Article published February 05, 2009
St. John's Mewhort already showing leadership at OSU
Among Jim Tressel's new Buckeyes are Storm Klein (32), Zach Boren (44), Jack Mewhort (74) and Adam Homan (49). Mewhort, an offensive lineman from St. John's, is already on campus.
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By MATT MARKEY
BLADE SPORTS WRITER
COLUMBUS - At this time last year, most of the fuss, the focus and the recruiting fluff centered around the marquee position on the football field - quarterback. Then Ohio State went out and got the guy everyone in the country wanted - ultra athlete Terrelle Pryor.
With the recruiting class the Buckeyes announced yesterday, it appears that coach Jim Tressel was intent on marshaling a new and highly-talented palace guard to protect Pryor. Tressel collected a pride of prized linemen, including Jack Mewhort from St. John's Jesuit.
"It's exciting to be part of this program, and I feel really comfortable knowing I'll be playing up front with Terrelle at quarterback," Mewhort said here yesterday after officially making his commitment to play for the Buckeyes. "There's a lot to learn, but there's also a lot of opportunity right now."
Mewhort was one of 25 recruits who signed with Ohio State - 13 on offense and 12 on defense. The class includes 14 players from Ohio, three each from Pennsylvania and Florida, two from Michigan and one each from Maryland, Kentucky and Texas.
Mewhort joins Marcus Hall from Cleveland Glenville, Corey Linsley from Boardman and Sam Longo from Spring Valley Bellbrook in the group of offensive linemen the Buckeyes recruited to help fill the void left by graduation losses at the position.
"You have to be able to re-stock," Tressel said about his offensive line, adding that this year's group of incoming freshmen will not be as likely to redshirt for their first year at Ohio State, since the Buckeyes had four interior linemen complete their eligibility. "We told them, don't come in with the thought of redshirting, come in with the thought of competing."Mewhort, who more than a year ago made known his intention to play for the Buckeyes, went to summer school so he could graduate early from St. John's.
He is one of four OSU recruits who enrolled in college at the start of January to get a jump on classes and conditioning, and he hopes the extra time here will pay dividends.
"I wanted to get an early handle on things, and start learning the offense as soon as I could," Mewhort said. "Ever since I first committed to Ohio State, all I wanted to do is be here, and get involved in the program. This recruiting class is important for the future of Ohio State football, and it's exciting to be a part of it."
Doug Pearson, Mewhort's coach at St. John's, said the first-team All-Ohioan can play any of the three offensive line positions for the Buckeyes, and Pearson said Mewhort's intangibles are as valuable as his size and strength.
| NATIONAL RANKINGS |
Rankings by top nationalrecruiting publications:
Tom Lemming,Prep Football Report
1. Ohio State
2. LSU
3. Texas
4. USC
5. Alabama
Rivals.com
1. Alabama
2. LSU
3. USC
4. OSU
5. Texas
Scout.com
1. Ohio State
2. LSU
3. Alabama
4. USC
5. North Carolina |
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"The biggest thing about Jack that not a lot of people know about is his tremendous work ethic," Pearson said. "He was good enough in high school that he could have gotten by most of the time on just six cylinders, but he never did. He was always pushing to excel, pushing to get better."
Pearson said Mewhort, who was rated as one of the best offensive line prospects in the Midwest by every major scouting service, also will impress everyone with his leadership skills.
"What they are getting is a guy who will make everyone around him better," Pearson said. "He's a smart player who will be able to make the line calls. I don't want to sound outrageous, but I think he has a great shot at making their two-deep chart in the spring."
Tressel said Mewhort had already emerged as a leader among the group of early enrollees.
"We're excited about all these big guys coming in, and with Jack, it will be good for him to be part of spring ball," Tressel said. "Jack does a great job of leading with this group."
Mewhort was sought after by a number of other Big Ten schools, but his father, Don, said Ohio State was his son's favorite from very early in the process.
"For us, the whole recruiting experience at Ohio State was unbelievable, and everybody was involved, from the president to the athletic director and on down the line," Don Mewhort said. "It's the whole place - Ohio State recruits itself. For Jack, it was a pretty quick decision."
Mewhort is part of the largest recruiting class at Ohio State since 2002.
The group includes just one quarterback, Kenny Guiton from Texas, and three running backs, Carlos Hyde and Jaamal Berry from Florida, and Jordan Hall from Jeannette, Pa., the same school that produced Pryor.
"There's a lot of talent and a lot of versatility in this group," Tressel said. "We want to make sure everyone sees what we saw in this class - guys who could help us be Big Ten and national champions."
Contact Matt Markey at:
mmarkey@theblade.com
or 419-724-6510.
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