All eyes were on Jeannette, Pa., about this time last year.
And it stayed that way until March 19, 2008, when former Jeannette High School quarterback Terrelle Pryor made his decision to take his football career to Ohio State.
The Buckeyes went back to Jeannette to recruit this year, and it didn't take them as long to sign another player from the Jayhawks' backfield in running back Jordan Hall.
Like the quarterback with whom he shared the backfield in high school, this 2009 recruit has a little bit of talent himself.
"He's got tremendous potential," said Steve Helwagen, managing editor for Bucknuts Media Network. "He didn't get an offer just because he's Terrelle Pryor's friend or former teammate. He's definitely on merit."
Hall is one of four freshmen running backs who were recruited by the Buckeyes to play alongside Pryor, including Jaamal Berry and Carlos Hyde out of Florida, and Adam Homan from Coldwater, Ohio.
Although he will have to battle for playing time with returning tailbacks Daniel Herron and Brandon Saine, Hall has the ability to see the field other than when he's getting the ball handed to him.
"Without a doubt, he'd be a guy that has the skills to return kicks and also be a running back that they can use for screen passes," said Jeff Svoboda, staff writer for Buckeye Sports Bulletin. "There's no doubt that he is certainly an explosive guy that can make an impact whenever they do show that he's ready."
Hall's numbers show he is ready now.
With his 5-feet-9-inch and 180-pound frame, he plowed through defenses on his way to rushing for 946 yards and 18 touchdowns as a senior. He also recorded 266 yards and three touchdowns as a receiver.
During his junior season, he teamed with Pryor to lead the Jayhawks to a 16-0 record and a Pennsylvania Class AA state title.
He scored 32 touchdowns that year, including scores on a kickoff, punt and interception return on his way to being named to First Team All-Pennsylvania in Class AA.
Hall also received scholarship offers from Penn State, Pittsburgh, Notre Dame and Michigan, but Helwagen said OSU is the perfect fit for Hall because the Buckeyes' offensive scheme doesn't differ too much from Jeannette's.
"I think that Jordan saw that if Ohio State is going to run a spread offense with Pryor at the quarterback - it was a perfect fit for him in high school," Helwagen said. "It made perfect sense for him to be in that same situation at the college level."
With all of the competition OSU has at tailback, Helwagen and Kevin Noon, publisher of Buckeyegrove.com, said Hall is a possible candidate for a red shirt.
Regardless of when he plays his first game, Noon thinks Hall will be a pleasant surprise.
"I think he kind of gets overlooked in the class," Noon said. "A lot of people think that he might be a throw-in - like a two-for-one deal, since Ohio State got Pryor. Jordan Hall's talent stands on its own; any program straight up would have been thrilled to land Jordan Hall, so don't let anybody think that he was a throw-in."
Drew Sullivan can be reached at sullivan.462@osu.edu.
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