Every recruiting cycle, I see the same thing. A player gets a three-star rating and people decide what kind of college football player he is before he’s even finished high school.
Then a program like Ohio State offers that player, and suddenly everybody wants to know what the Buckeyes see that the rankings don’t.
That’s why the recent commitment of linebacker James Conrad caught my attention.
From Buffalo to Ohio State
Conrad, a 6-foot-3, 225-pound linebacker from St. Ignatius in Cleveland, had been committed to Buffalo since June. After visiting Ohio State in October and receiving an offer, he flipped his commitment to the Buckeyes on October 15. He’s listed as a three-star prospect in the 2027 class. Eleven Warriors reported the commitment, and his Rivals profile confirms the change.
Now, I haven’t broken down Conrad’s full game film, so I’m not going to pretend I can tell you exactly what Ohio State’s coaches saw. But I do know what this situation should tell every young player and parent following the recruiting process.
A recruiting ranking is a snapshot, not a ceiling
Rankings have a purpose. They help fans, coaches and recruiting services sort through thousands of players. But a ranking is still somebody’s evaluation at a particular point in time. It isn’t a prediction carved in stone.
Players develop at different rates. Some grow into their bodies late. Some improve their football IQ. Others finally get the coaching, competition or opportunity that allows their ability to show up consistently on film.
As a coach, I’m interested in more than what a player looks like in a highlight clip. I want to see how he moves, how he processes information, how he responds when the play doesn’t go his way and whether the same strengths show up repeatedly.
A star rating can’t answer all of those questions.
What the Ohio State offer really means
The important part of this story isn’t that a three-star player suddenly became better the moment Ohio State offered him. He was the same player the day before the offer.
What changed was the evaluation and the opportunity.
According to reporting on his recruitment, Conrad’s senior-season production helped draw Ohio State’s attention. Eleven Warriors noted that the Buckeyes offered after his visit and viewed him as a developmental prospect.
That’s an important word: developmental. College coaches don’t recruit only the player standing in front of them today. They also project what that player can become in their system after two or three years of strength training, meetings, practice and competition.
Three lessons for high school recruits
1. Keep putting good football on film
Don’t let your current ranking become your identity. Your next game is another chance to show better technique, better decisions and better effort. Make the film tell the story.
2. Don’t overlook the schools that believed in you first
Buffalo saw value in Conrad before Ohio State entered the picture. That matters. A recruit should seriously evaluate every program offering a real opportunity, not just chase the biggest logo.
3. Choose development over attention
When you’re deciding where to play, ask who is going to coach you, what their plan is for your development and how you fit into their system. The commitment announcement lasts a day. Your development lasts years.
The bottom line
James Conrad’s flip is a recruiting headline today, but the larger lesson will still matter next year and the year after that.
Stars can help describe where a prospect stands in the recruiting conversation. They do not determine how good that prospect can become.
Young players: don’t spend your energy arguing with a ranking. Spend it giving college coaches better reasons to recruit you.
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