Ohio State did not play a football game this weekend, but Urban Meyer picked up a future team member when four-star receiver Alex Stump gave his pledge to be a Buckeye on Sunday.
Stump, a 6-3, 190-pounder from Lakewood St. Edward is the No. 24-rated wide receiver in the country and was listed as the No. 15 player in Ohio in Scout.com's preseason state rankings. He originally committed to Kentucky but reconsidered after receiving an offer from Ohio State.
Stump also had offers from Miami, Stanford and West Virginia, among others.
His change of heart gives Ohio State 17 verbal commitments for 2015, including eight from Ohio.
The move is a blow to Kentucky, which has hit Ohio hard since Youngstown native Mark Stoops became head coach of the Wildcats prior to last season.
Earlier this month, Stoops got commitments from two of Stump's teammates at St. Edward -- twin brothers Andrew and David Dowell, giving his 2015 class seven members from Ohio so far. He pulled 11 players from the Buckeye State in the 2014 class, including four-star prospects Thaddeus Snodgrass of Springfield, Darius West of Lima Central Catholic and Mike Edwards of Cincinnati Winton Woods. The Dowells are both considered four-star prospects and checked in at No. 9 and 10 in the most recent state rankings.
Stump is set to be the first St. Edward player to sign with Ohio State since safety Nate Oliver in 2007 and the fourth in the past 20 years. Alex Boone, now a member of the San Francisco 49ers starting offensive line, was a five-star prospect for the Eagles who signed with Ohio State in 2005. Defensive lineman Rodney Bailey was a member of the Buckeyes' 1997 class.
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