COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State is expected to sign three-star offensive guard Jakob James during the early signing period for the 2020 recruiting class, which lasts from Dec. 18-20. Learn more about this member of the Buckeyes’ recruiting class with this profile.
Jakob James
School: Cincinnati Elder.
Position: Offensive guard.
Height, weight: 6-foot-5, 285 pounds.
247Sports rating: 3-star prospect rated the No. 53 guard, the No. 27 player in the state of Ohio and the No. 834 player in the country according to the 247Sports.com composite ratings.
Other offers: Boston College, Cincinnati, Iowa State, Kentucky, LSU, Michigan, Nebraska, Penn State, Purdue, Tennessee, West Virginia and others.
What’s his deal?
James is another member of a large contingent of Cincinnati-area players in Ohio State’s 2020 recruiting class. He, Paris Johnson Jr., Darrion Henry, Joe Royer and Miyan Williams all played in Southwest Ohio before committing to OSU. This season, James was a first team Division I All-Ohioan on the offensive line, along with Johnson. James and Royer helped Cincinnati Elder reach the Division I state championship game, before losing to fellow OSU commit Ty Hamilton and Pickerington Central in the final.
As we discussed when talking about Hamilton in a previous capsule, Ryan Day and Ohio State have not been shy about accepting commitments from players like James who aren’t as highly ranked but are in-state prospects. It’s part of Ryan Day’s emphasis, and lower-ranked in-state players have been able to contribute often for Ohio State.
How he fits into Ohio State’s plans
James’ commitment fits in two different ways for Ohio State. In addition to being an in-state prospect, James fits Ohio State’s biggest need on the offensive line. The Buckeyes had to get help up front in this recruiting class, and a lot of it.
Johnson and Luke Wypler are the top-end talents in the class. But they recruited four other linemen to add depth for down the road to supplement a unit that had seven players that were either freshmen or redshirt freshmen.
Projections for 2020
James is likely due for a redshirt this season while he bulks up. He weighs in at 285 pounds and will need some time to get himself to up playing weight, which might be a year or two. But the way Ohio State has recruited on the interior of the offensive line in recent years, they can afford to wait on him for a while.
Read more about James
From cleveland.com
Other stories about James
* Elder’s offensive line filled with D1 talent (Cincinnati Enquirer)
Ohio State’s 2020 recruiting class
* See Ohio State’s entire 2020 recruiting class here
More Ohio State National Signing Day profiles
* Julian Fleming, 5-star receiver
* Paris Johnson Jr., 5-star offensive tackle
* Jaxon Smith-Njigba, 4-star receiver
* Clark Phillips III, 4-star cornerback
* Gee Scott Jr., 4-star receiver
* Lathan Ransom, 4-star safety
* Mookie Cooper, 4-star receiver
* Cody Simon, 4-star outside linebacker
* Kourt Williams, 4-star outside linebacker
* Jacolbe Cowan, 4-star defensive tackle
* Darrion Henry, 4-star defensive tackle
* Ryan Watts, 4-star cornerback
* Lejond Cavazos, 4-star cornerback
* Jack Miller, 4-star quarterback
* Cameron Martinez, 4-star athlete
* Grant Toutant, 3-star offensive tackle
* Mitchell Melton, 3-star outside linebacker
* Miyan Williams, 3-star running back
* Ty Hamilton, 3-star defensive end
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