Ohio State already boasts the No. 1 ranked recruiting class in 2021, and now it has the highest-ranked recruiting class in 2022 as well after in-state linebacker Gabe Powers announced his commitment to the Buckeyes Saturday night.
“Ohio State is home. It’s everything I ever wanted and everything I ever dreamed of as a kid,” Powers remarked. “The love they showed me and the relationship I built with them and also loving them growing up, it made my decision pretty easy.”
At the time of his commitment, Powers had already nabbed 20 scholarship offers from schools representing every Power Five Conference. Ohio was one of the early offers, tendering their scholarship last November. In the time since the coaching staff was able to build upon his early interest in the program that ultimately led to Saturday’s decision.
“I love the coaching staff, I love coach (Al) Washington and the relationship with him and his family,” Powers said. “I am building a relationship coach (Ryan) Day. There are no better coaches I’d rather play for and no better team I’d rather play for.”
The Ohio State coaching staff got an assist in their recruiting efforts with Powers from fellow class of 2022 prospect C.J. Hicks, who committed to the Buckeyes back in May and has played been a vocal advocate since.
“The Buckeye Captain, C.J., me and him have been talking and he’s done a great job,” Powers said. “This is going to be a real big class and he’s done an amazing job recruiting big players. I’m just going to help him out a little, but let him do his thing because he’s more of the social media-type guy.”
Powers and Hicks both hold a rating of 6.0, making them the highest-rated prospects in the state of Ohio’s 2022 class. Both could up in the same front seven for future Ohio State defenses.
“They love my physicality, my length, my athleticism and my IQ for the game,” Powers noted. “They see me fitting in as a SAM backer, where I can rush the edge on a blitz or drop back, cover the tight end, stop the run and stuff like that.
The state of Ohio is currently planning to start football activities later this month, though what a high school season may look like remains to be seen. Powers is the fourth prospect from the Buckeye’s home state to commit in the 2022 class, and all four are rated as early four-star prospects.
