PICKERINGTON – Ohio State offered multiple Central Ohio basketball prospects in 2018, but Jerome Hunter out of Pickerington North and Dane Goodwin from Upper Arlington both chose to play college basketball in the state of Indiana rather than Ohio.
Fast forward to the 2023 class and the Buckeyes are doing it again. In June, head coach Chris Holtmann offered wing Dailyn Swain out of Africentric, and on Monday they issued their second local offer to wing Devin Royal out of nearby Pickerington Central.
The 6-foot-6 prospect saw his recruitment blow up recently. Between June 12 and Monday, Royal picked up 12 offers — with Ohio State being the most notable. While the Ohio State offer is one of his most recent offers it has been in the works for some time, Royal even remembers when it began with the Buckeyes.
“I feel like a couple of weeks after Peach Jam it started picking up a little bit and it started picking up more about a month ago,” Royal told Buckeye Scoop.
As for what prompted Ohio State to offer Royal it is a combination of things: his personality, work ethic, skill and versatility according to Royal himself.
“I think my versatility,” he said. “I feel like I was more productive this year and Peach Jam just helped me show my game on a higher level.”
After the initial contact started between Royal and Ohio State, the plans quickly came together to get him on campus. Which he did for the Tulsa game.
“They showed me around the facility, we did a tailgate and we watched the game on the field. We saw the players and hung out with them,” said Royal.
That was not Royal’s only trip to Columbus this fall. He was actually on campus Monday afternoon to talk with the coaches and watch practice, which was when he finally got his offer.
“We looked around campus more than the first time. They showed us more of the facility because we didn’t see all of it. We watched practice a little bit,” said Royal
And what did receiving an offer from Ohio State mean to him?
“It meant a lot,” he said. “Hometown school, everyone wants to go there and it felt good to get an offer from them.”
With signing day approaching for the 2022 class there is still plenty of time left for the 2023 class so don’t expect a commitment from Royal anytime soon. Still, the local prospect is high on the Buckeyes.
