Ohio State 2006 — Recruiting Outcomes

Hits & Misses

Hit: Jake Ballard (TE) — Originally ranked 214. Outcome: NFL Starter. Ballard surpassed expectations, reaching the status of an NFL Starter. Hit: Larry Grant (LB) — Originally unranked. Outcome: NFL Starter. Despite starting with no expectations, Grant showed notable development to achieve the outcome of an NFL Starter. Miss: Robert Rose (DL) — Originally ranked 31. Outcome: Contributor. Rose underperformed compared to his high original ranking, only managing to be a contributor. Miss: Connor Smith (IOL) — Originally ranked 46. Outcome: Contributor. Like Rose, Smith failed to meet high expectations, ending up as merely a contributor.

Development Story

The 2006 Ohio State recruiting class reveals a mixed bag of outcomes. While there were several high performers, there were also notable underperformances, particularly among the initially highly ranked recruits. The class had a strong blue chip percentage at 60%, which indicates a high level of talent. However, the outcomes indicate that not all of this talent was effectively developed. The class had a few individuals who managed to greatly exceed their initial rankings, such as Jake Ballard and Larry Grant. These recruits showed significant development over their college careers, demonstrating the program's ability to develop talent. However, there were also several recruits like Robert Rose and Connor Smith, who, despite their high initial rankings, ended up underperforming.

Outcome Summary

Overall, the Ohio State 2006 recruiting class met expectations. The class had a respectable original ranking of 9, and the S2S rerank of 7 indicates that the outcomes were generally in line with these expectations. However, the underperformance of several highly ranked recruits pulls the team's overall performance down, resulting in a slight rerank drop. Despite some misses, the class had a good number of recruits who exceeded expectations, showing the program's development capabilities. The key takeaway here is that while the 2006 Ohio State class had potential, the development of that potential was somewhat inconsistent.