiting
It was a successful Easter weekend for Ohio State on the recruiting trail. The Buckeyes picked up four recruits in Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy London Merritt, Port Saint Lucie (Fla.) Vero Beach four-star linebacker Tarvos Alford, Wayne (N.J.) DePaul Catholic four-star wide receiver De’zie Jones and his high school teammate and safety DeShawn Stewart.
“I’m big on tradition,” Alford told On3. “It’s a college town and I want to be in a college town and get that college atmosphere. There is a lot of history at Ohio State and people leave a legacy. I feel like if you go there, you are on the verge of making history and your name will be written in the history books for college football.”
The four-star was impressed by James Laurinaitis’ success while playing college football at Ohio State. The coaching style of the Buckeyes’ assistant also intrigues him.
“I like how he talks to people,” Alford said. “He is young enough to relate to younger recruits, but he is also old enough and been through things to relate to their parents… Coach Laurinaitis can do both. He makes everybody feel comfortable and feel the love.”