Junior lineman visits Ohio State

Five-star running back Ty Isaac has returned from an early season shoulder injury to post back-to-back 200-plus yard outings for Joliet (Ill.) Catholic. One of those leading the way for the USC-bound back is 2014 offensive lineman JB Butler, who is receiving considerably college interest of his own.

The 6-foot-4, 260-pound Butler made unofficial game visits to Illinois and Northwestern in September. This past weekend he traveled to Ohio State to see the Buckeyes host Nebraska.

"It was unbelievable," Butler said. "The atmosphere out there blew me away and just the overall feeling of the team was pretty cool. They are tight-knit, even with the new coaching staff and some young players."

Butler had previously visited Ohio State in July for their Friday Night Lights Camp, and has received strong interest from the Buckeyes since.

"I didn't hear much in August because they couldn't really contact me, but once Sept. 1 came I started talking to Coach [Ed] Warinner and Coach [Mike] Vrabel a lot," Butler said. "They send me mail a bunch and ask me to call them every Wednesday or Thursday night. They have seen early tape, like what they see and just tell me to keep working hard and keep progressing."

Butler still awaits his first scholarship offer, but the interest from schools continues to pick up and Butler expects to schedule more game visits before the fall is out.

"I'm thinking about hitting up Michigan soon and maybe Michigan State," Butler said "Michigan sends me a bunch of mail every week and invite me to all the games. Michigan is a very traditional program and I would love to go there. At Michigan State I talk to Coach [Dan] Roushar. He tells me he would like to get me out for a game and they like where I am at."

Mail has also come in consistently from schools like Vanderbilt and Boston College. Being located outside his region, Butler said those schools will be tougher to visit this fall but he would like to see those programs as well.

Butler plays offensive guard for Joliet Catholic, but has also played offensive center in the past and said he could project to either spot in college.