Four-star in-state cornerback Jermaine Mathews commits to Ohio State
COLUMBUS — Ohio State is adding another in-state piece to its recruiting haul: Jermaine Mathews has committed to the Buckeyes.
Mathews, a four-star cornerback from Winton Woods (Cincinnati) and the No. 32 cornerback in the country according to the On3 consensus rankings, picked the Buckeyes over Cincinnati, Penn State, Oklahoma, LSU, Jackson State and others.
Mathews reluctantly camped at Ohio State during the first week of June camp season, and that performance during the one-day workout earned him an offer from the Buckeyes defensive staff.
Following his camp performance, Lettermen Row had this to say about him:
The Buckeyes offered the Winton Woods (Cincinnati) standout after a dominant performance in the afternoon session. Mathews ran a sub 4.40 in the 40-yard dash and was competitive in drills, regularly skipping to the front of the line for more work on the afternoon. He had a huge cheering section of Buckeyes defensive backs on every rep — and those are guys that very likely will be teammates in the near future.
He quickly scheduled an official visit to Ohio State, and he was on campus for his visit last weekend, sealing the deal for the Buckeyes to land the fast-rising defensive back just weeks after extending an offer to him.
He is taking full advantage of the chance to accept that offer, becoming yet another in-state player to get in the fold. Ohio State currently has commitments from six Ohio prospects. In-state players make up nearly half of the Buckeyes class.
Jermaine Mathews is the fourth and final cornerback to commit to the Buckeyes in this cycle, joining four-star Florida cornerback Dijon Johnson, four-star Georgia cornerback Kayin Lee and four-star Texas cornerback Calvin Simpson-Hunt in Tim Walton’s class.
Mathews gives the Buckeyes 16 commitments in their 2023 recruiting class. The commitment of Jermaine Mathews boosts the Ohio State class, currently the No. 1 group in the country. The Buckeyes jumped Georgia, USC and Notre Dame for that spot early last week. This week’s additions of Kayin Lee, Calvin Simpson-Hunt, and now Mathews have only strengthened that lead.
